Reflecting over relish

It's so weird how you could have a certain perception or assumption about yourself that could be so utterly off. I would have thought, and did think up unitl a few months ago that I would be a great server. I enjoy cooking and food and I have always relished in serving my friends and making sure that they were comfortable at all times when they were visiting my home. I even watch all of the restaurant shows on television, read books about the real happenings inside a kitchen, and play restaurant video games. Nothing could have ever prepared me, however, for the utter piggish, slothy, rude people I would encounter in the diner setting in which I'm am currently employed.
I have on occasion been out to eat with someone who's behavior toward the waitstaff made me uncomfortable and embarrassed. Perhaps they were cheap tippers, or even worse they projected and communicated a short and condescending attitude. I figured that those people were lacking manners and common decency and were the minority. I figured that most people were cordial and polite and treated the server as if they were, gasp... human. I guess in a sense that is the truth. Most people I encounter while slanging greasy burgers and bagged salads are pleasant. The sad thing is for me, all it takes is one impatient or miserable person to ruin the whole bunch.
Sometimes I feel as though I work on a farm, not a restaraunt. Looking after animals and making sure that their troughs are full. Mucking out their stalls when they are done. For this I take responsibilty. I didn't apply for this job, I took the easy way out (or was it) and cashed in on a family hook-up. I figured I would save myself the grief of searching through the classifieds. In the end it may be more trouble than it was worth. The establishment I belong to at the moment isn't known for quality. If it were a celebrity, it would be D-listed and in turn it attracts patrons who are bottom of the barrel (with as I have mentioned before exceptions, but few.)
In a way this job has been stellar for my self esteem. I would like to take a moment of silence to thank the higher power(s) that be for the following: I am thankful that I am not overweight and overwhelmed with my brood of screaming children, I am thankful that I am not married to a rude pig who treats the server as a slave and then makes googly eyes at her (feel free to vomit at any point), I am thankful that I don't own any elastic faux jeans that allow me to make far too many trips to the buffet, I am grateful that my lover doesn't take me out to a grease pit for holidays- birthdays- or anniversaries etc., I am thankful that I am working toward a larger goal and that I will someday soon be respected as a pillar in my community. Most of all I am thankful that I have had the opportunity to meet some of the most amazing people, my fellow servers, who inspire me to practice more patience, and remind me to smile even when I feel like screaming.