Checkout Girls
They are uniformly cute
behind their work shift carrels
but all their girlish austerity
can’t hide another dress-code
detail, one unique flaw each:
hairy arms, lisp, giant ass,
dead eyes, connect-the-dot moles.
Checkouts 1 to 10 would light up,
give your bags express line treatment,
for a compliment about
deeper qualities discovered,
a moment of eye-contact
small talk between scanner beeps.
~ Jordan Trethewey
Jordan Trethewey is a writer living in Fredericton, N.B. with his wife Tina and their animal menagerie, which includes cats Rembrandt and Mortimer and sheltie Porter. To read more of his published work, please visit www.vagabondtrust.com.
Really love this poem, Jordan. I pictured every checkout girl I’ve come across at various Smith’s, Safeways, Save-Ons, and Superstores (why is it they all seem to start with ‘s’?). Thanks for making me smile!