Always Looking For That Perfect Date

(Due to a shortage of staff, someone from another department is helping out with produce. I only started a few months ago. My coworker’s refilling shelves while I mark down products. It’s about 10:00 am.)

Coworker: “So, do you like working here?”

Me: “It’s okay. Some customers standards are too high, though.”

Coworker: “What do you mean?”

(With perfect timing, a customer approaches the shelf my coworker is refilling, looking at the dates.)

Customer: “Do you have any fresher? Better dates?”

(My coworker desperately looks to me. I look and see these are the trays we received this morning. The date is four days away.)

Me: “That’s the freshest we have, ma’am.”

Customer: “What about in the back?”

Me: “My colleague here is putting out the stock from the back. These came in this morning, at 8:00 am.”

Customer: “Well, when is your next delivery?”

Me: “I think around 4:00 pm? I’m not sure; I only work mornings. They’ll have the same date on them, though.”

(The customer leaves without taking any of the fruit, talking loudly about how she wanted to make fruit salad “for tonight.” My coworker looks at me, gob-smacked.)

Me: “That’s what I mean.”