Christmas Giving

I suggested to the clerk that our gifts to extended family should be tax deductible. It's charity, after all. He almost fell off his platform. The lady behind us scowled. The lady behind HER knows me, and will let me off with a night on the couch. I'm giving myself a Christmas present; a more comfortable couch.

Why do some retailers insist upon putting their cashiers on an elevated platform? The number of clumsy falls must be worth the extra security, or the heady superior sense of worth, or the intimidation of children factor. If I were elevation challenged like a certain sister-in-law we won't discuss here because we "don't want to hurt her feelings" (like she doesn't realize she's short as a praying seven year old), I'd pay in coins and launch them onto the tall counter at the clerk. But then, the clerk we had last night would probably smile, tell her he understands, and start picking up coins. Gawd this seasons drags on.

It was a candy factory that stirred my Christmas feelings last night. The setting is festive, the smells enticing, the sample plate bountiful (at least when I got there. I caught one girl retracting toffee) , and the staff was joking around. From the kitchen: "More moose nuggets, needs crunch!" And from the candy counter: "We need help! Aisle three!" (There are no aisles.) A swarm of "help" pushed past the hollerer, and two helpers left, feigning disappointment. The shipping clerk bobbed her tinkly hat in time with the music and told me I could not ship V with the candy because "That would be illegal, and probably wrong, as well.", winkwink. Then she mumbled, "and it wouldn't be the first time." The cashout clerk was patient and friendly, (and slow), and honest enough to give the tourist restaurant across the street a less-than-glowing review. Actually, he didn't say anything, just kind of stared at the question, so that nothing NEEDED saying. If I had plans to run a business, I'd like to know this store's management model. Even in the wild tourist season, the service side of this store is courteous and genuinely friendly. On the quality side, well let me tell you... There exists a thing called a pumpkin spice truffle that I would do terrible things to get. I asked the counter girl who was responsible for my addiction, and she told me how the "back room" had circulated samples for feedback. "The white chocolate was too sweet for the filling", per the consensus. "The milk chocolate was going to sell very well. And the dark? Let's just say the entire staff was walking around with their cheeks pooched out and the sample batch didn't last the morning." I'm considering changing jobs. Perhaps I'll start a pipeline for chocolate...