after the first shift of my double, my general manager bought me lunch. i was eating with him and few coworkers. a coworker asks if she could sit next to me. i don’t mind, so she sits and begins telling me about her ex-boyfriend and how him and her were together for 4-5 years. they broke up, but still share custody of their dog, Jackson. i could never. the whole time i’m thinking of how spicy my pasta is, but i’m still listening. i offer a few words of encouragement before i went home to take my dog on a walk.
on the second shift of my double, nearly everybody in the restaurant called out. we were short-staffed and management is stressed. not only that, towards 9pm, i hear one of the line cooks screaming at a manager outside by the trash cans. then on top of that, about an hour later, i find myself engaging in an argument with the 38 year-old dishwasher. he seems to be angered he can’t bully me, but i can’t be having that. after the argument, christy, one of the sweetest servers, comes up to me and tells me it was good that i stood up for myself. she said “good for you.” nobody has said those words to me in a while, and if they have, it’s beyond my memory. that made me feel good about myself.
plus, tonight was my last shift working with jake. jake is my fucking guy. i have so much respect for him. he’s a server, but he’s always had my back since day 1. always saying what’s up to me, always making sure i’m good, and always being a good guy. it makes me sad that he’s leaving to move back to indiana, but i know he’ll be happy to see his girl on the regular again. a few weeks ago, he was telling me how he was going to propose to her sometime after the move. finally, after 6 years.
good for him.
-ratha, 11:57pm, 6.19.17