It’s A Different World!

No matter where you live, no matter where you started out, one thing is constant: Coming home is always a mixed experience. Sure, you’re glad to see the old sites, to spend time with friends and family, and to soak in the old and familiar. But there are also the downsides of coming home.

For example: You see changes to the place you remember ("Was that park always that small? It used to seem so big!"); There are the things you have forgotten ("That's right! This road doesn't go anywhere."); And there are the things you have intentionally suppressed ("God! People in South Florida can be so darn rude!").

This point was driven home to me as I went to the store yesterday to grab some lunch. I had a craving for a Cuban Sandwich and so I headed off to the local deli counter to acquire a couple. After grabbing a number from the dispenser I stepped to a place a nice respectful distance (about two feet behind) the person at the counter. As the person at the counter finished their transaction, I made to step forward and give my order when this woman and her son barged-up to the counter and started ordering. I cleared my throat to indicate my presence and held-up my number which showed that I was the next to be served. I also to another step forward. She ignored me.

She completed the order for six different, complex sandwiches (each with a confusing list of restrictions, additions, and preparation rules designed to make them almost impossible to make for anybody but a combination advanced chemical engineer and conceptual architect); she then sent her son to go forage around the shop for an impressive list of staples and side-items that she wanted to serve with the sandwiches. Resigned to waiting 'til this person had finished with their order (which seemed to be in a constant state of flux), I took a half-step backward so that I once again gave the person at the counter a bit of respectful privacy. As I took my step backward she seemed to see me for the first time. She took a contemptuous little glance at my number and looked at the display. "Oh, were you next? Too bad. You should have said something." She said, her voice making it clear that there was no way I could have gotten my order first without physically shoving her back to her proper place in line.

She had just finished paying for her order when her son returned for the third time from his foraging with an armload of additional stuff to be added to the growing pile on the counter. As if she hadn't thought she would have to pay for the stuff she had sent her son to round-up, she had put away her wallet. She then had to wait for the clerk to ring-up her order and then she remembered to dig-out her wallet to pay for it.

I seethed as this second transaction for the line jumper was beginning when I heard a second voice behind the counter say "Whose next?" I raised my number and started to take a bit of a step forward when this voice behind me started making an order. If the woman with the brat ahead of me had been rude by jumping into line, ordering from the back of the queue, this was beyond the pall.

Luckily, she only wanted a tub of salad and it was finished quickly. Unfortunately the second person behind the counter disappeared, apparently having dispensed her allotment for the day. When, finally, I got to the counter, I placed my order and waited for the sandwiches to be pressed.

It was here that I noticed that there were other differences between the Deli I was at and the ones I might have visited back at home in Colorado. Not only did they offer Cuban Sandwiches, but the hot foods they served are totally different as well.

Whereas in Denver, the hot foods would include vegetables and sides like corn, potatoes, creamed spinach, and fries, here they had offerings like okra and tomatoes, black-eyed peas, plantains, croquettes, and empanadas.

Rudeness aside, the sandwiches were great! The plantains were such a wonderful sweet-salt balance... Yum! You can't get food like this back in Denver!

Wherever you are today, I hope you can take your place in line to enjoy this lovely morning!

Don Bergquist – June 09, 2010 – St. Petersburg, Florida, USA

Editor’s Note:

The author had a little “help” with this column. Much to the chagrin of the usual contributor of the blog, Saga the Canaan Dog, Smokie the Domestic American Shorthair cat decided to lend a hand, er, a paw, well, a head actually. He feels that his contributions have been pivotal in the creation of this entry and demanded his due credit be given.

-Editor