Lunchtime @$$hat
I went to Fred Meyer on my lunch break yesterday to get a few grocery-related things I need at work (coffee creamer, mostly). While I was there, I went to the deli section to get something to eat. The woman behind the counter was almost finished weighing the order of the person in front of me, so I studied the food behind the glass while I waited. While she was down at the end of the counter ringing up that customer, a man came up and pushed his cart between me and the glass case.
A bit rude, I thought, but I figured he just wants to see what’s there for him to order, like I had done minutes before (though I hadn’t squeezed my way in between the other customer and the glass, I had just looked at the food around her.)
When the clerk came back, she looked me in the eye (obviously recognizing that I was the next to be served) and said “What can I get you?” As I was about to speak, the other guy started listing the things he wanted to order. The clerk shifted her gaze to him, but didn’t move to start getting his food.
“Did you seriously not see me here? You really didn’t notice that I was standing here waiting even before you pulled up with your cart?” I said. Which kind of surprised even me, because I’m RARELY confrontational. Something about this guy just set me off, I guess.
He said “I’m sorry, my mistake, where are my manners?”
Just kidding. What he actually said was “You were standing so far back, I didn’t think you were in line. You should have been standing closer to the glass case if you were waiting to be helped.” It was true that I hadn’t been standing right next to the glass, but I was standing close enough that he had literally inches on both sides of his cart when he pushed it between me and the glass. Plus the fact that I was just standing there waiting in that one spot, not shopping, not browsing, not wandering, should have been one of his clues.
“Oh, I guess they took down the sign that said whoever is standing closest to the glass gets served next, regardless of who was here first.” Turning to the woman, I said “I’ll have a bean burrito and a snack stick, and a fountain drink cup.” She smiled, got my food and took her sweet time ringing me up, which was just fine with me.
1 comment October 21st, 2008