GROCER GETS $50 TIP FROM TAKEOUT CUSTOMER
Mark Clairmont | MuskokaTODAY.com
GRAVENHURST — Essential workers and front-line staff are getting a lot of love.
Even the odd tip at the grocery store.
David Rechtsman left $50 in the trunk of his car today — as a “thank you” for YIG store employees — when a busy staff member loaded his car trunk with groceries in the PC Express pick-up line.
And why did he do that?
“Because I can” and that’s all he had handy.
The Walker’s Point cottager is so “aghast” at what’s going on, he was almost speechless.
Hardly able to put into words how overwhelming and all-consuming is COVID-19.
“We’re a lucky generation,” said the modes 71-year-old retiree, who normally prefers to keep a low profile but agreed to make an exception for a good cause.
He and his wife are at their cottage and wanted to show their appreciation for those who are still helping put food on a table for two.
Rechtsman said two of his neighbours up here are retired doctors — one of whom is doing some part-time work remotely, while the other is too old to heed the call to return to medical workforce due to age.
He was standing in the grocer’s parking lot — a lane away from his waiting car where he had a mask on the passenger seat.
With lung problem, he says he is being particularly cautious.
And as a CPAP user, he says he’s getting lots of sleep at the cottage.
Masks were evident everywhere, April 8, as the line-up of shoppers stretched 50 feet from the door — six feet between each patiently-waiting person.
A couple had blue and white masks on, while those behind kept their polite social distance on a sidewalk marked with orange strips that told them where it was safe to stand.
Two others joining in pulled winter neck scarves up around their faces.
As shoppers pushed carts of groceries out to their vehicles, two store employees returned racks of them to the front doors for in-house shoppers.
But not before the worker sprayed and wiped the handles.
A trip to the grocery store has always been a bit of social adventure.
Now it’s becoming a risky necessary chore, one filled with risky challenges navigating unknown neighbours and as supplies dwindle.
But a renewed respect has emerged for grocery clerks who have at least gotten some danger pay increases in recognition.
But there’s nothing like a tip to make your day.
So, you can do as Rechman did, pay it forward with compliment, a smile or a thanks — while social distancing.
Email Mark Clairmont at [email protected]
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