Cane You Please Reexamine Your Perceptions?

I had surgery that made walking uncomfortable, so I used a cane to get around the store where I worked. A customer approached me.

Customer: *In the most condescending tone* “Could you find someone to help me with questions about computer networking equipment?”

Me: “I would be happy to help you with that, ma’am.”

She blinked in surprise and gestured to my cane.

Customer: “Oh! Oh, I’m sorry. I thought you were, like, a bag boy or something.”

Apparently, in her mind, a cane means a mental disability, and the only job a person like that can do is bagging her purchases.