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I used to believe there was something inexplicable about my face—a je ne sais quoi, if you will—that invites oddity. But after wearing a mask for more than a year, I think that inexplicable something—a phrase that really does sounds better in French—isn’t connected to my face at all. At least, that’s one thing I discovered on a recent Office Depot visit.
“Can you tell me where to find padded envelopes?” I asked the first employee I saw.
He looked around, and at first I thought, he’s looking for the padded envelopes, this bodes well. But then he hit me with a hard truth.
“Honestly, I can’t,” he said.
“Can’t, or won’t?”
“Can’t. It’s my first day, and I have no idea where stuff is.”
“Is there someone you can ask for help?”
He looked around the store again. The only other employee was working the register. Because there were several people waiting in the checkout line…
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