OH.MY.GOD.
I was having the worst craving for ice-cream (Breyers Fried Ice Cream), chips (Herr's Red Hot)and soda (Diet Dr. Pepper-I like the taste of Diet!). I'm at the self check out with my loot, ready to pay, when the machine tells me my debit card is declined.
WHAT? Impossible!
I try again.
A line of people forms behind me.
Enter Diana, who works at Acme.
Very patiently, she has me try again.
Nope.
DECLINED.
I blather on about how I'm SURE there is money in there.
She keeps cheery the whole time.
The people behind me are probably snickering. I'm too mortified to turn and look.
But Diana does not snicker or narrow her eyes at me. She is kind and helpful and does not judge.
I mean, I can be quite the judger myself, if we're being honest here.
I have five dollars in cash, so I buy the ice cream, and she offers to put the rest back. Nicely. In a non judgemental voice. And c'mon, what I know to be PMS cravings might look like illegal substance kind of cravings!
In the parking lot, I call my bank. The automated system says I have more than enough money available!
So I walk in and try again. Man I want those Red Hots!
No go.
Mortified. Again.
I call the bank when I get home. While I'm eating my ice cream, the bank rep tells me there had been a temporary problem with the system but it should work now.
Yippee! No one had broken into my account to steal all my millions! The bank had not revoked my card because I used it to buy US Weekly.
I had to have those damn chips. And that Diet Dr. Pepper or my cravings would not be complete.
But more than anything, I wanted to go back to Acme and thank Diana for being so kind during an embarrassing moment.
So I got my chips and soda. (the card worked!)
And I told Diana how much her patience and joking meant to me.
And Diana taught me two important lessons.
Don't Judge.
And always have enough cash on hand to buy what you want...just in case!
Thanks Diana!
