Without fully knowing my audience here, sadly, I can’t write much about an event that occurred this weekend to one of my co-workers. The short of it is, had this co-worker been permitted under the laws of Michigan to marry her partner with the full force of the law and the rights granted as such, she would not be in her current predicament. Her life has now been fully transformed into one of uncertainty and she now has to wade through gray areas of Michigan law to protect herself, her assets and her child. A very sad situation indeed and one that I regret that I can not write about on this public blog. If you are straight and you don’t currently support the idea that gays and lesbians deserve the right to marry, perhaps you might consider what would happen to your life if suddenly you had no legal recourse for something your spouse did.
It’s been a VERY long weekend and nearly a week since I’ve written in this blog. I’ve been putting in long days at work lately and while that always pays off with a good paycheck, the damage it’s doing to my body is noticeable. Standing and walking for 12 hours at a time on a hard concrete floor with only about an hour’s worth of sit-down breaks is wreaking havoc on my feet and my back. I can only image how bad I would be right now if I had not lost so much weight over the past several years. I’ve finally reached an “average” weight for a male my height although I find it hard to believe that it’s average. I still think I need to shed a few pounds.
The folks from downstate or the ‘fudgies’ as they are know to us locals have started to arrive in droves to Traverse City. It’s cherry blossom time and even though it’s still ridiculously cold outside, the flowers are in full bloom and Memorial Day weekend is this next weekend. It’s early this year. With the influx of tourists come all sorts of issues at work. It’s impossible to gauge how busy we will be at any given time so staffing is a bitch. It’s also impossible to know what people are going to buy lots of this year vs. last year because there is no consistency. Shoppers in general are about the most inconsistent people on the planet (myself included of course). We are all so influenced by the “next big thing” that people simply forget about the things that actually work….and then I get yelled at when the “next big thing” doesn’t perform to expectations…as if I actually have any control over that sort of thing.
This is also the time of year when suddenly people just get stupid. Today a woman just got hysterical when an employee failed to notice her requests for help. The employee is deaf, she didn’t bother to re-think her strategy about asking for help from people until I informed her that he could not hear a word she was screaming at him. Luckily she was overcome with guilt and the expression on her face when I told her was just priceless. I had several people today ask over and over again where something was when all they had to do was turn around and look right behind them. People are so unfocused that they simply refuse to actually USE the signs and directional information that my company spends MILLIONS of dollars on each year to help shoppers HELP THEMSELVES. It’s just too much work for them. Patience is also a REALLY big problem for people. Many times today I was helping someone only to be rudely interrupted by someone who could not wait their turn. It is SO very clear when we are helping people and when we not. Really folks, I don’t get paid to stand around and shoot the shit with random people, I get paid to SELL STUFF TO PEOPLE. I could really give a shit about your personal lives. It is NOT necessary to push your way in front of other people to get me to notice that you need help too. I’ll get to you…WAIT YOUR FUCKING TURN.
Tomorrow is a short day for me thank God. Out at noon and then hopefully right home so I can mow my grass and exercise Gavin who has been extra patient with me lately as my hours at work have increased. He’ll get a good workout at the cottage on Tuesday.
Finally a warning to you parents out there who are too involved in your own existence to notice the terror your children are inflicting on employees at big box stores with smooth concrete floors…which are perfect for those fucking shoes with wheels on the bottom. Next time your child decides to run me over take note of the sign below:
