froginmythroat (FIMT)

Jollibee is an indigenous fast food chain in the Philippines. The popularity of Jollibee makes Ronald McDonald and his band of franchise holders look like the fat kid who couldn’t run and was always last to be picked for teams in gym class. Philipino’s like it because it’s Philipino. Supporting your own bourgeois is always better than supporting the foreign bourgeois.

It was a Sunday night and I went to the nearest Jollibee. The guard opened the door using the standard door opening operating procedure:

1. Open the door for the customer
2. With a smile that exudes a fun, friendly, family atmosphere, say to the customer “Welcome to Jollibee Sir/Madam”.
3. Close the door after the customer enters
4. Repeat until your shift ends

On this night, there was a deviation from the standard procedure. I like to acknowledge the guard’s friendly welcome, however programmed. I don’t just rush into the store without hearing the doorman out and replying with a “Thankyou” that exudes gratitude. But this guy, this dude in sandals and ultra thin eyeglasses, slipped in front of me before the guard finished the stock line and I was able to enter.

That ruined my night. It meant Sandal Man got to the counter before me. He ordered the last remaining Double Yum burger. That was it, there was no more Double Yums. I had to settle for the single Yum which left me hungry and unsatisfied.

This scenario wouldn’t have phased your typical managerial type. They would have contingency plans, they would have done their forward risk analysis, they would have reassigned resources and rescheduled activities. But not me. I don’t have an MBA, what good is a Computer Science degree in such a situation? How poorly equipped I am for the world and its complexities. I would remain hungry that night, my blood sugar level would drop, a headache would develop, my judgement would become clouded, and all hope of satiation would be lost. The sun would set, like for so many people in the world, on another empty stomach.