"We're happy to serve YOU!!"

My supermarket receipt claims that they were happy to serve me.
Me? Lil' ole' me?

fucking doubtful.

I'm not even happy to serve people and I'm a customer service whore. I would be much happier, sitting at home, fucking around on the internet, baking cookies, and in general living my life rather than doing my job. I assume that's true of the great majority of people alive and working.

This whole "happy to serve you" thing is fucking ubiquitous. It's everywhere. It's become the "have a nice day" of the 21st century. Why don't people say what they mean anymore? What's so bad about "We appreciate your business."

I guess it's because the whole world is now supposed to be a GFE. We all want kisses with our blowjobs; nobody wants to confront the fact that the person you're paying to do something for you is doing it because it's their job; and the reason the company they work for exists is not to make you feel good, but to make a profit.

I like my customers, by and large (Except one guy-this one guy can go to hell). They're mostly considerate, polite, pleasant people. I'd like them just as much, probably, if they weren't my customers. But I don't forget that they are customers. And they don't forget, either, judging by tips. But the line is blurred. Customers have favorite baristas, baristas have favorite customers. But my business is a lot different from the grocery store.

I don't know the woman who rang up my groceries. She did it well, and quickly, but there's no secret that she'd rather be somewhere else. That's what working in a grocery store is. It's not a vocation. It's a job. It's menial and tedious and there's no intellectual stimulation or cozy conversation with regular customers. She's not delighted to serve me; she's TIRED. She served me well, though. No mistakes. Fine service, really. But, delighted? eh. And that's fine.

So maybe we can stop pretending. Maybe we can stop asking people to pretend to be our friends for minimum wage. How lonely are we, as a society? How in desperate need of reassurance are we that anyone we give money to has to be 'happy to serve YOU!"? Can't competance ad professionalism replace chumminess? At least competance rings true, if you have it.

Again, I really like a lot of my customers. I treat them well, they treat me well; I had more customers than friends ask me how my grades came out at the end of last term. (3.85, if you're interested) I remember who is working on a book, whose children are young enough to exhaust them, who is studying to go back to school. We're acquaintances, by this point- but behind the counter remains behind the counter, and in front is in front. I'm always a little bit happier, a little bit less tired, a little bit more optimistic at work. And these customers respond, in their part, by tipping. They pay for their coffee; they tip for the service. It's a personal interaction, but a business context. I'm comfortable with that.

Can someone else be comfortable with that?