in this day and age, we are a very distrusting society. almost to the point of paranoia if you ask me. i always lock the doors to the house. i mean, if i am even out in my front or backyard mowing (those of you that have visited la casa delYerg know this doesn’t happen frequently) i lock the front door. i shred all my mail. even the junk mail. alright, maybe not the stuff that just says resident, but i know that a crafty thief might even be able to extract personal information from me there. i don’t leave the MINI unlocked or the windows down if i know i am going to be away from it for more than 30 seconds. very distrusting.
yet every time i am at a grocery store, fast food restaurant, or wherever, i trust that the person working the register gave me the correct change. i never question it. i mean, i check the bills, but never the change. and not to insult the intelligence of those diligent workers at such establishments, but they are necessarily places where someone is checking their qualifications. you don’t usually submit a resume at mickey d’s. for the most part, the basic math competency is just assumed.
this scares me a little. have you seen the recent scholastic aptitude numbers in the united states? we aren’t exactly burning up the charts, if you know what i mean. and those that produced those numbers are more than likely the ones kicking back your change from your number four with cheese. handling your money. i think i might start taking a gander before i just shovel those coins into my pocket. just a thought.