So I was taking the order for this lady seated at a booth seat in Swensens, Changi Airport Terminal 1 branch early this evening. This lady had an adorable little girl. Chubby cheeks, cute little pigtails, the picture of a completely innocent baby doll. Until she opened her big mouth, that is.
Looking up at me, she began; “Auntie, I want…”
I nearly dropped my pen and order pad, and almost went into shock. Auntie? Whom are you calling auntie? Am I that old to be considered as an “auntie”? Most customers still refer to me as 姐姐 (jie jie), meaning big sister. This is the first time anyone has ever called me auntie while I am working.
I am barely nineteen, and already there are people calling me “auntie”. What a depressing thought.
Later in the evening, another woman was trying to reprimand her younger son, who happened to be wandering around the area next to their table, hindering the path of the other waitresses around. At that moment, I appeared with a tray, and all of a sudden, I became a tool which that woman used to discipline her son.
Pointing at me, the woman said; “Be careful, don’t run around! Later auntie would scold you!”
My jaws dropped for the second time that day. *Cries* I don’t want to become an auntie! I am still younggggggggg!
I expected my first day at Swensens (Changi Airport Terminal 1 branch) to be unpleasant, but it turned out surprisingly well. At least, that is the first impression I have of that place, considering the fact that I have only worked there for one day so far. The manager is a little stern, but still has a sense of humour. Whereas some of the co-workers are warm, friendly and willing to help. I emphasise the word “some” because I haven’t exactly clicked with the other co-workers yet.
The work system in this Swensens branch is slightly different from my previous workplace, which means that there are some things which I have to get used to all over again. One thing I must mention that my new workplace is so much more organised than my previous one. Everything is just so neat and tidy, and everything is done very systematically. Whereas, my previous workplace was in chaos most of the time.
At the moment, I am still not exactly sure whether I would be happy working at this new location. I still need a few more days before I can fully adapt, and make an accurate comparision between the two branches.
So it was supposedly my last day at work at Swensens Terminal 2, Changi Airport today, before I make the transfer to the outlet at Terminal 1 starting next week. One thing for sure, I would definitely miss the environment there, the familiarity of having the people you know around you, and of course, the people there itself. Namely, my co-workers.
One thing I know I definitely wouldn’t miss is the customers. Jumping Jellybeans, I had to deal with not one, not two but three difficult customers this evening. Having to deal with bad tempered and grouchy customers snapping at you and shooting complaints at you at a rate of hundred words per second when you yourself are not exactly in the best of moods can certainly make your day worse, yes?
Table 48 was a prime example, where a party of ten were seated. And three of them were ranting at me at the same time about a miserable banana split. Hello? I only have two ears, and do I look as though I have a special filtering mechanism built inside me which is able to filter out the words of three different people simultaneously?
I felt that my head was about to burst, so I quickily called my manager to the scene before I literally went bonkers. By then, all three of them were already glaring at me, with one of them spitting the following words straight at my face. “Your service is very very poor!”
I wonder why am I the one having to bear their ranting about their banana split when I wasn’t even the one who took their order for the banana split, neither was I the one who made the banana split. Somehow, I just don’t see the logic in this. (Please ah, no wisecracks about anyone making a banana split in the literal sense. In this case, I am talking about a sundae, if you haven’t even deduced that by now.)
And there was another customer who was so ticked off about having to wait for her bill that she simply stormed out of her seat towards the cashier. Apparently, I was only an innocent waitress following the normal tradition of wishing the customers with the words “Thank you for coming, see you again!” in a cheerful manner. Guess what this woman did?
She whirled around to glare at me, and mimicked me sarcastically. “See you again. What ‘See you again’? I don’t have to pay is it?”
It is appalling how rude some people can be. When a restaurant is fully packed, it is normal that waiting times may be slightly longer. It is not our problem if you are born with such an impatient character, having the impression that the world revolves around you. There are still many others in the restaurant who need to be attended to, you know?
Oops, I’ve gone completely off-topic here. This was supposed to be an entry about how much I would miss working at Swensens Terminal 2. Instead, it once again became a venting ground for difficult customers. Oh well, a little drama is always good.
Just as I was able to knock off work at 11.30, I had a little ‘gathering’ with some of my co-workers and two of my supervisors in the kitchen. They gave a little sharing on how life is like working at Swensens Terminal 1, and according to one of them, the people there seem to love bullying trainees.
While I stood there pondering about what they’ve just said, the assistant manager arrived with a sundae and tried to decorate my face with ice cream, which resulted in a small wrestling match for a while. What a lovely send off, I must say. (-_-)”
*Sniff* I would miss them.
But. I was informed that should I feel that I didn’t like working at Terminal 1, all I have to do is to telephone my current manager to whine, and she would transfer me back pronto. :P
I’m not a perfect person…I tell you, if I hear the song “The Reason - Hoobastank” one more time, I think I am going to go ballistic. Or even perhaps murder the unlucky person who happens to be playing that song. In fact, I’ve heard the song more than enough for me to fully memorise the lyrics from head to toe.
… I’m not a perfect person, there’s many things I wish I didn’t do …
Why? Apparently, Swensens (for the uninitiated, it is my workplace) is so ‘poor’ that it only happened to own one CD for this day, so it replayed and replayed the entire CD God knows how many times. In fact, I heard the song 6 or 7 times in my entire 8 hour long shift, and by now I could already memorise the sequence of all the songs in that CD.
… But I continue learning, I never meant to do those things to you …
Don’t get me wrong. I have absolutely nothing against that song. In fact, I think the tune is lovely with rather meaningful lyrics, but there is only so many times one can listen to a particular song without beginning to feel irritated or annoyed, no matter how nice it may be.
… And so I have to say before I go, that I just want you to know …
Apparently, it so happened that this particular song has the kind of tune which is able to stick in your head for a very long time. Even while the song isn’t playing, the tune is still replaying over and over again in my mind. If you wish to count the total number of times I’ve heard that song today, both in my head and in reality, the total count would amount to a three digit figure. No kidding.
… I’ve found a reason for me to change who I used to be, a reason to start over anew …
One thing for sure, absolutely no way am I ever going to click on that song when I run my Windows Media Player for the next month or so, or perhaps even within the rest of this year. I’ve heard enough “The Reason — Hoobastank”s to last me an entire lifetime.
… and the reason is YOU …
Aurrrghhh! See? The song is still haunting me even as I am typing this. I think I’ve just developed a phobia towards Hoobastank, an ailment known as Hoobastophobia. Yes, I invented that terminology.
To think that I have to go back to work tomorrow and listen to 7 more rounds of “The Reason — Hoobastank”. However, one must look on the brighter side of things, isn’t it? Well, one thing for sure, listening to 7 rounds of “The Reason” is definitely so much better than having to listen to 7 rounds of Singapore’s National Anthem.
Marikita Rayat Singapura….
As of next week, I would no longer be working at Swensens, Changi Airport Terminal 2. I would be transferred to Terminal 1 with effect from next Friday, which would be my first shift of the week since I wouldn’t be in Singapore until Thursday. *Cries* I don’t want to transfer! I would miss everyone at Terminal 2, and I heard that the people over at Terminal 1 are so much harsher.