Post by mominatrix on Aug 14, 2012 12:19:20 GMT -5
I'd totally say hi, chat, etc.
I wouldn't be uncomfortable with that at all. Here, at least, working at SB is a fairly good gig for folk. Good pay, tips, bennies. And (maybe it's the Seattle honoring of all coffee thing) I don't think that a barista is "other" or "lower" or whatever.
Would you be uncomfortable if it was somebody who wasn't a single mom, who you perceived as somebody whose family was doing well, and the sense you had was that she was just picking up a few hours here and there?
I'd just say hello, wish her a good day, that kind of thing. She's working at Starbucks. What's the big deal about that? (Now, if you ran into her while shopping at an adult toy store or saw her on a pole, that might be awkward...for everyone involved, not just you. But Starbucks?)
Post by statlerwaldorf on Aug 14, 2012 12:26:47 GMT -5
I would just say hello. My mom works a shitty job at a grocery store, but she never minds when people from my brother's more affluent school stop and say hello. I heard SB treats their employees better than other similar businesses.
Every now and then affluent people like to remind everyone else just how much richer they are. Its awkward for everyone else because we keep trying to pretend they arent so douchey. I hope the barista doesnt pity your lack of class in even considering not talking to someone you know.
I went to a fancy private college and worked the entire time. I worked in the dining halls, labs, library, etc. One morning I was clearing trays in the dining hall and a classmate handed me her tray and said, trying to be empathetic, "Hey, E. Shitty job, huh?"
Don't do that.
Say hi, ask how her day is, and treat her exactly as you would at drop off or pick up. How she earns a paycheck is irrelevant to your interactions, I'd think.
I have to admit that part of the NBD-ness of this is that working at SB doesn't seem like a bad gig.
If I was in an office building and saw her working as a janitor, I might have a different reaction, KWIM?
What the hell is SB?
Starbucks lol.
I can kind of see the awkwardness here. Not because she is a single mom and you live in an affluent area, but because it can be awkward to be waited on by someone you know from another setting. H and I went to a nice-ish restaurant one night and the waitress was a friend of mine from HS. That was kind of awkward.
Ohhh, she's working at the restaurant. I thought she was in line with you or something. Yeah, you still say hi. One of PTS's teachers also works at Target. We say hi.
do you also hold your nose while doing so and then try to explain away your "nicer" purchases? i hear that's de rigeur.