Do you ever have one of those days when you hear something and even though you know you heard what you think you heard you have a hard time convincing your brain it really is what was said? That sentence may have sounded just a bit confusing but once you hear the comments that inspired it, you will most likely understand.
A customer laid a bolt of Mickey Mouse fabric on the cutting counter. After asking her how much she was going to need I added a comment about how cute Mickey Mouse is and that I also liked Minnie Mouse. She said, “I hate Minnie Mouse!!” Her response surprised me and caused a slight rise in my left eyebrow and at that point I could have left well enough alone but my curiosity got the best of me and all of a sudden I decided I needed to know why anyone could actually hate a cute little imaginary mouse. I realize I tend to take chances sometimes and this was going to be one of those times that the answer was going to surprise me and everyone else within an audible amount of distance from the cutting counter. I’m not particularly fond of using strong language in my writing but I am also a stickler for accurate details so I am going to simply type her exact response. She said, “I think she’s a bitch!” I hope my mouth didn’t actually drop open and I hope my facial expression didn’t reveal as much shock as it did in my mind but I was a bit surprised to say the least. I was in so far at this point I decided to just take my chances and ask why one more time. She had an answer and here is what it was: “She stole Mickey away from me!” Now, I deal with all kinds of interesting people each and every day and occasionally I rearrange them in my mind so that the most unique ones are placed near the very top of my mental “Unique” list and she is now occupying the number one spot!
I hadn’t expected to bump the holder of my number two spot today but one of my co-workers landed herself there several hours later. There were some new bundles of fat quarters for quilting that came in recently and the other girl we were working with asked if either of us had seen them yet. I said I hadn’t and the other girl now occupying the number two spot on my list said, “Are they the ones with the little metallic touches and if so, no, I haven’t seen them.” That was an eyebrow raiser and head scratcher for approximately 12 seconds after it was delivered and then both of us asked her how she knew they had little metallic touches if she hadn’t seen them yet.
We’re encouraged to visit with our customers and ask questions about the fabrics they choose and the projects they are working on but nothing can ever prepare us for some of the answers we are going to receive. It’s not every day you’re going to run into someone that hates a cute little female mouse that rocks a polka dot bow tied around her ears and a matching polka dot dress or the person that alleges she didn’t see something she clearly saw but today that is who I ran into and they were two of the many that inspire my desire to celebrate uniqueness in this cookie cutter world!