I was running a little late to work this morning.
I had some things to get caught up on as soon as I got to my desk, followed by a meeting at 9am. That seemingly left no time for a morning breakfast… I NEED a morning breakfast… Especially if I have to sit through a meeting without falling asleep.
I raced through my morning work and was actually able to open a 15 minute window of opportunity for me to jump in my car, speed over to the McDonald’s down the street and make it back in time to eat my food before the meeting.
This was a risk… The McDonald’s in question is without a doubt the least organized and least efficient McDonald’s in the country… seriously.
They screw up my order about 60-70% of the time- I wish I was exaggerating.
Despite that I was able to pull directly up to the menu, order, and see on that little menu screen that they got it right.
There was only one car in front of me and they were at the pay window.
I pulled up behind them and waited for my turn… and I waited… and I waited.
I pulled up a little closer to try and see what was going on.
I saw five, yes FIVE workers crowded at the pay window trying to read a note that the driver of the car in front of me had handed them.
I didn’t know what to make of this… The driver was angrily pointing to the list and appeared to be yelling… I rolled down my window to see if I could hear what was going on.
Suddenly it became clear what was happening once I heard the voice of the driver… she was deaf… she was handing them a list for her order… the workers couldn’t read it because, well, I’ll just say that I have had better luck in this place when I order in Spanish.
My car sat in line for another 10 minutes before I got to pay my money, THEN I had to wait again as the “hearing challenged” person went through the whole charade once more at the pick up window.
When I finally got my food, it was correct, but I had only approximately 2.6 seconds to eat it before getting back for my meeting… which was a bad thing because I like to chew…
So my question is this: If you’re deaf- what the hell are you doing going through the drive through window!?
I’m all for supporting the right of people who have special needs… park up front, get the spacious isle seats at the ball game, get your own bathroom, your own entrance, whatever… I’m even okay with the brail writing on the buttons of the drive-up ATM machine… but here’s the deal- you can’t be deaf and go through the drive through.
It’s just wrong. You slow everyone else down and add an extra obstacle for McDonald’s workers to deal with. And let’s be honest, the last thing the workers at McDonald’s need is an extra obstacle. Life is kicking their ass already and then you have the nerve to try and go through the Drive Through with your little note, well no! N-O!
I’m sorry but unless you can come up a designated order person to help you out, you have to go inside!
[sorry ladies, but no drive-through for you]
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17 comments:
lol. i was wondering what happened to you. hope things improve.
Perhaps she too was running late or her little child was bitching about having mcdonalds. How is it the deaf person's fault rather than the workers'? Why should deaf people go inside so you can get your food faster and clog up your arteries?
If you'd been on time would this have happened? Sure. Would you have been part of it? No. So instead of blaming other people, look at yourself. It's easier to point the finger than take the blame.
wow. that's a tough one. the hearing impaired driver was probably running late. clearly, it would have been easier for her if she had gone into the restaurant.
sucks that all of that drama coincided with your already frantic morning. :(
anonymous- why the hell would I want to "take the blame instead of point the finger" on my own blog!?
what fun would that be... I'd much rather blame the disabled for my problems- they're easy targets and I'm a bully.
Anonymous - I'm sorry you don't feel you have the courage of your convictions to stand up and claim your opinion. Joel has and does and makes no apology for it, and for that reason alone that makes him a better person.
As for a deaf person going inside, it actually makes more sense for everyone if you think about it. There they can be face to face with the workers, show them what they would like order by pointing at a picture menu if neccessary.
In a car at a window, it's a lot harder to do that. I suppose the worker should be able to give the driver a picture menu and do the same that they would have done inside, but in this case they chose not to. Or as an alternative, the workers should have communicated to the driver that they didn't understand, and to please come inside so they can help him/her better.
You're right in that it's not the deaf person's fault, but that's as far as I'm willing to go to give you credit. This is McDonald's fault for not being accommodating to individuals with handicaps, and for not training their workers to identify and handle such situations.
JHD - Well said. After reading "anonymous'" comment, I was fuming. However, I don't care to waste my time with a response, so I'm glad you said pretty much what I wanted to say (for the most part, anyway).
You have got to remember most of McDonalds workers have had to do years of further education to get to their standard of inteligence.
It is definately frustrating to be held up for whatever reason but it always seems to be when you are in an hurry. Its called "Sods Law" I believe.
hmmm? is all i'm saying ;-)...AND i would NOT push the red button..hehehe
You bastard.
Just kidding. In my extensive experience in McDonald's drive-thru's (Jesus, am I admitting to that?!), they always take an extremely long time, deaf customer or no. You think walking in is going to take longer, but it probably doesn't. Do your own test (drive-thru v. walk-in), I'd like to hear the results.
i was going to bitch at mcdonald's the other day ...glad i didn't because i think it was my fault.
i would have felt stupid bitching them out for MY mistake
I've worked at a few fast food places (Burger King, Taco Bell), and I can tell you their main priority is the drive-thru. They usually have 2 lines, one for walk-ins and one of drive-thru. They've got a timer, called 'window time' that they've got to keep at an average, hence 90% of the time, drive-thru is faster, except in this case. All stores in the area compete for the fastest drive-thru time. The store that comes in first wins bonus money on each employees (on that shift) paycheck.
What happened to Film Vault Tuesday??
Edgy, edgy shit. Even allowing for you being able to take any position you want on your own blog, and the more controversial the better, I don't think you have a let to stand on here, Joel. Sure the deaf person should have found a better way to order their food, sure McDonald's workers should be able to handle a written note, certainly you should be able to buy fast food faster than that. But demand that deaf people should not be allowed to use drive-through windows? Unreasonable. But good job on picking a controversial topic.
Folks, it's pretty clear cut. Until McDonald's (or any other fast food chain with drive-thru access for that matter) enables a video/touch screen for drive-thru ordering, the hearing-impaired SHOULD NOT be allowed to go through said lane. The drive-thru is intended for those in a hurry. Is it the deaf person's fault for being deaf? Absolutely not. It is McDonald's fault for not having ANYONE at the window that can read english? Probably. That being said, had someone been able to read the note, it still would've been a lengthy transaction. Furthermore, it IS faster to go inside at the notoriously slow fast food restaurants. Being the self-titled FAST FOOD EXPERT, I know this to be a fact. Every other Tuesday (after allergy shots), I've learned to go INSIDE one of the local Roy Rogers chains. It has saved me an average of three-four minutes (BIG deal when you think about how long it SHOULD take in a drive-thru lane) by going inside. Much smoother operation. I'm confident that this is the same in most places. Had the deaf person gone inside, not only would they have possibly been helped quicker, they would have prevented the whole backup that not only effected Joel, but probably several others.
I mean no disrespect to the hearing impaired. I wish there were a way we could poll 100 deaf people to see how THEY feel about the situation.
Go Terps!
thanks for everyone's comments... I respect all opinions on the subject but to me it seems like basic common sense. to use a drive through menu you need to be able to do 2 things: speak and hear... if you can't do it, then well, don't do it.
when I took the trip to houston a few months back it was with my wife, her cousin, and her cousin's wife. we drove in one car. I was the only one who spoke english.
when we stopped for food either I made the order in the dirve through or we went inside. we wouldn't want to slow everyone down by trying to force a square peg into a round hole. call me crazy but it seems so basic... I think sometimes we put being P.C. ahead of common sense.
but regardless of the argument, I definitley got WAY too angry about the incident, but then again, that's what I do.
anyway, thanks again to everyone for their input and to answer Perry's question- Film Vault Tuesday should be back next week with a few new twists.
Wow ... this one is definitely different because I too was at the palace of artery-clogging delights the other day in the drive-thru and noticed the sign reading something like "hearing impaired or special needs folks drive up to window". I can understand that it's supposed to be convenient for everyone ... but then again, when is fast-food ever really fast? I'd love to be able to get in a drive-thru and be out in under 5 minutes; it's yet to happen. I guess I'm sorta inclined to accept that a drive-thru is never going to be fast; that the driver in front of me will always have like 6 orders that will have be paid for one at a time; and that the person taking my order will never get it right.
damn right julissa!
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