The Post Unemployment Paycheck

I was paid for the first time on Friday. I wasn't as stoked as some of the younger people I work with who ripped open their checks to see how much money they were going to be cashing at the big white cash van across the street. While I patiently planned out my weekend, I thought about the people who haven't seen since high school or even just since May who may not be getting paid $10 an hour for sitting around for 8 hours a day to listen to random telecommunications product information. All this thinking was going on while someone was presenting new product information I should have been taking notes about.

Well, anyway. Back to the point. After plotting out the spending of this lowly check, I only spent some of it on shoes and clothing. I went out for dinner as well, just to some little place down the street where I knew the server from high school. This server was a big jerk. He was beyond the legal adult limit of sarcastic and mean. So, the last time I saw this server he said he was sorry for being a jerk and everything was fine. So, I saw him earlier tonight and he asked if I was still in school. He must have remembered I was at least in school the last time I was there to even ask. I answered him and he replied with something like, "Yeah, I graduated too, and I'm working here....but some insurance company just called me." So I sighed loudly to indicate that disappointment with both of our situations and smiled. Overall it was a five second encounter, but it let me know that not everyone I know has ended up in a place that reflects their personal strengths or abilities. That's something I really needed to know, and I'm thankful for.