Dish Washing Madness

He wore self done cut off jeans, a scraggly t-shirt, and a cycling hat with the bill folded upwards in front. He is draped in the almost unanimous uniform for all hipsters in this town, but somehow does so with originality. I presume he settled on this dress never expecting it would become fashionable by those who spent years trying to cope with social exclusion for being different; ironically having finally found inclusion in looking the same. He was quiet and alone, probably pissed and bitter that he of all people would be the one forced to change. But these are just semantics, and have nothing to do with what struck me.

Instead, as I went to the back to grab clean coffee mugs, I couldn't shake his lean against our wall with an intense awkward gaze through the opening that offered him a glimpse at our dish washer who was fervently scrubbing plates. He was so concentrated, in fact, that he never saw me awkwardly peering back in bewilderment that he might actually be THAT infatuated with what others consider to be a disgusting job. It's amazing to hear stories of people who can relate their dream careers back to a single childhood memory. It might have been a first time on a plane being given a pair of plastic wings, the initiation to a theatrical performance, or the radical professor that made you look at everything differently. The man looks as though he is reliving one of these enlightening moments, though I can't imagine what could have possibly inspired this man to want to be a dish washer.

Maybe he grew up in a small place adoring a hometown hero on Friday nights that never made it beyond a letter jacket, and had no backup plan. Surely a family friend gave the incompetent wash up a dishwashing job just to keep him on his feet while he figured things out, and the younger version of the hipster I see now remained loyal to his lingering idol in between seasons. That kid is now grown up and cynical in a big city wondering why he can't achieve his dreams here. He blames it on some kind of conspiracy of reverse racism, but really there is typically a language barrier and an over qualifying college degree, along with the fear that anyone who doesn't have higher aspirations definitely doesn't have the drive to be a quality employee. All of this is a possibility, or maybe he was simply waiting to use the restroom. To this bizarre bean: you know who you are.