Like many a millennial, I work multiple jobs to make rent. I am a cashier and a customer is purchasing some alcohol. Due to some incidents in the past, we have to card everyone, no exceptions, even if they look like they’re a hundred years old.

Me: “Can I see some ID please, sir?”

Customer: “Seriously? I’m old enough to be your daddy!”

Me: “Be that as it may, sir, I need to see ID for all alcoholic purchases. It’s company policy.”

Customer: “What a stupid f****** policy!”

Me: “Can I see your ID, sir?”

Customer: “No you may not! This is a stupid libt*rd policy and it’s people like you making this country all woke and pathetic!”

Me: *Ignoring the rant.* “I’ll just put your whiskey aside then.”

Customer: “You stupid f****** b****! Go back to your commie country you f****** [racial slur]!”

He storms off. I guess he didn’t like me being Asian? Anyhoo, water off my back at this point.

I finish my shift and start my next job, which is an evening shift at a nearby bar. I’m serving drinks and who should turn up and order a round of beers?! Now, our bar isn’t as strict with the ID policy as my grocery store is, but I am feeling petty.

Me: “Can I see your ID, sir?”

Customer: “No, you cannot—”

His eyes widen, as he finally recognizes me.

Me: “I denied you alcohol before because I had to, sir. This time, it’s because I want to.”

Customer: “F*** you! Where is your manager!”

My manager comes over as he has overheard us.

Manager: “Sir, it is our policy to stand behind every refusal of alcohol where our bar staff see fit. You will not be getting a drink tonight.”

Customer: “You f****** woke [racial slur]-loving a**hole!”

Manager: “And now you won’t be getting anything. Leave now or I call the cops.”

He slams the bar out of frustration and storms out.

Manager: “A nicer person might just think he really needed a beer, but nah, he’s just a racist a**hole. Anyway, as you were!”

The rest of the shift went as smooth as the whiskey he didn’t get to drink.

I am a checkout clerk in a busy supermarket. It is 2021, so you-know-what is going around and social distancing is being enforced.

I open my register and I call over the customer next in line at the register across from me. She has a full cart and she happily brings it over. A man behind her notices and tries to dash in front, but doesn’t make it as he has more ground to cover. He looks annoyed as he only has a few items, but a queue is a queue.

The man immediately gives the woman customer in front of him dirty looks, and nudges her cart forward in the line (a big no-no even when there isn’t social distancing!) and starts to load HIS items on the end of the belt, before this woman has even had a chance to start unloading hers.

She nudges his cart BACK, and starts unloading her items, talking to me as she’s doing so.

Woman Customer: “I was considering letting him go ahead but forget that!”

He tries pushing her cart further to the front again.

Woman Customer: *To him.* “There is a barrier here for social distancing! I can’t go any further before I can’t unload! Wait!”

She pushes his cart back again and continues unloading, pausing every few minutes to push his food back.

Woman Customer: “Oops might have squished your rolls a bit!”

Male Customer: “You should move!”

He’s full-on gesturing to her and asking why she can’t move up completely disregarding the barrier.

Woman Customer: “Hmm, well, I’ve had these EBT cards I got for my kids sitting in my wallet for ages because they each only have $10 or so and I never feel like taking the time to do multiple transactions.”

She then stares directly at the man.

Woman Customer: “How handy that now I have extra time!”

After all six transactions are done she thanked me for my patience. The next customer was a face of stony silence.

It’s my first day working at the grocery store, and a trainer is showing me how to stack the shelves.

Trainer: “By the end of the evening, we need to go collect all the abandoned produce from the confectionary aisles.”

Me: “Why is there abandoned produce at the confectionary aisles?”

Trainer: “Actually, it’s mostly green vegetables and ready-made salads.”

Me: “And they’re always abandoned in the confectionary aisle?”

Trainer: “Yup.”

Me: “Why?”

Trainer: “Important life decisions are made in that aisle.”

A couple of days ago, I was looking for bargains at our local [Grocery Store], a US chain that specializes in procuring overstock items, factory seconds, and closeout items from name brands and private-label suppliers.

I love shopping there, as one never knows what might be available on any given day, and the prices are usually much lower than what the items originally sold for.

My concentration was broken, though, when I heard a thud and the sound of falling merchandise at the end of the aisle I was shopping in. I looked up to see a woman about the same age as me (in her seventies) who had accidentally clipped a cardboard display with her cart, knocking it over and scattering bags of marshmallows down the aisle. The woman looked shocked.

Me: “Here, let me help you with that.”

I stood the display back up, and she and I corralled all the escaped bags of puffy goodness and stacked them back up like they had been. It only took us a couple of minutes. When we were done we exchanged, “Have a good day,” smiled at each other, and went our respective ways.

I didn’t think any more of it. I finished shopping and found myself standing at the back of one of the long, busy checkout lines behind several other shoppers with full carts.

Suddenly, a clerk appeared at my elbow and indicated that I should bring my cart and follow her over to one of the closed registers, where she motioned me to unload my cart. “Cool,” I thought. “They are opening up another register.” So, I went to grab the “This Lane Is Closed” sign to hand it to her.

Employee: “No, just leave that there”.

It was then that the light bulb came on in my brain. They were temporarily opening up a register just for me. This VIP treatment had to be the store’s way of thanking me for helping that lady.

That was just so cool. It still puts a smile on this old face.

I am working a night shift at a twenty-four-hour grocery store. At this time of night, I am not known for my patience with stupid questions.

Customer: “Why are they making you work at 3:00 am?”

Me: “Why are you shopping at 3:00 am?”