Hi Chris! How sad that this has been your experience. I too have sometimes found certain clerks in quilt stores to be, should I say, a bit "holier than though"? So unfortunate because I do not return to those stores.
I am also a knitter. I learned about 40 years ago but lost the skill. About 5 years ago a new yarn shop opened in my town of La Grange, Illinois and I decided to take a knitting class. What a great experience that was. There were two of us women and one man. Yes! One man. He was a delight. He and his wife were teachers and he watched his wife knit for years and then decided he wanted to try it. The great thing about him was that he taught himself to knit to the right needle and then back to the left needle without turning his work. Amazing!!! I have tried to do that and there is no way.
Just keep on quilting and hopeful your experiences will improve.
Yolanda