Around the DC area there are all kinds of Safeway names – Soviet, Secret, etc. I don’t know if my Safeway in Cherrydale has a name (well, except for Cherrydale), but as of this morning I’m starting a movement to call it Cheerful Safeway. Every time I go in there the employees are so nice as they buy in to, much like I do, the very small neighborhood-esque nature of the little corner of Arlington where we live.

But at 7 in the morning when I’m allergy-groggy and it’s way too early to be awake and on my way to work, I stopped in Safeway for some Starbucks. The barista was more than pleasant and while waiting for my coffee, I witnessed seven – SEVEN – Safeway employees that were smiling, joking with one another and even seemed to be having fun doing their jobs. Who knows if the employees I witnessed loved their jobs or not, but they seemed happy, and that makes me happy. I’ve met the Cherrydale Safeway manager before and I can’t help but think that, unlike Corner Bakery, it has a lot to do with a great manager who I frequently witness giving his employees compliments and atta-boys.

Cheerful Safeway. Mark it!