‘Tis the Season

Yes, this is a stressful time of year. Yes, it is hectic and yes, many people are on edge. But does that mean civility has to be a casualty?

I swear, if one more person bitches at me today, I’m going to lose it and go global on his/her ass!

I went to the grocery store this morning. Yeah, yeah, my first mistake. I stopped at the in-store cafe for a latte. Unfortunately, the person in front of the line was writing a check for a cup of coffee. Ok, I understand the desperate need for caffeine, but a check?

I’m not sure what the discussion was about, but whatever. The line behind be was getting longer by the minute. However, I wanted my caffeine, too, so there was nothing to do but wait. And it’s Christmas Eve, so it’s all good, right?

The two people in front of me got their orders and proceeded on. I get to the counter and I’m told all they have for latte is decaf. There is someone driving more from another store, but that’s hours away. I said “Death Before Decaf!” The clerk and I laughed and as I was about to just order a large coffee, the clerk offered me another option — a ready-made iced latte, heated and steamed milk. I said just the ready-made was fine with the steamed milk, no need to heat it more than that.

So all this was business, not chit-chat. The guy behind me started yelling at me for holding up the line. Um … all this was under 60 seconds as opposed to the 3 – 4 minutes for the guy writing the check.

I just barely glanced at the man, thanked the clerk and the barista, and went to sit down and drink my liquid sanity.

The store was über-crowded and people were pushing and shoving to get down the aisles, most didn’t even excuse themselves.

I had 14 items and got into the “15 or fewer” lane. The man behind me had four item. I thought I’d be nice and let him go before me. His response when I made the offer? “Shut up and just check out!”

My response: “Happy holiday to you, too.”

I managed to say it without irony, sarcasm, attitude or enthusiasm. Just a very flat statement. Civility is dead and I hate the holidays.