Hey! Go ahead and assume that the fat gringo who is standing at the counter speaks no Spanish. It’s better, though, for you to assume (since there is not a word of English in the menu) that he does. Either way, it is probably not a good idea to stand there chatting with a coworker about him in unflattering terms. In the words of the immortal Thomas “Fats” Waller: “One never know, do one!”
Yeah, this happened to me this weekend. I was driving through a Mexican area of the town, a bunch of tacarías, chacinerías, and panaderías. I was driving along and saw a restaurant that I have been past for a while be never stopped into. I can see now why.
It was a nice enough, absolutely no ambiance, but the food was good. The service was…
Well, let’s put it this way, I may no longer be fluent in Spanish, but I am still fluent enough to know that I am being talked about. Especially when the people saying words like “Gordo” and “Gringo” are accompanied by furtive glances in my direction.
What could I do? What would you do? I ordered in Spanish asking for my order “para llevar” (to go) and then watched as I got the slightly shocked/slightly guilty reaction from the cashier. I, of course, watched as my meal was prepared. There is just no excuse for being rude, people!
Wherever you are today, I hope you are neither the perpetrator nor the target of rudeness today.
Don Bergquist – February 11, 2008 – Lakewood, Colorado, USA
No comments:
Post a Comment