What's Up With That?

Okay, now THIS I don't get. I am typically very understanding and forgiving of what might be perceived as rudeness by a salesclerk; I generally take the high road and try to remember that I can't possibly know what is happening in that clerk's life that caused him or her to behave in such a way. But today I was treated to some particularly rude behavior that left me scratching my head in perplexity.

I had finished gathering all the groceries I needed on my weekly shopping list and wheeled my cart to the only open register in the store. Well, there was one express lane open at the very end but as I was toting approximately $200 worth of merchandise in my cart, clearly I did not qualify. So I took my place at the end of the line in Lane 6 behind another man with a full cart, who was behind a woman whose groceries were making their way down the conveyor belt.

I am compelled to mention that I was in no hurry whatsoever. I had nowhere else to be and nothing else to do, so I am certain that my body language included no such posture of impatience or hurriedness (yes, that is a word). Nevertheless, a clerk who was carrying a monstrous pastry started to make her way past me, eyed my overflowing cart of perishables and said, rather nicely I thought, "I'll take you at the next lane." I was genuinely pleased and said, "Oh, thank you!"

And that's when it all went south. As I wheeled my cart over to Lane 7, the clerk took the pastry back over to Customer Service and then came back and opened her register. And from that moment on I was treated to a combination of icy glares, heavy sighs, eye rolls and snippy comments that truly took me aback. I mean, if I was inconveniencing her it was all of her own doing, but she sure wasn't going to let me forget it. She wouldn't even give me my ticket to sign, so I had to tear it off the register myself and she all but snatched it out of my hand when I was finished. For my part, I tried to shrink into nothingness and be as little trouble as possible for the duration of my transaction,, and you can bet I declined the bagger's offer to wheel my groceries out in the pouring rain.

It's called taking the high road.