Waitressing Adventures

I haven't been a server for very long--this is my second summer working as a waitress and as it would appear, I have once again been delegated the wonderful responsibility of serving greasy gyro and souvlaki sandwiches to my fellow patrons. But even with only two summers of experience under my belt, this particular job has given me an eclectic collection of stories to tell and the somewhat useful ability to have a smile perpetually plastered on my face.

The summer months are particularly slow for a restaurant in a college town; I've been consistently making below minimum wage for the past month and I wasn't expecting to make any more than usual when I went in for my shift earlier today. It was mid-afternoon and just as I was beginning to think I was actually going to lose money coming in to work (neither the parking nor the food is free), an old couple walked in and ordered two Arnold Palmers and a single triple decker sub to share between them. I've always had good experiences with senior citizen customers; they always seem to be fairly decent tippers (though if there's one thing you learn as a server, it's that you can never predict who's going to be a good tipper or not based on appearance alone), but with the meal costing around $11 total, my hopes weren't exactly high.

Throughout the course of their meal, the old man jokingly said things like, "This sandwich is great! Did you make it?" or "The food is fantastic! Would you like some?" in response to my standard, "Is everything alright? Do you need anything?" There are, of course, the customers who shower compliments and endless words of gratitude throughout the meal, only to leave a terrible tip afterwards; words of gratitude, while appreciated, are useless without the corresponding tip!! I'm pretty sure this man, however, was an angel in disguise. Upon leaving the restaurant after a cheery "thank you so much for the great meal", I went to clear the table and collect my tip.

He left a $20 tip for an $11 meal.

It felt like Christmas had come early. He managed to singlehandedly restore my faith in humanity. Happiness can come in many forms and today, it came in the form of unexpected kindness from a good-natured old man.

Watch the music video for The Mowgli's (an excellent band I discovered today) "San Francisco" for an apt depiction of my happiness:

Watching Joseph Gordon-Levitt's dance number to Hall & Oates' "You Make My Dreams" from (500) Days of Summer also works.