There's a reason you're a waiter

I was recently reminded of this little gem. People love to throw out that condescending, pretentious zinger at the help. "There's a reason you work at the gap...there's a reason you're a waiter...there's a reason you're a telemarketer." And God love them, they are right. There is alwasy some reason we do the work we do, it just might not be the reason you had in mind. For instance, I wait tables because I make over ten thousand dollars more a year than I ever did in social service, I have the best benefits package I've ever had, I never work overtime, and I can pretty much get any shift off with minimal effort. Many of my coworkers choose to wait tables for similar reasons - they have their days free to go to school, or their nights free to be actors or artists. They can work only a few days a week and still cover all their monthly expenses. One of my coworkers only works Saturdays and Sundays as a cocktail waitress, and she makes more money working eight days a month than many people do working twenty. She was the recipient of some customer hate a month or two ago and got to hear those magic words - "There's a reason you're a waitress!" Actually yes, there is. It's so she can go to nursing school full time while still earning a full time salary working only eight days a week. It's best not to judge the help too quickly. The majority of my coworkers have bachelor's degrees and many possess masters degrees as well. I once had a coworker who was working toward her doctorate when she wasn't busy fetching your rolls and water.

The main source of the problem, I believe, is that waiters are human. And as such we make mistakes. Especially when you consider the number of people we serve in a day, week, or month's time. I probably serve at least forty people every night, assuming I get three rounds of tables in a mid sized section. Bearing in mind I usually work four dinners a week, that equals 160 guests each week, which becomes 8,320 guests a year...not to mention all of my lunch guests. Logically, I am bound to make a mistake at some point, while processing over eight thousand orders a year. There's going to be an incorrect order or two in the bunch. When I make those mistakes does it mean that I am some sort of stupid monkey forced to wait tables because I am too ignorant or lazy to do anything else? Or are those mistakes a reflection of my human nature, my inability to be perfect all day, every day?

But what if? What if your waiter really is so ignorant there is nothing else he or she could do? What if they really are your server because they are too stupid to suceed elsewhere? Well lucky for them everytime someone reminds them of that. Thank God there will always be those customers out there who smugly take joy in the fact that someone else has to be their servant. And what a relief that those customers also happen to be perfect - never making any mistakes of their own.