Driving On Snake Oil

Manager: “Hey, I just wanted to see if you could stay a little after your shift. [Coworker] called and said she might be late.”

Me: “Yeah, no problem. Everything okay?”

Manager: “I, uh, don’t really know. She said she was afraid her car might explode.”

Me: “Her… car might explode?”

Manager: “That’s what she said.”

Me: “So, she’s going to be late because she’s waiting for a ride?”

Manager: “No. She said she’s going to be driving in. She just wanted to let us know she’d be late if her car explodes.”

Me: “If her car explodes she probably won’t have to worry about being late.”

Manager: “I said the same thing, but she didn’t quite seem to understand.”

Me: “I can’t believe you trust this girl to run a register.”

Manager: “Be nice. I know she’s a little flaky, but she’s not that bad.”

(Twenty minutes pass and my coworker walks through the door right on time. She quickly walks up to the counter where the manager and I are standing.)

Coworker: “Hi! I made it on time!”

Me: “Obviously. So I’m guessing your car didn’t blow up.”

Coworker: “No, thank god. I was really worried because there was this weird light flashing by the speed thingy.”

Manager: “Wait, you thought your car would blow up because a warning light came on?”

Coworker: *nods* “It was really scary!”

Me: “So, what did this light look like?”

Coworker: “Oh, it’s some weird watering can thingy with the word ‘oil’ written on it. What do you think it means?”

Manager: *stares for a moment* “I can’t believe I trust you to run a register…”

Me: “Be nice.”