09/26/2026
Card payment.
Sure thing.
It's contactless.
Mhm, go ahead and tap.
The customer — usually somewhere between 40-60 — who apparently still believes it's basically sorcery that a piece of plastic can pay for anything, yet is SO proud to announce their card is contactless. (Every single time, I have to physically stop myself from losing it — professionalism, man.)
At my "go ahead and tap," they slooowly bring the card toward the reader like it's a delicate waltz.
The second it gets close enough, they yank it away almost before I even see it happen.
Payment obviously doesn't go through.
Quick context: the card reader at my job is one of those ancient contraptions that only works if you threaten it. Now add contactless tech and a customer who's terrified their life savings are about to vanish, and yeah — it glitches.
"Sir, you have to hold the card there for like a full second, otherwise it won't read."
A full second. That's it.
He taps again and pulls back after exactly one second.
Machine freezes, obviously.
"Sir, hold it there" (screaming internally at whoever invented this technology) "and wait for the beep."
Pure panic in his eyes: "Wait — did it charge me three times?!"
Ngl, the satisfaction of pulling the most shocked, "caught red-handed" face possible was priceless.
I let it linger for a second before laughing it off to defuse things.
Still, he didn't take his eyes off me until I handed over the receipt — clearly trying to figure out if I was messing with him or straight-up robbing him.