Jane's World by Paige Braddock for March 18, 2019

I once had that problem at a donut shop. I finally just told the girl behind the counter to keep moving her finger and I’d stop her when she was pointing at the right one.

I often shop in a local Mexican supermarket where they have great prices on fresh meat and produce.

One of the temptations is their own, fresh pan dulce… sweet breads of various types, mostly cheaper than pastries at non-Hispanic markets.

They have a zillion kinds, grouped by price but only occasionally labelled… and even then they may be in the wrong tray or bin.

Plus the names may not mean much to me, if I’m unfamiliar with that kind, or maybe I can only translate the Spanish word as “Rock” or “Stick.”

S’OK…. I only buy one or two, if it looks good and the price is OK.

Sometimes I might try a variety cos it’s on sale for 50 cents.

The checkers all speak Spanish…. and they have a list right by the registers saying how much each kind costs.

But here’s the problem: The list has no pictures.

Like this young woman in the doughnut shop…. even they often have no idea which is which, or if what I’m buying is a stick, a rock, or something else.

There are a few we all know…. mantecadas (butter cupcakes) empanadas, puerquitos (pig shaped spice cookies), panque (pound cake) slices…

but other things are a mystery.

So I choose two 50 cent rolls and see later that I was charged $1.19 each.

Another time I splurge on a $1.09 pastry and later find I paid 75 cents.

I figure it all evens out.

The glaze is on donut girl’s face.

Now ask her for a German/Pennsylvania Dutch fastnacht since it’s lent.

Locally (Dallas, TX) almost all of the donut shops are owned by Korean families. It used to be lots of fun in the mornings listening to Mexican customers trying to order what they want from someone who only speaks Korean and limited (formerly called “broken”) English, until someone got smart and printed a “touch the picture” menu.

…actually, if you ask me, the donut shop girl seems like a ‘glazed’ to me. ;-)

I was at the deli counter of a local supermarket, I asked the person for 3/4ths of a pound of lunch meat. She gave me 1/3 pound. I had to explain that 3/4 = 0.75 on the deli scale.

Yesterday I asked for some green beer. The gal didn’t know what I was talking about.

And she is holding it with her bare hand.