"Just be careful of what you write."
That's Alissa Maugens, who is learning that lesson very publicly after writing a homophobic slur on a bar receipt that's now gone viral.
She told our partners at WEWS that the receipt was supposed to be kept private, intended as a joke for her friends she was serving at West End Tavern in Lakewood, Ohio. She says it wasn't meant to hurt anyone.
"I understand it's a very sensitive thing, but it wasn't meant to be offensive toward anybody," Maugens said.
News of the receipt started when her friends and patrons at the time, Andrew Rollings and his cousin, sent a Snapchat of the receipt. A recipient took a screenshot of it, and from there, it was all over social media.
"Something like that obviously shouldn't be put out there. That's just something amongst friends," Rollings told WEWS.
While WEWS didn't say whether Maugens is in danger of losing her job, they reported many on social media said they won't return to the bar where she works.
According to KTVT, a similar case occurred in January when a Texas waiter typed a racial slur on four guests' receipts, followed by a number –– presumably to keep track of each order. The restaurant fired the waiter, yet insisted he meant no harm.
