Heat Rage Rears Its Ugly Head

Yesterday morning on "Good Morning, America", Diane Sawyer was telling about how this heat wave has made people madder and more short-tempered.  She went on to tell how this is statistically proven; there are more violent crimes committed in the summer time, especially when it is unusually hot. I agree with that totally.  I know this from firsthand experience.  I've got a confession to make.  Yesterday evening, I exhibited what the news people call "heat rage."  I'm not proud of it, but at the same time, I'm not reall ashamed of it, either.

En route from work to the Mexican joint, I stopped at Bojangles Chicken to pick up chicken and their awesome Dirty Rice for Mom.  I went in and stepped right up to the counter.  I noticed there was only one cash register open, but I was the only person at the counter, so it didn't bother me.  Just as I was getting ready to give my order, a woman stepped up and cut right in front of me.  She didn't even say excuse me or anything.  She gave her order, and ended up changing it a half dozen times by adding something or taking something off.  The clerk rang her up and told her it would be $22.61.  She handed the clerk her debit card. As I saw it transfer from her hand to the PAT behind the counter, I had a bad vibe.  Sure enough, a few seconds later, the PAT told the lady that the card had been declined.   This ignited a string of expletives that would have made a biker blush.  The women began arguing with her sister over the bank, and she said repeatedly how she "deposited those checks in there three days ago" but her sister kept on saying "You just need to leave that bank.  You know how they do this to you all the time."   While this was going on, I was still at the counter, waiting to give my order for one chicken breast and a small order of Dirty Rice.  This went on for eight minutes (I timed it on my watch).  I finally asked the PAT "Can someone take my order?  I have cash." The PAT and his co-workers explained how they couldn't start another order on the cash register until the woman's order was processed.  Just as I was asking them to get the manager to open another cash register, the woman cut back in front of me in line and handed the PAT a hundred dollar bill.  Yep, she had a Ben Frank. Her mother, who had been sitting at the table with the woman's two kids, had been holding on her apparently.  Anyhoo, the mother gave the woman a hundred, and then yelled up at the counter for the woman to "be sure and get me a receipt for that."  I'm sure that woman will be paying back the entire $22.61, and probably interest.