Now you can ask anyone who knows me. I am a very patient person. It takes a good bit to get me upset but there are things that literally get under my skin and incompetence is one of them. A recent experience I had is a good example but before I get too deep into that, I need to step up on my soap box for a second.
I think that when you work at a convenience store, your responsibility level is not incredibly high. This is not a slam of convenience store workers throughout the world but if you are a smart, hard working individual working at a convenience store, you are probably should consider yourself over qualified. This job usually consists of standing behind the counter, someone walks up and gives you a candy bar and some money. You give them change, and maybe even a receipt and that’s about as deep as it goes. One of the other things you have to do is monitor the gas pumps which in itself isn’t rocket science since most all are now “pay at the pump”. Now these pumps require very little maintenance but they do require you to put a paper ribbon in them so that when they print, they actually print and this one thing just seems to be something that most convenience store attendants feel either an unnecessary task or above their pay grade and it is one thing that will chap my butt in a heartbeat.
Now this is where my story begins. It is a cold February day in rural (capital R) Mississippi and I am all but out of gas. I pull into a “hole in the wall” convenience store which seemed to fit in well with the “hole in the wall” town it was in. Being a guy I figured I didn’t really need a jacket because this wasn’t going to take long so there I am standing there freezing in the cold north wind watching the pump sllooowly fill my tank with my only thought being to get through this ordeal and get back into my warm car. When I’m done, naturally the pump printer doesn’t print a receipt.
Now this puts the initial bug up my butt and I dread going inside because I know more bugs usually will be inserted before it’s all over. As I walk in I see three attendants all standing there chatting and I wait patiently until one of them finally decides that I might actually be standing there for a reason. In a very kind voice I ask for a receipt for my gas and tell them that the gas pump currently is not printing (thinking just by chance they might want to know that). She looks out across the pump area and says “Which puump?” . I looked out there and, since there are 6 pumps out there and only one car in the entire parking lot and that one car which is parked next one of the pumps is mine, it seemed like to me that this might just be a rather stupid question. I bit my tongue and said “the one next to the black car, you know, the one gas stall that’s not completely empty” throwing in the car color just in case this individual might be color blind. Well this wasn’t what she either wanted or needed to hear because her reply was “Weall darrllin, I caint print you ah recete if yoou doan’t knoow whaat puump nuumber yoou weer oonn. “ I believe that probably did it for me because I replied “Weall sug-ar , I’ll betsch yoou luk at themthair puumps at least a hunderd times a daaay and I’ll also betsch the numburs of them puumps has -a com up at least won-se b-fore. Scen-ce theere ainte but six puumps out theere and only one caaarr., I thank yoou shud be abell to figur this-un ouut don’t yoouu. Now thank reeal haard. I’ll trust ya on this-unn”. Her glare was beginning to make this whole thing start to be worthwhile as she replied “Weell baa-bee was tha a-mount fifty five dollas and twealve ceants?” . I replied “Dump-len , tha-at sounds riiite to mee”. She grunted something un-definable, ripped the receipt off the machine and handed it to me and, feeling her beady little eyes scorch my back, I walked out after saying “Have a nise daye, won’t cha”.
Now I recently made my mind up that I was really going to work on this incompetence irritation thing so I have to ask “Was I wrong in this? Was I impatient? Was I insensitive?. Have I regressed?”. I mean really now. I pulled out of the parking lot a little ashamed of myself but at the same time I did have a small grin that I didn’t have before I pulled in.
