Double Shift

Jon from Highbridge headed out early this morning.

“One more day closer to the end,” he said.

“The end of what?” someone asked.

“The seven-day workweek,” Jon snapped.

His edge comes from five days on a warehouse loading dock followed by weekends driving a taxi.

“It wears on you,” Jon admitted. “But I’ll feel better after breakfast.”

The Crown Diner at the corner of 161st Street and Gerard Avenue provided the day’s fuel.

“An egg sandwich on a roll, two chocolate donuts and a large coffee, cream and sugar please.”

Jon leaned against the counter as they bagged his order.

“It’s gonna be a long one,” he said. “There will be a lot of shoppers out, but if business is good I can go shopping myself.”

“You still have gifts to buy?” someone asked.

“No,” Jon said. “I will be shopping for Yankee tickets. Prices went up for next year so I’ll need to stash away a little extra. It should help that I’m working a double shift today and tomorrow and Monday.

“Yeah,” he sighed. “It’s really gonna be a long one. Throw in an extra chocolate donut, please.”