Buying Time

I've got a post or six in mind but while you wait I'll leave you with this incident which just unfolded:

I'm working right now, at a Del's in Richmond, Rhode Island. I work here most days of the week, and tonight I'm closing the store. I was greeted by a new employee, young, maybe sixteen years old, he was a very sweet Guatemalan boy. He had all nice things to say, we engaged in small talk, you know cordial-people-who-don't-know-each-other chit chat. It was sometime after when the manager asked me to put some music on, I decided sure why not, and unzipped my backpack to get my computer.

My backpack contains the following:
Computer and computer chord
The Wind Up Bird Chronicles by Murakami
Granola Bar (Chewy)
Wallet
Phone
and last but not least, an open bottle of wine. 

This all seemed fine to me, until I looked up to see The Friendly Guatemalan looking at me with a look of sheer horror and disgust. "Are.. are you going to drink that here!?" he stammered. I'm confused at this point, I still don't see a problem. Slowly, I realize that carrying around a bottle of Cupcake is probably unusual to some people. "What? Oh no, no I'm not. Of course I'm not." I say, hoping that he'll drop it, but he doesn't. T.F.G. keeps staring at me with these giant almond eyes alight with terror, he wants more of an explanation... I resolve at this point to tell him why it's in there. "It was from when I was babysitting last night." Oh, well now I've gone and done it. T.F.G. must be imagining me drunk, watching a small child in a pool, or in the bathtub, or driving a car. Surely, not the reality of it, which was me on the couch long after the baby had gone to bed, watching Smash reruns with a single glass of wine, that I milked, for maybe an hour. I had worked 14 hours that day! I wanted a break! Is that so bad? Parents drink when they have children occasionally, mine do, the baby's do, I know this. It was fine? The boy did not think so, he paused for a long time, looked at me with a very grave expression and whispered "that's worse."

I suppose I should rethink my life choices now, really consider where my priorities lie... but honestly, what fun would that be? Also please note, that my boss and manager found this equally hilarious, though they asked me to refrain from using jumbo cups for my drinking problems, because they've just finally gotten the beer smell out of the store from my teenage days.

Cue shrugging.

Until next time folks, bottoms up!