At Mesa College, the student bookstore, the Mesa Cafe, and the C-Store all have a well-
deserved reputation for terrible customer service. Whether students are just stopping in
for a quick snack, picking up textbooks, or trying to get a semi-lukewarm meal between
classes, most of the employees of these places give the impression that paying customers are
nothing more than an inconvenience or a waste of their precious time.

And that’s not to say that there aren’t any good employees at any of these places. There are.
Especially in the cafeteria; there is one young lady who goes out of her way to find breakfast
burritos, even after the cafe has stopped serving breakfast. She just seems to find a way to
make one materialize, seemingly out of thin air. Despite the ridiculous price and lack of
quality, if you happen to have consumed 14 or 15 beers the night before, the mix of grease,
bacon, cheese, eggs, and starch is the perfect cure for what ails you.

However, the vast majority of the employees that work in the cafe, bookstore, or c-store
do not fit this description. Perhaps they’re (justifiably) upset that they’re working for a
ridiculous wage. Maybe they’re thinking about their prospects for finding a job when they
graduate. Perhaps their attitude is a small form of rebellion for the price of tuition. Maybe
they’re just nihilists, who hate the idea of people in general, and hate helping people even
more.

Most students at Mesa probably understand that all of these factors probably contribute to
these employees hating their jobs. Hell, most people hate their jobs. It’s only natural.

Maybe they think they’re “above” working in a bookstore or cafe. Whatever their motivations
are for acting rude, having no manners, outright condescension, and being (probably
intentionally) horrible at their jobs, they are known only to them.

But the employees at Mesa take this to a whole new level. If someone stops at the C-Store
to get a Gatorade or coffee before class, why is it that the person working at the cash register
has to ask for student ID every single time? They’re selling snacks, not alcoholic beverages. It’s
not as if people are sneaking onto campus at Mesa to get overpriced drinks or snacks…….
Why do they speak to customers in a condescending tone? Do they not even attempt to be
personable or friendly?

It seems to me that the only plausible way for someone to be that bad at their job is if they’re
purposely doing it badly.

If the employees of the Mesa student bookstore, Mesa Cafe, and the Mesa C-Store want to
treat customers badly, and continue to do so, they would do well for themselves to
remember an old quote, especially for future job searches: “You only get one chance to
make a first impression.”