Plea from a Fast Food Employee

Since I have been working at McDonald's for several months now, I have compiled a mental list of common misconceptions people have about it and things people unknowingly do that make life miserable for us. Since all parties could benefit, I have decided to make this list public.

1. Yes, exact change is nice, but only if you have it ready BEFORE you need to pay. We are timed on everything in fast food. It's not helpful to sit around for five minutes while you dig through for the right change.
2. Know what you want to order before you come up to the register. There are always a million things that need to be done, but when you look like you are ready to order we are required to sit smiling and wait while you hmm and huh about what you want. Along the same lines, again, we are timed.
3. Try to let us know what alterations ( ie no pickles) you want to make right away. It is sometimes very difficult to change an order after it is put in the computer.
4. Please don't throw away full drink cups!!!! Pour them out at the drink station first. The trash liners are not waterproof and it ends in a huge sticky difficult mess.
5. Try to be courteous and throw away your trash. If you don't we have to drop everything and disrupt the system to do so.
6. Be patient! And it may take a bit to get your order out, but we often have a lot of other customers or are understaffed. Not toention it does take time for food to cook. Also, as the old saying goes, "don't shoot the messenger!!!" it usually isn't the servers fault.
7. If something is wrong, like a spill or a mess in the restroom, please tell us! We arent always aware of these things right away. When we are, we try to fix things as soon as possible.
8. Don't be shy! If we aren't busy feel free to have a friendly conversation with us. We are real people after all, and it males work much more bearable. Bonus points if you crack a joke that makes us laugh. :)
9. Be kind. Take into account that fast food is a high stress atmosphere, and it's easty to make mistakes. We aren't purposefully trying to mess up your order.
10. Despite what people think, fast food is a hard job. Don't look down on us because we do the grunt work of the job industry. If someone can perservere in fast food, they deserve a medal of some sort. This job is neither simple nor easy. You have to remember a million things at once and are constantly running around doing everything. Don't let the exterior appearance fool you.

That's all for now. Maybe more later! :)

Learning to Let Go

A single crystal tear trailed slowly down my face,
As I cast my heart into the river of my loving Savior's grace,
And after that one tear I shed had fallen to the ground,
My eyes were dry, and though I tried, my sobs made not a sound,
And my heart, it kept on aching, plaintively it cried,
As I bowed my head in anguish, and turned away my eyes,
For a time so long of invested heart,
A long-strung thread must come apart,
Anchored roots so grown together,
Strong entwined through stormy weather,
Must come apart and be untangled,
Though such action proves so painful,
So my heart thrown in the river, cut off my selfish ties,
Trusting in my God alone, ignoring Satan's lies,
And though the walk is painful, I want to let you know,
That I still truly love you, but I'm learning to let go. <3