U.S.: The Subway at Fargo's Airport
Before reading this post you must know two things:
1. Judging by the amount of time we are spending together this summer, I've become best friends with Hector. (Hector International Airport, that is)
2. Everybody deserves a second chance. Or a third, fourth, fifth...you get the idea.
This summer I have had multiple encounters with the Subway restaurant in the Fargo airport, since it is one of two dining options available in said airport. It is a fairly recent addition, having only opened in mid-June, and the menu options are your standard Subway choices. I would think that returning to the same Subway day after day, week after week, would eventually become boring. However, the airport Subway has proven to provide me with opportunities to laugh as well as to forgive. There has been nothing monotonous about being a regular customer.
First story: So I was at the veggie stage of creating my sub. It took about 7 minutes to arrive to this stage from the time the Subway worker began making my sandwich. She was struggling, to say the least. I asked for lettuce, tomatoes, onions, green peppers, cucumbers, and then I asked for spinach. She looks into the spinach container. It is empty. She looks up at me. Says, "Um. There's none in there." My initial reaction (in my head, of course) is, "Well thank you Captain Obvious. Could you go to the back fridge and get some more spinach to refill the container?" Instead of vocalizing my thoughts, I held in my emotions and kindly said, "Oh that is okay. I didn't want spinach anyway."
Second story: I am waiting in line to order while the Subway worker is helping the customer in front of me. Instead of focusing on the customer's directions, I notice that he is staring towards me. He proceeds to ask me what color my eyes are. "Greenish-blue, depending on the day," I respond in a confused manner. He lets me know that he thinks that is SO cool. I say thank you and watch as he finishes making the sandwich for the person in front of me. Then comes my turn to order - I ask for a veggie salad. Apparently my eyes are simply too mesmerizing because the Subway worker then asked me what kind of bread I wanted. Last time I checked, salads don't include bread...
In closing, I want to say that I understand that most of the sandwich artists at the airport Subway are new to the franchise and probably to the work world in general. I'm not sharing these stories with the intention of bashing or one-upping my Subway friends. I am sharing them as moments in which I was faced with opportunities to practice patience, understanding, and forgiveness. As somebody who has worked in customer service, I see no reason to raise issues with new employees. They shall eventually learn, and in the meantime I shall continue to share my Subway stories.
1. Judging by the amount of time we are spending together this summer, I've become best friends with Hector. (Hector International Airport, that is)
2. Everybody deserves a second chance. Or a third, fourth, fifth...you get the idea.
This summer I have had multiple encounters with the Subway restaurant in the Fargo airport, since it is one of two dining options available in said airport. It is a fairly recent addition, having only opened in mid-June, and the menu options are your standard Subway choices. I would think that returning to the same Subway day after day, week after week, would eventually become boring. However, the airport Subway has proven to provide me with opportunities to laugh as well as to forgive. There has been nothing monotonous about being a regular customer.
First story: So I was at the veggie stage of creating my sub. It took about 7 minutes to arrive to this stage from the time the Subway worker began making my sandwich. She was struggling, to say the least. I asked for lettuce, tomatoes, onions, green peppers, cucumbers, and then I asked for spinach. She looks into the spinach container. It is empty. She looks up at me. Says, "Um. There's none in there." My initial reaction (in my head, of course) is, "Well thank you Captain Obvious. Could you go to the back fridge and get some more spinach to refill the container?" Instead of vocalizing my thoughts, I held in my emotions and kindly said, "Oh that is okay. I didn't want spinach anyway."
Second story: I am waiting in line to order while the Subway worker is helping the customer in front of me. Instead of focusing on the customer's directions, I notice that he is staring towards me. He proceeds to ask me what color my eyes are. "Greenish-blue, depending on the day," I respond in a confused manner. He lets me know that he thinks that is SO cool. I say thank you and watch as he finishes making the sandwich for the person in front of me. Then comes my turn to order - I ask for a veggie salad. Apparently my eyes are simply too mesmerizing because the Subway worker then asked me what kind of bread I wanted. Last time I checked, salads don't include bread...
In closing, I want to say that I understand that most of the sandwich artists at the airport Subway are new to the franchise and probably to the work world in general. I'm not sharing these stories with the intention of bashing or one-upping my Subway friends. I am sharing them as moments in which I was faced with opportunities to practice patience, understanding, and forgiveness. As somebody who has worked in customer service, I see no reason to raise issues with new employees. They shall eventually learn, and in the meantime I shall continue to share my Subway stories.
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