The Retail Worker's Curse

When I started my first job at 16 years old, it was as a bagger/cashier at Copps Food Center. Later in college I quit Copps and began working at Menards as a cashier, and later a sales rep. That is eight years of retail, and eight years of saying "hello" to every single customer I saw, whether they wanted help from me or not. And even though I don't work in retail any more, I continue to smile strangers... Everywhere. When I'm shopping at Target, I grin and nod my head to passersby. While strolling through the produce aisles at Festival Foods I perk up and say hi to the lady next to me picking out Red Delicious Apples.

Some ignore me, some raise their eyebrows, some wearily return a smile and very few reply with a cheery hello. I don't want to acknowledge them, my body just does it. It's almost like a reflex now. I know how to kick a habit, but how do you kick a reflex? I'm starting to think you don't...