Return of the Jedi
There's only one thing to say to the next restaurant patron who thinks they need to add the change for me, or the next guy who thinks he needs to point out to me that physical theories have to agree with experiment: I'll be back. (Thanks to Backreaction for the picture) 
posted by Kea | 5:47 PM
5 Comments:
Hi Kea,
I think that the Terminator also said "I'll be back", in numerous films with slight variations?
I think the Beattles also had a song with this title.
Welcome back.
Lovely, I like that version :-) Thanks for the link.
-B.
Hi Doug and Bee. I was in fact thinking of the Terminator!
Back in physics grad school, we had this professor who was well known to be completely unable to do even the simplest arithemtic. However, he was a brilliant lecturer on higher math.
So whenever we decided that he had given us enough theory for the day, and was starting to overflow our input buffers, we'd ask him to do a particular example.
Now that I think of it, there was another professor, from when I was in math grad school, who could be derailed by asking him what his favorite things were. The answers were a certain type of cigar, a certain form of alcohol, and a subject which is avoided by family newspapers. The class would be disrupted because his discussion on these subjects would last until the bell rang, and then on until the next class arrived to take over the room.
I'm sure that your customers mean you no insult by making assumptions about your math skills. Nor am I at all sure that there is a way to drop the information that you have a PhD in math without reducing your effectiveness. Let it be a surprise, a little secret about the restaurant that is known by the long term customers only.
Carl, I wouldn't dream of telling the customers that I have a PhD in theoretical physics! And my workmates really aren't that interested in discussing it. As it happens, I'm not that great at arithmetic, although I'm good enough to be efficient and accurate in a busy restaurant setting. More to the point, whether about arithmetic or the day's weather (the topic is irrelevant) condescension is sometimes painfully apparent, and as a good professional I say nothing ... and laugh internally, because it is rather funny ... but it is also one of many, many constant reminders of my gender which I suspect you are not used to experiencing.
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