Yep. I’ve done both, and while retail was certainly way more mind-numbingly boring, waiting tables is much harder on a person’s soul, especially on the dealing-with-people front. It’s just harder, period.

To be fair to your mom, I have noticed in my years as a red-hair-haver that waaaaay more men will ask this question than women. And they will be creeps. She might have been trying to tell the guy to back off without considering your embarrassment, which sucks but is slightly understandable.