What did you say?

I tell myself life could be worse. Definitely don't let the little things bother me. And it's true, and in not doing so the little annoying things become, well, slightly amusing. You get a good story out of it. You see the world just slightly different, maybe you're even lucky enough to see it from another person's eyes.

There's the Indian woman in the newspaper store who thought I called her, sir.

I am a woman, so I am not a sir, she said.

What? I answered. Good God, I thought to myself.

I didn't call you sir, I said, knowing there is no way in hell I would have made that mistake.

But by God, that's what she heard and she was outraged, insisting that's what I said.

I don't know what I said, but it wasn't sir, I said.

That's better, she said, you didn't know what you said.

I know there's something cultural in there somewhere. I mean, she heard something completely different from what I said, that's obvious. So, I could write a blog commenting on, damnit, if "they" want to work here "they" should learn the language. Or, I could just chalk it up life in the city, which is what I'm going to do.

Because...right after that I went to Dunkin' Donuts. Now, I love Dunkin' Donuts. I love that it's not snooty like that other coffee chain, I feel comfortable and I'm not intimidated because, frankly, I don't know a latte from a chai from a hole in a donut. But, again, Dunkin' Donuts has a way of hiring people who don't speak English.

I drink coffee with milk. Just milk. But it's nothing for me to come back with a cup of coffee with sugar in it. And when I do I just shrug and think, life could be worse. At least there aren't roadside bombs going off on my coffee run.

So after my little exchange with the Indian, I go to Double D and order coffee with milk.

Sugar? the young Asian woman asks me.

No sugar, I reply, just milk.

You want a glass of milk?

At that point the other counter help stepped in.