Weekend in Customers #1

Working at Munchers Bakery in Lawrence, Kansas, I see a lot of interesting people: travelers, regulars, families, friends, strange folk. When I get the chance I try to ask them two questions: "How was your morning?" and "What are you doing today?". Here were some of my favorite customers from the past few months:

The Meant To Be: The couple was older. When I asked them what they were doing today he said that he was just visiting her. They dated 60 years ago, went their separate ways, married other people, had kids, and recently became widowed. Now they’re just hanging out and having fun. “I guess it was meant to be,” the man said.

The Arachnophobe: She must have been less than 5 years old and she shrieked because she thought that the ring spiders on the display cakes were real.

The Rivals: She was wearing a Kansas State University Wildcats hoodie and he was wearing a University or Kansas Jayhawks shirt. “We know our places,” he said. “I don’t talk to her about football season and she doesn’t talk to me about basketball season.”

The Goth: A tattooed man dressed in all black walks up to the counter and orders two dozen assorted donuts (my choice). He’s wearing skinny jeans and he has several piercings. I ask him what he’s doing after this and he says, “I’m taking these to Sunday school. I teach a class.”

The Adventurer: It was his first visit to Munchers and this gentleman strolled up to the counter. “I’ll have one of everything,” he said. So I got him one of every cake donut, raised donut, long john, fritter, strudel, cinnamon roll, danish, croissant, etc. The whole order was about $60.

The Consistent: Every Sunday, elderly Maxine and her friend get the same order: a cinnamon nut danish. Then they sit and talk about life for a bit.

The Racer: Clad in a racing jumpsuit, an older gentleman walked in around 6 a.m. said that he and 100 other racers were hitting the tracks today. He races his car up to 120 mph but he said that wasn't very fast compared to his competition.

The Grounded Rocket Man: Dressed in an "Occupy Mars" hoodie, one man told me that he had worked for NASA as a project manager for about 28 years. One of his first days on the job was the Challenger explosion in 1986. He no longer works with NASA but he likes to keep up on their current projects and their work with SpaceX.

The Tiger in Jayhawk Territory: Peaking out beneath this guy's jacket was was a black and gold tiger shirt so I asked, "Is that for Mizzou Basketball?" He looked at me, looked at the girl he was with, and shamefully zipped up his jacket. "Yeah, that's what I thought," I said.

The Little Baker: A 2 year old raced around the store and behind the counter as his exhausted grandmother tried to place her order. He laughed and smiled, peaking out at her from behind the display case. She called his name and whistled but he refused to come out. Only with the promise of donuts did he return to his grandmother's side. As I handed over her order she said, "I'm going to sugar him up and drop him off with mom."

The Good Friend: "Which donuts do you think older men will like?" an older woman asked me. Her friend was in the hospital after suffering a major heart attack earlier in the week. One of his favorite spots is Munchers so she decided to get him some sweets.

The Homesick: A younger woman came in with her order talking about how she was visiting from out-of-town She lived in Lawrence for 20 years but she's been in Utah for the past 10. She misses it dearly. She doesn't come back often but when she does, she visits friends and grabs some Munchers donuts.

Disclaimer: All quotes and experiences are recalled from memory so they may not be 100 percent accurate. Many of these encounters are brief, representing just a fraction of each person's story.