Server, not the computer kind

 How many jobs have you had?

I tried to Google an average and there was no one number. I have worked at a gas station, a couple of different bookstores, a dutch restaurant, for an earthworks company, as a giant rat in a kids birthday hot spot, for a blue and yellow electronics store, and briefly as an admin for covid testing, and for a bit as a manager at a battery kiosk in a mall. None of this includes all the "working" I did with my mom at her workplaces when I was growing up or the catering I have been doing for most of my life.  

I am of the opinion that everyone should have to work retail, customer service, and in a restaurant at least once in their lives. And in the restaurant, they should work front and back of house. There are some lessons that you can only learn from these types of positions. 

While I try not to judge people (My name isn't Judy) I must say I form opinions on people based on how they treat the people serving them. Snapping at or yelling across the room to your server is never appropriate. This person is still your equal. I think that is where the confusion lays for some. Just because someone is serving you,  that doesn't mean you are better than they are. Would you go to your doctor's office and treat them that way? Would you treat your mom, spouse, or boss that way? And if you would we have a larger issue here.

Then there is retail. There is nothing quite like a retail Christmas. I had the joy (?) of working a boxing day event for the blue and yellow store. We (the workers) had to be at the store at 5 am, to make sure the store was ready and to try and prepare us for the onslaught that was to occur. A coworker and I carpooled to take up one less parking spot (management encouraged as many of us to carpool as possible) We got there at 4:45. The lineup was down the block and had doubled back on itself plus a little extra. The energy of that day was like nothing I had ever experienced before. We all worked extra hours that day and I could barely keep up with picking the extra cash from tills around the store. The flood of people when the doors opened was terrifying. I didn't think any of the deals were good enough to warrant this kind of behaviour. 

Then there was the mouse restaurant. I was the only server that was old enough to serve alcohol, the tips I received were ridiculous. I was also the perfect height to get to run around the place to gather the children like some weird Pied Piper of Hamelin remix. There were choreographed dance moves to perform and a swell storage room to hang out in-between numbers. While it is a close call, the drunk parents may actually have been worse than the overstimulated kids. 

I could go on and on with tales of work adventures, we probably all could. The real end here though is that we are all human and all deserve to be treated as such. Tip extra, if you can. And if your server has gone about and beyond email, or call the manager. It goes a long way.