My Wish Was Not A DeSIGHer

When the broken-down car of the Gas Station Chicken Store rumpushole handicap parker FORCED me to take my scratcher business elsewhere, I went across the road to the Liquor Store. There was a new worker behind the counter. A middle-aged woman I hadn't seen there before. When I walked up to the counter, she SIGHED!

Ain't that a fine how-do-you-do? Well. It's not like I was the only customer in the place. A woman was playing one of the three or four fake slot machines they have against the wall. Don't get me started on those right now!

"I'm just here to get some lottery tickets."

"SIGH."

"A number 10 and a number 11..."

"SIGH." 

Put-Upon Gal tore each off. As I was getting ready to name my crosswords, she stepped to the register to scan those two tickets. Okay. Sometimes clerks do this. Some can remember a string of numbers, others have to ask again after just one. I try to gauge the response of each clerk, and time my requests to their advantage. So I let Put-Upon Gal scan these two without interrupting before she was ready again with her attention. Let the record show this happens A LOT in the Liquor Store, where they also sell a lot of vaping supplies, and have T-shirts for sale with logos like "The Devil's Lettuce," which is now legal in our state.

"And also two number 19s..."

Put-Upon Gal just stood there. Didn't make a move. I looked at her, my left eyebrow raised, a teacher technique for nonverbally asking, "What's the deal?"

"SIGH. I'm just waiting for you to be done. I'm not bending down there more than once."

"Oh. I thought maybe you were out of them. Two number 19s, and three number 26s."

"SIGH."

Put-Upon Gal tore off my tickets, scanned them, and rang them up. I paid cash. Got a dollar back in change, thanks to my three $3 tickets. I stuffed it in the tip jar on the counter. Not because she especially deserved it, but because I almost always leave that dollar change at the Liquor Store, because the usual clerks are polite and appreciative.

I'm thinking maybe Put-Upon Gal has some kind of respiratory illness. Maybe that's just how she breathes. She didn't seem unfriendly. Just reluctant to expend any extra energy, like stooping, or making small talk.