3 Angry Customers

I don't claim to be a wonderful person. Fact is, I'm not the friendliest guy you'd ever hope to meet. However, I like to think that I'm fair and honest when dealing with people, and I never attempt to screw anybody over or plot to bring ruin to their family name. Truth is, I'm just an average schmoe trying to make a buck in this world and as such I'm not interested in being a najor-league asshole, no matter how many times I use that term to describe myself. Oh sure, there have been times when I've rightly deserved it, but it's not something I actively seek out.

So why does it seem like people have it in for me lately?

No matter how sincere my smile, no matter how relaxed the body language, no matter how friendly my tone, I've started to be treated rather scornfully from not only by my customers but the population in general. I can't count the number of damn stink-eyes I've been receiving lately. I figure it's only a matter of time before somebody comes in the store and starts waving a gun in my face again.

But so far, these feelings of animosity toward me have been directly expressed only three times in the past three days, and I'm hoping that's all it will be. Frankly, I'm going to have start screaming at someone soon if this keeps up. Granted, these things aren't really that big of a deal. When combined with the general vibe I've been receiving however, I'm starting to feel like these are only the preliminary rumbles before the big 10.0 quake blows everything to shit.

Friday

Yeah, Friday. Typically the time of the week where all the workaday bums go out and get completely shit-faced. However, there was one lady who just couldn't wait until evening. What are the odds that she'd end up at my store? Oh, pretty damn good, I'd say. After rummaging around in her socks (?) for her money for a good five minutes, she braced herself against the counter and attempted to look me in the eye. She started slurring something at me, but I couldn't understand most of it. To end it though, she said "Yeah, you think I'm a bitch. Well, guess what, you asshole, you're the biggest bitch here!" I chuckled a little, then glared at her and replied, "Don't bother coming back, because I'm not going to be serving you." I've always thought that to be a rather hollow threat; after all, who gives a shit if they can't shop at the bloody Rolf store? But for some reason she looked at me like I meant business and stumbled out. Heh.

Saturday

At the end of a long, boring and soul-baking shift, a member of Rocky's youth population - a guy I wouldn't mind seeing flattened by a Mack truck, incidentally - shuffled through the door. To add even more joy to the moment it appeared that he was completely stoned off his ass. This guy usually takes way too long to make up his mind, and him being high was probably going to tack on an extra ten minutes to the amount of time he'd be in the store. But luckily, he went over to the sub cooler right away and threw something in the microwave. I was getting ready for cash-out and thus was not paying too much attention to what he was doing. I looked up however and saw him shoving an ice-cream sandwich into his face. I made a note of it, and when he came to the counter to pay for his sub I asked if there was anything else. Of course, he said no. Good lord. After pressing him about it and pointing out the copious amount of chocolate all over his lips, he finally confessed to it. I bagged his stuff, and as he was leaving he gave me the finger. Sigh.

Sunday

This was not a bad day, I have to admit. But with half-hour to go on the clock somebody saw fit to ensure that I didn't have a hassle-free shift. A lady came to the counter with a package of Halls and asked for a pack of Export A Ultra Light King Size. After pointing out we only carried the regulars she started swearing and knocked over a bunch of stuff on the counter. I was rather dumb-founded, seeing as this was the first time somebody had thrown a shit fit over cigarettes in the three years that I've worked here. May I recommend some gum?

So, that was my weekend. As I said before, this shit when taken by itself is rather minor. But you've got to place them into context with the rest of my life. When you do that, the future isn't looking too good.