The Cashier

An aspiring artist moves to California to spend a summer painting before marrying Dale, his fiancee in New York. To support himself, Ralf obtains a summer job as a mail clerk for the IRS. He grows fond of his co workers there: Emily, a Zen enthusiast; Melba, a born again believer; Frank, a practical joker; and Mr. Thompson, a failed poet. Ralf, who never had a family, comes to feel a sense of family at his work. He also becomes intrigued by the blind cashier in the cafeteria of his office building. Meanwhile, his paintings are failures. Dale's career as a nightclub singer, by contrast, progresses admirably, as Ralf learns in phone conversations that grow increasingly distant. After Mr. Thompson confides in Ralf about his failed poetry, Ralf decides he is a mail clerk and not an artist.