I believe I’ve previously posted when I was job hunting and how much it sucked. Well, I’ve been working at a certain retail store (I won’t divulge that info, though I can give a hint: think of an Adam Sandler movie and a remote), but I just absolutely hate it. Being in a small town, our store is small with a bunch of shit cramped up inside. I fear for my life sometimes just walking in a stock room (which there are three different ones, for some reason). Between boxes stacked too high for anyone to really safely reach (as long as they aren’t too close to the light, it’s fine, but it’s still really high), only having multiple tall ladders (sometimes, I just need a damn step stool, it’s ridiculous), oh, and trying to get work done when getting called up front to run a register or “having” to stop and greet every customer (ech). I understand the need for customer service, but if the store was designed better, with like things together and decent amount of merch on the floor in reaching distance, they shouldn’t need help finding stuff. Oh, and I hate answering phones (so low tech to me).

But what am I to do? There are people who find a job they love, but I unfortunately don’t know exactly what I can do. I know I hate running a register (given) and dealing with too many people (I can help customers, but I actually hate it, especially if they don’t know what size comforter they need [you should know the size of your bed, at least I would think so]). I have no problem climbing ladders, but I hate doing that every five minutes. Again, if the store wasn’t so cramped, you wouldn’t need to stock things so high to require a ladder frequently. Even the stuff stocked in the back is up high.

It’s taking all my energy to just not quit, though I am very tempted to do so. I even bought a lottery ticket today (fingers crossed, it would make this decision easy, especially if I match at least 5 numbers, though I’d be lucky to just win the $3 with just getting a powerball number). Even four plus powerball is $10,000, which would be enough to not need to work for about 5 months (I’m gonna say 4 months, since I’d need time to look for a better job).

Now, I do have an Associate Degree for Internet Technology (specifically in Web Development), which is the most USELESS degree in this region (we’re not very up there in tech). Being on the coast, I wish I could go back and go into some like Marine Biology or something, there would a few more job options here with that. But, unfortunately, without a stable income, it’s not financially feasible to go back to school. Also, the community college, well, doesn’t really have that many great programs. Actually, there’s not a Marine Biology study, but general science, for the most part.

Maybe I should make this blog post an almost sort resume, putting myself out there in some way, since places like Monster.com tend to attract Insurance Companies saying I’m qualified, despite not actually being qualified.

I like to draw, and like to think I have some creativity. I don’t really paint, mostly pencil sketches, but I don’t really draw these large original pieces that people would want to buy. And whatever I have painted, I start but never finish (for some reason, maybe there is a painter’s block, similar to a writer’s block).

Now, I have did some quick animations, the little 15-sec witch one (really about 3-sec) and a 10-sec eye one (actually 4-sec, the rest is credit roll):

But, that’s about the most I’ve done. Could I do something longer? I have thought of trying, even getting audio software in order to do voices (and messing with pitch and whatever), but I don’t really have time (damn work). At one point, back in high school, I once considered going to this certain school that dealt more with graphic design, animation, and, well, basically, using technology for creative projects. But it’s an expensive school, but I always wondered whether I could’ve worked in 3D animation, using the software to render video. Guess I’ll never know.

I’ve looked at other schools, wishing to go into something related to film and TV. I love movies, and obviously, I love a lot of TV shows (despite me limiting myself to any new series, since I no longer have a DVR to just be able to watch the 40-some odd number of shows I used to watch. It’ll be nice to find a job where knowing about a shit-load of TV shows, as well as understanding TV ratings and such, and getting paid. Though, I don’t consider myself much of a writer.

And, as I just said, I’m not the greatest writer. Right now, I have multiple, what I call “story ideas,” I’ve been working on (some I started as long as 5-6 years ago). Typically, they are of sci-fi/fantasy/supernatural themes (a few vampire/werewolf ones), but I generally have an idea of what is going on, but I have a hard time developing an actual plot.

I think what it comes down to, I’d love to work where I’d have more freedom (I never go to the movies) and don’t feel so miserable all the time. I was in the top 20 of my graduating class, I had a high GPA in both high school and at community college. I did well in general (not so much in gym, go figure, and also Spanish, and Chemistry (though I think that was the teacher, ’cause oddly, I did well in science classes, except that one). I only failed one class, Calculus (that is very hard, I didn’t even take the second part, went for a college course instead, dealing with computer multimedia (such as flash)).

I can build a computer (built my first for myself in 2006, and, though I now have a laptop, just last week it was plugged back in and it still works), I understand basic networking, and just to note, that computer I built had two Linux distros (PCLinux 2007 and OpenSUSE 10.2) as well as Windows XP Pro. If I could either find a better, more stable job, or just win the lottery, I would love to build another machine, this time one to serve as a DVR (I really, really want to do this, so that no matter what service I have, they can’t take it away from me). I was thinking a MythTV setup, since it’ll be Linux (not Windows), and since it’ll serve one purpose, it wouldn’t need to be overly powerful.

Geez, over a thousand words, yikes, I’ve got to stop going on like this.

Until another day…

Warning, I’m in a venting mood:

Being I work at a retail store (a home decor actually, where I know nothing about decorating, but they don’t know shit about computers), I see a lot of fucked up shit. I don’t know how many times a customer may buy a whole bedding set (quilt, shams, ruffles, blah, blah, blah) and then come in the next day to return the whole thing because it wasn’t right for their room.

First off, you know what your damn room looks like. Second, if it’s a matter of color, don’t come back and say it was too blue or something, ’cause, you knew there was a lot of blue in it (this argument also ties in with “you know what your damn room looks like”). Third, not only are you wasting my time, you’re wasting your time as well (and money too, think about the gas it took to get your ass to the store).

Another thing that pisses me off.  Why won’t people keep their damn packaging.  Most stores will not accept returns without the original packaging.  Think about it.  If you owned a store, are you gonna wanna deal with products that have no packages?  And it’s listed on the damn receipt.  I know, ’cause I put that on there in hopes it’ll decrease the ammount of stupidity;  it doesn’t.

You see, when I shop, I know what I want, and only a few times did I get something to try out (electronic stuff is about the only item that you may need to test out and see if it works for you, especially something like an antenna, ’cause I may not do any better than a standard non-amplified antenna).  And you know what I did when I bought that more expensive amplified antenna?  I kept the fuckin’ box and everything.  I stuck it back in there, nice and neat just like I have opened it.

It’s not hard folks.  Same thing goes for the receipt.  Most stores won’t except returns without a receipt, and for good reason.  They may have a 30-day policy, and the receipt is the one thing that’ll show it being within the 30 days, and how it was paid for.  Now, we are more lenient, in we allow returns w/o a receipt, but with store credit only.  I wish we didn’t.  It’s not hard to keep a receipt.  There’s actually a regular returner (new word: noun, someone who buys just to return it later, for some dumbass reason).  This person apparently has racked up quite a good amount of store credit, giving us lame excuses (elementary student excuses, such as “the dog ate it”).  Not joking, it’s true.  And, if I remember correctly, I think it happened twice.  If the dog did eat it, then maybe you should keep your receipts “out of reach of pets.”

If I owned and operated a store, I would be much more strict towards a return policy.  I don’t care if they don’t end up buying something, because if they end up returning it, it’ll cancel that purchase out anyway.  Plus, time is money, so why waste employee time on stupidity?

Oh, and the customer, truly, is not always right.  We just have to work like that’s true, but you know what, we don’t really think that.  And anyone who has worked in retail, feels the same way, yet, despite this, they may be some of the same people who do the same shit they hate customers of their own stores to do.

I also hate it when customers fill a cart, and somewhere in rugs, decide to just leave.  Unless it was some dire emergency, like a sudden family death you found out about or something, then you are an ass.  I hate people who take towards using every fuckin’ coupon.  I get it, everybody wants to save some money, BUT, how do we make money to stay in business if we end up selling you every item at or below cost.  More importantly, I hate other employees who allow certain coupon usage that had been forbidden.  Items on sale dirt cheap, are sale items.  Most stores do the same thing by not allowing coupons on sale items.  Unless it says something like “an additional on top of an existing offer” or something, chances are, you can’t use a coupon on a sale item.

I hate customers that feel the need to take an entire sheet set out of the package, allowing pillow cases to fall on the floor and get dirty, making it almost unsellable.  Do you really need to take the whole fuckin sheet out?  Do you know that size of your own bed you sleep on everyday?  If so, why the fuck do you need to take it out.  Or the window panels, or even quilts.  Half the shit gets displayed, so it’s not that you can’t see the whole pattern.  Is it measurements?  Most of any quilts, panels, and the like have the measurements on the damn package.  Don’t know how long of a curtain you need?  Well, if you were thinking of getting a curtain, maybe you should’ve taken some damn measurements before you left.  BTW, we’re not mind readers.  You cvan describe your house all you want, but it isn’t gonna make us qualified to give you decorating advice on YOUR house.  Customer service is really just needed to help customers look for certain items.  Unless a place says there are Interior Designers for hire, you do your own decorating.

Point A: Know what you want/need before you buy.  Point B: well, there is not point B, just have at least an idea of what you need or want before you go and buy something.  It not only saves us time, but as an advice to other customers out there (we are all customers, some of us are just better to stores than others), it also saves us all time and money in the long run.

Today it started snowing. Used to, especially when I was in school (phew, 5 years ago, man, time flies), I’d want snow. It’s been 20 years I think since we last had real good snow, not some lame 1-3 inch bullcrap, I mean GOOD snow (about a foot), but I was about 3 at the time, so not so good with any real memory of that, just pictures of it. But, I get two days off in a pay week, today was the end of that said pay week, meaning I had three days off now, since they decided to close early (I do evenings since I’m not a morning person). If they close earlier, I’m not needed, so I got the call from work telling me to not come in. This sucks. No, I don’t like my work, I hate it actually, but I need money, so I lost eight hours today, and that sucks.

Oh well, not much I can really do there, so here are some pictures (edited down for size).

Later,

Eh, I got to work on Dec. 24th, despite requesting that day off for my birthday so I could do some shopping at an FYE (I got an FYE card, so it’s my day for the 20% discount), see The Day the Earth Stood Still (it’s the last day the theater here is showing it), and also go to my dad’s house, on account of my birthday and that Christmas thing. Now, I got to work, b/c everyone else has a life and either has family over, is gonna be with their family, or gonna go see their family. The only other person has another job, so at least she’s working still. So now, I can kiss seeing the new Keanu Reeves movie, which I really wanted to see. Well, at least I can use that fact I also worked Thanksgiving day (which was pure stupidity, BTW), as leverage to get New Year’s Eve, New Year’s, and maybe even the day after to get myself a little mini three-day semi-vacation.

Why?  Customers can be very annoying, as are fellow co-workers.  Basically, people are annoying (I’m sure I annoy people myself).

I’m not a people person, but I know not to be too rude to a customer, even though I find that a “customer is NOT always right,” and also, female customers, can get real bitchy.  (Just to note, I am a female, and I can get in bitchy moods myself, but don’t hassel a poor sales associate, we do’t make that much and most of the times, the questions are stupid, and also, and I’m getting off-topic here, why can’t someone know what colors will work and what they really want before they buy it.  It’s a waste of our time and yours when you buy a shit load of crap just to return it the next day (or in some cases, just hours later).

Oh, and I don’t meen to be disrespectful in any way, but we get some people who just aren’t quite all there, and I just wonder why in the hell they don’t have a friend or family member, even a nurse, someone to be with them and help them.  I’m a sales associate, not a health care professional.

Then, you got the people who bring drinks in and leave it on a shelf, maybe stick gum on a rail or something (I’ve seen dried gum under a shelf).  But, the main thing in all the stores, “okay, let’s load up a cart and then decide, ‘eh, maybe we’ll not get any of this stuff,’ and just leave it right there and exit.  That worse than when someone decides to not buy one item and just sticks it on a shelf where they are (before I worked retail, if I decided to not buy something, I went back to where it was and place it back, and I remember not wanting to leave something at checkout but my aunt or something had no problem with it).  Oh, and where I work, we have bed displays.  Anything more annoying, taking a quilt out of a bag and placing it on the bed.  I get checking the length, but, why leave it there?

This is gonna be a long post.

Speaking of taking stuff out of their packaging.  There’s no point in it.  We have panels displayed, quilts displayed in some way, also, a person can see the colors and general pattern through the packaging.  So why the fuck take it out?  To feel it?  Okay, un zip it and feel it, it doesn’t have to be completely taken out and left on the floor.  Plus, like I said, they’re displayed, feel the quilts that we’ve hunged, or the panels.  Is it a matter of size?  Okay, you have a full size bed, then yes a F/Q quilt will fit it, it’s a FULL/Queen quilt, it’ll work.  And yes, with a quilt, you’ll need a ruffle, it’s a quilt.  Obviously, if we have matching ruffles, it means, yes, you’ll need one if seeing that a bed is on a frame is bad for you (I don’t get that neither, so what.  I don’t think I’ll ever get it).  Now we have more bedspreads, and there are bozos asking about ruffles.  We don’t sell matching ruffles with bedspreads, yet we do with quilts, hmmm, (*this is a sarcastic tone, BTW), I wonder, so ruffles for the quilts, but not bedspread.  Could it be that bedspreads don’t need ruffles since they bigger overall, and quilts are more top covering, and would require one (if that’s a preference to hide that the bed is on a frame and not touching the floor)?

Oh, and most of the people I work with smoke, so at both sides of the entrance are little pots filled with sand for the purpose of, I guess it’s estinguishing a cigarette.  Customers need to do that before entering.  I believe this is a problem everywhere, those are for cigarettes, not TRASH (though, smoking is a filthy habit and cigarettes are trash).  But, in regard to our little makeshift what-cha-ma-callit cigarette disposal system, when is a pot of sand considered a trash can?

Oh, and clothes, phew.  Got customers coming in, overweight women or something like that (not to be offensize, as I’m overweight according to what I should weigh based on age and height), but don’t wear skanky outfits, no one wants to see that.  I don’t even wear tanks, please, don’t wear little tub tops and walk in a store lookin like that.

Oh, this is the best part of people stupidity.  Ok, I’m on a ladder, obvously stocking something.  A customer comes up to me and asks “Do you work here?”  Well, DUH!  Oh course, I don’t say that, but, come on.  I feel like I have every right to say, “No, I just like climbing up on ladders and stocking merchandise.”  Even had a customer ask when I was behind the register.

What else?   Let’s see, I think that covers it for stupid customers.  Now, stupid boss/co-workers, Yeah.  First, they can’t spell to save their lives.  When it comes to store ads, we have the worst.  First, the company that does it, doesn’t spell check, second, they shouldn’t have to, really, ’cause the boss man should know that it’s ‘Layaway’ not ‘Law-a-way.’  It’s ‘tablecloths’ not ‘tableclothes,’ and also, I believe the rug size is 5′x8′, not 5″x8″.  (I’m not explaining that last one, it’s obvious enough, if you don’t know it, you’re stupid).  Oh, and with math, SIMPLE, SIMPLE addition, say 9+5, we got counting fingers.  Seriously.  Then there’s the person who does about fiften-thirty minutes of work and decides, “time for a cigarette break.”  Then there’s the managers taking lunches, despite it being a Saturday, and one employee was one theirs, and leaving me on register with one person, who isn’t qualified for watching the register or helping customers with bedding/window stuff (he’s more rugs and if somone needs something down), yet said person who was already on their lunch was told to wait for the said person who is the one to call for heavy lifting stuff.

Don’t think I explained that well, basically, managers can all eat lunch, leave me be in charge, when other employees (including me) would have to wait for someone else to get done.  Does that make sense?

Phew, over a thousand words.  Pretty sure this was a blog no-no, pretty sure no one is ready this as interest was lost.

In the end, everyone is stupid, annoying, and well, stupid still. And work sucks!

Later…