We have a newer cashier who seems to cause some trouble. At least twice a week she manages to crash her entire register (we run them on a computer system, everyone finds them incredibly easy to use...except for her...). There have been many other problems with said employee, and both I and the other store supervisor have nominated her as our first pick if our boss ever feels the need to cut back on the labor budget. Irregardless, she seems to have won some favor in his eyes and continues to be a thorn in our side.

On Monday, I became so upset with her that I ended up shaking and crying for half an hour. I never wanted to see her again, but much to my chagrin her car was in the parking lot the next morning.

Here is what happened: (And while it might not seem like such a big deal to you, to me it felt worse than if she had physically punched me.)

On this particular Monday I knew that I was going to be working a long day. It ended up being from 9am-9:30pm. About 2:30 I got to go to lunch. I wanted to get a big lunch because I didn't know if I'd be eating dinner at all. I went to Whataburger and for my drink chose Sprite. Something that I rarely drink, but I wanted the sugar. I only drank a little bit of it so that I could make it last for several hours.

I usually keep my beverages at the registers...have been for eight months...there was no cause for concern. (Or so I thought.) After lunch, I immediately jumped into the the greenhouse area to help unpack the few thousand plants we had just gotten in. My Sprite was forgotten for an hour or so.

When my manager called me up to the registers to check on our to-do lists I remembered my Sprite and decided that I would love a sip while I was up there. However, it was not where I'd left it! "This is not good," I thought. I asked the cashiers if they'd seen it and the one previously mentioned said, "Oh, I guess this is yours." And there was my Whataburger cup...just under her register counter. Why?

Well to make matters worse, when I picked it up it was over half empty. "Warning! Warning!" rang through my mind. My manager looked at my face and asked what the matter was. "Um, I don't remember drinking this much, are you sure this is mine?" I asked the cashier. Innocently she looked at me and said, "Yes."

My manager, knowing how busy I'd been, told me: "You probably just forgot that you've been drinking that much."
"No, I really don't think I did..." hmm...well, ok. I really wanted the sugar and despite the warning bells in my mind I finished my drink.

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You should know that I do not enjoy sharing drinks with people. I can share with my family, but I really would prefer to have my own cup. I am not a germ-a-phobe, but that is one point that I strive very hard to keep.
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Well, at 7pm when it was time for this cashier to count down her register, she said: *giggle* "I drank your Sprite!" *giggle* "Sorry!" as if it were a joke and without a real apology in her voice.

If my face could turn white, it certainly did. I felt sick. "Why?" I asked her.
"Because I was thirsty!"
"But we have free cold water bottles and a water fountain!"
"I know, but I didn't want water from the fountain and the fridge up front was empty."
"You could have asked any of the guys to get you a water bottle."
"It's not the same."
"That is gross. Why would you do that?" (Please note, by the grace of the Lord and no other, my voice was calm and steady...almost as if she were my child.)
"Well if you were hungry and I had food I would give it to you!"
"That is not the same."
"Yes it is!"
"No it isn't. It is disgusting." (This whole time we've been walking to the safe-room where she will count her drawer.)
"Well, thanks for throwing mud in my face, Hannah! I shouldn't have told you it was me!" (And here she continued to yammer at me...even though she stole my drink...but by this time we had reached the safe room.)
I simply unlocked the door, turned on the light, faced her (the whole time she's still yammering at me!) and said her name firmly, warningly. As soon as she walked into the room I let the door close behind me and walked away...trembling with anger and hurt.

After crying and telling my manager about it, he checked her drawer count and sent her home for the night while I hid in the trees outside. I was SO upset. I felt almost violated that someone would knowingly steal my drink and let me drink after them. AND get mad at me for telling them that what they did was wrong! Also, as her boss, I do not believe that that tone should have been allowed. sigh* Some of you received a text message asking for prayer because I had had a problem with an employee that evening.

Thank you for your prayers. The hardest part was returning to work the next day and finding her still there. I wanted to bolt and run, but I had to remind myself that I shouldn't let her have power over me like that, that I am a daughter of the King, and that He knows all my pain and cares even when it seems like no one else does.