My hate has made me powerful

(Click on the image to enlarge. That will probably make it easier to read.)

Working at Unnamed Family Dining Restaurant, I have the privilege to talk to customers on a frequent basis through the drive-thru. And while most of them are nice and friendly, there can be some oddballs that come through. Like the person who drove up and asked for a "Mr. Fabulous," a burger belonging to a joint that closed about ten years ago. Of course we would know what a Mr. Fabulous is! Or the people who will ask you to recite your 13 different pies, then recite your soups, your salads, and will order only a cheeseburger.

More innocent is the common mistake of ordering the food "to go." At a drive-thru, that is standard. But, considering at the movie ticket counter, when the attendant says "enjoy the show," I will reply "thanks, you too," I may not have the most right to criticize this.

What I love about that cartoon is that, although the daily comic strip is set in retail, as the name suggests, there are plenty of ideas and ideas that will cross over into other job situations. (Like Dilbert.) And the idea of having an explosion of frustration on a customer, like the one in the strip, can be very enticing after a hard day's night.

It could never happen, of course. The frustrated customer would talk to another manager, probably a district manager, I'd get a few "talking's to," reprimanded and something written on my permanent record. But I absolutely love the cashier's retorts. Almost Catbert-like.

And for those few times I get really frustrated at work, I prefer the term "channeling my energy into something productive," but I do like the alternative phrasing: "My hate has made me powerful." Enchanting.