McDonalds

McDonalds, is it the cornerstone of the fast food industry? Or just another aspect of life that us as Americans take advantage of? If you look at what McDonalds means to American society you will see that it is not just a Fast food restaurant but part of an Americans everyday life. Every day about one quarter of the U.S. population eats fast food.

I recently took time to sit in a McDonalds and observe my surroundings pulled up to the McDonalds on seventh street and the first thing I noticed were the giant golden arches out front and the color scheme of red, gold and white. As soon as I walked through the door, my immediate observation was the smell of the grease. Since I was not rushing in to grab my hamburger and run back out, I took notice to the smell. I sat down in a booth and as I looked around I noticed the fast-moving environment around me. The lines were long at both the register and the condiment area. As I looked around at the different people eating, I noticed that not many people were talking. There were a variety of people in throughout the McDonalds. Over in the corner was an elderly couple drinking their coffee just gazing around. Across from me was a group of four adults in camouflage and Ft. Deterick I.D. badge. Out side sitting were two families each with little kids. There is not just a certain group of people that orders fast food it’s anyone, I noticed this as I looked over at the soda machine to see a tall man in a business suit and a laptop carrier around his arm. They were too occupied by their great tasting cheeseburgers and their salt covered french fries. I sat and listened to the different noises. You could hear the chatter of the workers from the back along with the crackling sound from the burgers being wrapped. Before I left, I recapped what I had just observed and the most astonishing thing was the fact that no one communicated to each other. The people in line had either their eyes glued to the menus or they had their heads down. I looked at the tables no one was communicating to each other just eating in their own happy world.

Just some thing to think about the golden arches are now more widely recognized than the Christian cross. So as I leave you with this observation I ask one question. Is McDonalds the cornerstone of the fast food industry? Or is it just another aspect of live that us as Americans take advantage of?