When Joe and I went on vacation with our friends in the mountains of northern Georgia a few weeks ago, we knew exactly what we were getting into. We were going to be #teammask people in a part of the country that didn’t think masks were important. We had “Plan B” all read if we ever felt uncomfortable. Fortunately, we adapted to the situations that we encountered and had no major problems.
However, we did have one minor one.
There was a store that one of our friends really wanted to go into and it seemed like the type of place that I would really like, too. It was early Sunday evening and most tourists had already left for the weekend, so there weren’t many people inside. The signs on the door also specified social distancing, mask use, plexiglass barriers at the cash registers and even patrons having to wear plastic disposable gloves during transactions, so I felt relatively safe.
The store was a fun place to wander through and I found a few things I wanted to buy.
If we’re together, Joe usually is the one who pays for stuff. He knows I have no patience for the whole “credit card thing” and usually gives me just one card that’ll be the most beneficial for most purchases (right now it’s a Barclay Arrival+ MasterCard. Something about 2 points per dollar? Whatever, don’t care, sorry not sorry LOL!). He, on the other hand, has cards at the ready, depending on if the purchase is for gas, groceries, small businesses or whatever.
There were 2 cashiers. Both had their masks down around their chins but as Joe approached one, she put it up the way it belonged. The plexiglass between the two of them was also in a good place to keep both of them safer.
As Joe was getting rung out, the other cashier came over to help by holding the bag that our (gloved) cashier was putting the contents into. However, cashier #2 was still wearing her mask below her chin, was about two feet from Joe, and was beyond the plexiglass.
I need to interrupt myself at this point by mentioning that I’m at the point in my life where, much like Cathay Pacific Airlines, I pretty much have no “effs” to give. If a situation is bothering me that much, I will say something about it. I’ll try to be polite about the whole thing, but it’s usually with varying degrees of success (I’m still working on that life skill called “tact”).
Back to our story…
When it was time to pay, Joe tried to hand our cashier his credit card. She, in turn, asked him to put on one of the plastic disposable gloves they had in a box on the counter, for safety.
As you’ve probably figured out by now, I am ALL about safety in the age of COVID-19. But something else needed to be done to make the transaction 100% safe and I knew exactly what it was. So I said, “If he has to put a glove on for safety, then can she (cashier #2) put her mask on the right way?”
I caught the look cashier #2 gave me and it was not a good one. So I tried to explain myself.
Me: Well, if he has to use some sort of protection like a glove, so should everybody else.
Maskless cashier: I’m not touching your items.
Me: But you’re breathing with your mask down by your chin. And your store has a sign out front that says everyone should wear a mask. That does mean they should wear one the right way, right?
Another icy stare of death.
At this point, she walked away and went back to her till, lips pursed, eyebrows furrowed. She was FURIOUS that I dare suggest she wear her mask the right way.
As we left, her parting shot was, “You know, next time you can place your orders online and just do outside pickup. Then you don’t even have to come inside.”
I told her “thank-you” and “Bless your heart,” and we left.
We had to pick something up from the same store the next day. I stayed in the car. 😉
Featured Image: Pixabay
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#stayhealthy #staysafe #washyourhands #wearamask
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This post first appeared on Your Mileage May Vary
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