Your Total is...

"Your total is..." I say this after every order I take. And yet, almost every time the customer gets to the window, they either ask me what it is, or sit there for a minute and a half getting the exact change. I appreciate exact change, I do. And I understand wanting to get rid of the excess change in your car, honestly. But I do not appreciate you waiting until you get to the drive-thru window to pull out your purse, or hunch in your seat to get your wallet out of your back pocket (when you should've had it out in the first place if you knew you were going to be buying something) and ask me four or five more times what your total is.


Me at the speaker: "Your total is: $2.53, thank you and pull around."
Customer: pulls off.
Me: opens the window "Hi, how are you?"
Customer: "I'm fine, and you? What did you say the total was?"
Me: "2.53"
Customer: has a five dollar bill in his/her hand, halfway out the window, but is hunched over, digging. Pulls out a handful of change from seemingly nowhere. "You said two-fifty-what?"
Me: "2.53"
Customer: "Sorry? 2.59?"
Me: "2.53"
Customer: Looks at the change in his/her hand again. "I only have fifty-two cents, is that okay?"
Me: "........... You can just give me the five, if you want."
Customer: "I really want to get rid of this change though."
*Le Timer beeps for the 4th time, indicating that you should've been gone 40 seconds ago*
Me: Getting kind of impatient. "Sure, I'm sure I have an extra penny in here somewhere."
Customer: "Great, thanks!"
Me: "Sure." 
Customer: FINALLY GIVES ME THE FIVE DOLLAR BILL, and the fifty-two cents. Which actually turned out to be fifty-three cents, because there was a penny stuck to the bottom of one of the quarters he/she gave me because they were sitting in his/her nasty drink holder.
Me: I think I just got trolled.


Too detailed? Too bad, happens to me all the time.


We're supposed to have a little screen right by the window where we take cash that tells you your total. Unfortunately ours isn't working right now, and sometimes our speaker is kind of unclear, so I understand maybe asking me once when you get there. But if you have to ask me multiple times, when I told you, not only at the speaker but at the window when you first asked me, don't get mad when I start getting a little impatient.


Granted, I think most people don't know that we get timed on how fast we get the food out. And sometimes it's not their fault. But when I have your order ready because it was just a few tacos, and you're digging around to find those two pennies instead of giving me the nickel I clearly see in your other hand, it's your fault if your food gets cold. And then do not ask me to remake it, because I watched them make it just now, and it's your fault it's cold anyways. Those were made fresh, probably when you started ordering at the speaker.


So I'll hand your order out, thank you, and tell you to have a nice day, with a wonderful smile plastered to my face.


So please, dear fast food consumers, the place you order and the place you pay are different for a reason. There is that space in between the two in which you should take a few extra seconds to get out your purse and/or wallet and get out your money/card. This makes things so much easier for everyone. I don't get grumpy, and your food doesn't get cold. :)


Still want to get rid of your change? Take it to the bank, or to one of those coin machines, and you can turn it into cash, just like magic!