Thursday, July 2, 2009

Back to the Coffee Grinder

A banana, peanut butter and honey sandwich is sitting on a binder on my bed, nearly devoured. I am so hungry. But, oh gosh, I'm not picking up college habits this soon, am I?

Yesterday, I had two iced soy chais at work to soothe my savage stomach. However, I conveniently forgot that concentrated black tea is very high in caffeine, and I didn't get into a deep sleep until 2 o'clock the next morning. Inconveniently, I had to get up at 5:35 am, and found myself bright and chipper at 5:15. I got dressed and sent an excessively grateful prayer to God for a surprisingly supportive stomach.

And then, for the second time alone since I got my license, I drove all by my little lonesome. Mom said she didn't hear me leave, and I am so thankful because I lived through my older brother's crashings-around at 4:30 in the morning, back in the day. Cabinet doors and garage doors slamming, dishes falling...*insert anxious gasp here*

I clocked in at 6:30, and began all the morning duties. The ice cooler was 95% water and, after an assuring nod from my stomach, I took a five dollar bill from the register and left to go to the convenience store.

The cashier was sweet, but clearly exhausted. She was prepared for the long haul. The floor space behind the counter wasn't large enough for a baby turtle to roam free, and the ceiling was so low, I felt as if I were in a kid-sized gas station. Behind the register, there was a little gray desk area in front of a pint-sized window. On the desk was an unopened, bright blue, plastic cup filled with Fruit Loops. It added so much color to the area to the otherwise dreary atmosphere, I could tell it was the clerk's prompt to get her through the early morning hours. Her courteous and passive demeanor suggested that this cup of cheery cereal was her morning routine.

I left the store with a bag of ice and a feeling of renewed gratitude for my own job.

Everything went fine, and I met the first, new employee to the coffee shop. As I was half-way through instructing her how to make a wrap sandwich, a man came in and stood for very nearly 30 seconds before I heard a very loud and urgent,

"Ma'am?"

You would have thought something was catching fire, or a pot of coffee was overflowing. I hurried over to see what the matter was and he instructed me that he had no intentions of waiting in line.

"You can make my coffee, and I'll sit at the computers until you're ready to take my order."

"I'm sorry, sir," I said earnestly. "I'm right in the middle of training someone and will be with you in one moment."

"I understand that," he said. "Just get me my coffee and I'll go sit down."

This is also the man who, when you ask which of three sides he would like for his meal, replies, "All three." That may not seem obnoxious, however, our baskets and to-go containers are meant to handle only one side. It's not easy as it is, to carry a basket and napkins and fetch silverware, while navigating a way to the computers.

Five minutes later, when I set the basket next the man, he replied with a brisk, "Hank-yuh."

I can't exactly say I wasn't brisk myself.

Uh oh--fireworks are going off at the moment, and the millions of geese are going insane. COVER YOUR CARS AND PUT ON YOUR HOODS. Yikes, I'm going to write.
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