Balmy

~ Liz Charnes

LISA’S FEET HURT. She knew better than to wear new shoes on her shift, but her manager had been up her butt about her old, worn out Keds. The last time she’d worn them, he’d threatened to fire her. “Come on, Lees. How do you think those look with the uniform? Wear them again, and you’re out.”

Asshat. Lisa glanced at her watch. Forty-five minutes. In forty-five minutes, she could take off the shoes and go home. Maybe Roy had some of that epsom salt. Wasn’t epsom salt good for sore feet? She pulled out her phone and Googled.

The entry door bell rang. A man and woman, married from the looks of it, stood in the waiting area. Lisa sighed and slipped her phone back into her apron. Grabbing two menus, she limped over. “Welcome to the Balmy Breeze. Two for dinner?”

timothy-barlin-441614-unsplash.jpg
Photo by Timothy Barlin on Unsplash

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Merriam-Webster Word of the Day

Balmy

adjective | BAH-mee

1 a : having the qualities of balm : soothing

b : mild, temperate

2 : crazy, foolish

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3 thoughts on “Balmy”

  1. A friend of mine was doing her thesis on this subject, interviewing waitresses whom were compelled to wear high-heels and certain kind of dresses for their jobs. It is astonishing how frequently and aggressively these “rules” are executed.

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    1. It’s all part of branding. *sigh* When I was a flight attendant, we had a supervisor who would measure the length of our skirts from the knee to make sure they weren’t too short. I even had a gate agent feel my leg once “to make sure I had on pantyhose.” Back then, I didn’t bat an eye, now, I’m like, yeah, I’m sure that’s why.

      *sigh*

      Customer service jobs are the most difficult and most underappreciated.

      Liked by 1 person

      1. Oh whoa, I was flinching as I was reading this. I can sympathize, I have had many customer service jobs and been treated less than well. This actually reminds me to maybe write about the times they made us girls working there, model for dresses and shoes at Sears, without telling us beforehand or even asking for consent, more like an order …sigh…

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