Friday, April 17, 2015

Casual Friday

I work at a bank. I sit at a desk located near the front door so everyone who walks into the bank must walk by my desk. In and out. One of my duties is to greet the patrons as they go...in and out. Again, I work at a bank and on some days, especially Fridays, people walk out with thick, green stacks of money visible in their hands.

Side-note: If I were ever to walk out of a bank with a stack of bills you would not know it. I would put that money in my purse so fast and discreetly. Maybe this thinking comes from living in Seattle and learning not to trust people to not mug me in the parking lot. I suppose it's the small-town nature of where I live that allows people to be so trusting of fellow neighbors.

There are three basic types of people that walk out with their money in hand.
1. The person who just holds it in their hand and walks out. (aka the realist)
2. The person who walks out counting their money. (aka the flaunter)
3. The person who has their money stacked on top of boxes of coin. (aka the business owner)

Watching these people exit the bank gave me an idea. What if I sang to them? Money related songs of course. For example, to the flaunter I might sing, "It's like the more money we come across the more problems we see." To the business owner I might sing, "I've got bills, they're multiplying." You get the gist.

Let me be honest a moment. My job isn't super exciting. Highlights include, and in no particular order, a baby goat coming inside the bank, the case of the forgotten gloves, and a Thursday customer encounter that is something to look forward to all week. I may not be saving the world but I am doing my best to keep customers happy and co-workers in touch with the correct people. I've been here three-ish months and am now able to correctly match faces with names. I work with a lot of women so it was confusing for a bit.

It also took me three months to become a part of the casual Friday work-wear group. Each Friday I would show up to work to see everyone, and I mean EVERYONE, wearing a bank shirt of some color. No one said anything when I didn't wear a pink embroidered button-up or blue collared shirt. How could I get one of these shirts? Was it a secret club you had to be invited into? It bothered me but finally I was saved. Someone asked me to join the club. Today is my very first casual Friday where I actually match my co-workers. It's something akin to the infamous motorcycle hand wave. It's a pretty big deal.

However, there is one mystery that eludes me still. The mysterious manila envelope. Daily, these envelopes appear on desks. Every desk except mine that is. I see them passed around between loan officers, customer service representatives, and new accounts. They are heavily marked with black Sharpie, thus reaffirming their importance and only peaking my curiosity.  I could ask someone and have all my questions answered but I enjoy the air of mystery. One day I will know they answer. Maybe that day is today.

Today is Friday and payday.
"Just got paid, Friday night,
Party hoppin', feelin right
Booties shakin', all around"

The opportunity to sing the phrase "booties shakin" is quite exciting. I do wonder how customers would react to being sung at? Would they dance along with my tone deaf riff or look at me like I was insane? These are the question I ask myself.

All about the Benjamins,
KARI