Oh, What’s A Little Third Degree Burn Anyway

(In high school I worked at a do-it-yourself pottery painting store. Customers would purchase a blank piece of pottery and paint it with colored glazes, and we would fire the finished pieces overnight in kilns. Pick-up time for pieces is 6:30 pm. A customer shows up at 10 am wanting her piece.)

Customer: “Yeah, I painted something yesterday and I want to pick it up.”

Me: “I’m sorry, but your piece is still in the kiln. I can probably have it to you by 4 if you can’t wait until 6:30.”

Customer: “Why can’t I have it now?”

Me: “Because it’s still in the kiln, and it needs to finish baking and cool for several hours before I can take it out.”

Customer: “But can’t you just get mine out now?”

Me: “I’m sorry, but the kiln is running at 1600 degrees and is locked shut. Even if I could get it open and get your piece out without killing myself, the piece would shatter from cooling too fast.”

Customer: “Can’t you just get it out?”

Me: *facepalm*

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