Shhh - schedule

M: 4:00 - Close
T: OFF
W: 11:00 - 5:00 pm
R: 8:30 meeting; 11:00 - 8:00 pm
F: 5:00 - Close
S: 4:00 - 10:00
N: 2:00 - 9:00
M: 4:00 - Close

strange act witnessed

I was at work and saw someone drinking beer on the job. Now, the course of action that should have followed:

send person home; notify unit chief; say ado to the person for, drinking on the job is an offense that leads to termination.

I didn't immediately send the person home, that person knows I know, and claimed to feel bad about it, and obviously needs the money. When the person gave me and, "I owe you", I figure that it might be a done issue. I cannot think of another leader who would have chosen my method of handling it. I may not have handled it right, or the best, but I don't think I shall have difficulty with that person again. At least, I hope not.

Hell, different than bitching

Well ... I guess inadvertantly, I chose sides. There are those who direct and those who do. I made good with those who do and in doing so, put up a wall to those who direct. The bad thing is ... I'm supposed to be one of those who direct. So, "in madness [I] dwell"+ I am the wellspring of work and ambition and I put my foot in a cast with this. Actually, I know that the bigger cheifies and see I'm a sweaty brow man who goes home dirty from a hard day's work and is quick to find solutions, also ever ready to complete some project that needs attending without having to ask.

The other two trainees might have a more slippery slope in that one is slow in the academic arena and the other is set to have a personal fallout that will undoubtedly affect his work. So, "Stand or fall", as the Fixx would sing ... or something odd patched together from Lt. Frank Drebin of Police Squad.++

The other fly in the ointment at work is the re-introduction of a guy who's arrogant, cocky, young, and the management likes him. So, he's protected, an orphan boy of sorts. [key in "Consider yourself ... at home"] He's like the fifth-level underDuke of Toledo, a far cry from the Fresh Prince of Bel Air. He's here to stay and it wouldn't shock me to find that they might push him into management. He's got the bully part down just right, but the tact and being a man ... well, his young and lacks it. The guys in management they have now are not yet men, despite their chronological age. When I see a couple of them get into "whose is bigger" or "pissing contests", they are a far-cry from men.

+ "Thing That Should Not Be", Metallica
++ "But I wouldn't wait until the last minute to fill out those organ donor cards.", Naked Gun

Records shattered?

At work yesterday was one of the ugliest and darkest days I've had. It was rough, tough, and unacceptable. I have a self-policy of acknowledging my fellows with token gift for "brothers in arms" during heavy periods when we get slaughtered. The prinicple reason last night was busy night with a person who was a no-show. The strange thing about it is that work doesn't terminate the person. Work has been none-to-worried about canning people before for such a transgression, especially on the frequency that this person has done it.

I wonder if there's a story there I should know ... favoristism, methinks.

I ran, and ran, and ran ... broke stuff, and was quite sore by night's end. I reluctantly completed a time-wasting assignment that helped solve an error. It is a twice-daily job, but here saved an eggresious error from miscounting. I had other things I needed and wanted to do, but I finished it and found an error, observed by the other "m". We concured on the new number and I buggered out of there.

I suspect that tonight will be modestly better with a slight chance of less spanking and more possibilities. I informed the cheify that training others to do other jobs would have been wise, but he didn't act on it. I think we caught it on the butt or face for his lack of effort on this action. He, of course, is out this week.

I have graded this week to be a 65 percent. This means it's an "F", but it shows some competency. Perhaps extra credit would help. Writing of which, I wonder if I can talk personnel into OT for me, namely to put things into "real shape" so that work isn't perpetually doing catch-up. They're pretty lame-brained, so I don't have high hopes.
----
While lower-wage service industry jobs have high turn-over rates, I think if work would get off its duff and work, morale would not quite be in the toilet on some days/nights. Last night was a flushable morale night. Beaten at work, lackluster compensation, followed by an unsweaty browed "m" saying, "attagirl; attaboy". If I mix this with, oh, and do the work of the no-show person too, you get people sick of work. Can you blame them; I cannot. I think the management needs to go back to school on that one. You missed Morale Boosting 101.

Hellovawickedday

That's right ... and that's all I had time to say as I was running like a chicken sans head. I think I was actually panting as I ran back and forth. What a piece o' crud line of circumstances.

I had a mess of crud yesterday and today, it doubled. I bought thank you cards for the servers and got each of the two ladies yesterday a bar of chocolate.

Tomorrow I will do the same, as the ladies tonight busted butt and more butt and more... crazy, nuts, crappy, but they did it and they aren't always well paid for it.

Thanks ladies!

bad, bold move

Someone at work impulsively turned in two weeks notice. I also put together a proposal for that person regarding pay and vacation. That person still wants me to tweak it with changes and still plans on submitting it. Okay ... uh, the point of the proposal was essentially an ultimatum ... now that you turned in your notice, you're done. One woman, at hearing news that this person actually turned in notice to quit was almost overjoyed--doing a little dance as it were.

Perhaps I should ask these people if they plan on shooting themselves in the foot before I begin.

w-grrr--ork

I have had my fill of career middle management persons. Hello! We're the do-nothings, how can we annoy you?

I did something else for work today, I hope that I can cash it in for political collateral or gain. I surmise that it's "nice guy" thing that amounts to bup -








kis. (a whole lot of nothing in between)

Struggling with work there are those who seek to vamoose. I bid them well and good luck, for many of them are the dead horse. Despite the amount of whipping --- the horse does not move on its own volition. They are overworked, which leads to feelings of being underpaid. I can certainly see how that comes about. Now ... I don't know salaries and don't want to know.

I said that I would put together a proposal, which is really a rebuttle to a conversation I didn't hear. Suffice to write, I will contend that this person has a right to an expanded cap on salary, regardless of the certain "no", and understandable concern from the management on the salary cap.

Work, in general, isn't hip on raises. They are "the Diet Coke of" raises. +

I will not sign it, but rather allow that person to consider it as potential for negotiating purposes.

I hold in my hand a Marty McFly Polaroid++ of a gravestone with my conscious on it. I pray that it hasn't really died.

+ from Austin Powers, 'just one penny, not enough'
++ allusion to Back To the Future (trilogy), where he twice had a photo that held the 'potential future', one was of of siblings and the other of Doc's headstone.

Delightful kid

There's a girl at work who has intellectual limitations. That not being a hinderance to her being a great kid. She was teasing me last night, tapping me in the head then blaming others. I think she might have peaked out on her vocational level, but she's great!

No, I'm not disclosing her name.

"Don't tell him your name Marvin!" +

+ Lethal Weapon

work

Hey! These numbers don't match!

.... "Well, get them to blink in sequence!" .... +

Yeah, sometimes they don't. You have to take these numbers .... (2 on a sheet of a daily report), add them, then subtract from this number here on the computer. Now, make sure to correctly put positive or negative on it. Okay, that's it!

Thankfully one "m" taught me this and it came in handy on Monday and last night. I, personally, want to know why there is the error and would prefer to fix it, rather than bypass it all the time. Generally speaking, this doesn't happen, but twice in one week --- there's something peculiar. I have my suspicion and I'll see if I'm right.

Anyway, yet another page in the manual on how to work there, by ... me.

+ Airplane 2

scars upon thars

I'm looking at my hands --- and they are working man's hands. I bear the cuts, scrapes, and burns of my job. What joy -- more cuts ahead, where any acid neatly reminds me of sores that only appeared to be better healed. My fellow co-workers bear scars from longer work there ... pigment error (mark of a burn) here, faint mark of a once-deep cut there.

Now, you're cautious, but there are ways to injure yourself. I have been jolted by machines (electrical), burnt minorly through accident and incident, cut, and have had chemicals splashed into my eyes. I also got the wonder of vaporized toxins into my lungs -- and I thought working in a industy was dangerous.

Anway, there are no bragging rights now, for no one seeks the scars upon thars, for we are all with scars and mixed -- experienced in the warmth of, "Mother of pearl, that hurts!"

more and more my servant

C-L-O-S-E-R, Closer---
repeat

[think the song, "Gloria"]

That's the chorus of the song at work. I guess my nights belong to them. I wonder, with the perpetual nights if I will ultimately become a servant of evil or a corporate drone/clone.

Sometime soon I'll leave.
I suspect you speak of your applications to other places. Yes, I know. It was I who allowed you to believe you could escape. I have a whole legion of persons applying for those same positions.

... later ...

I will have you work forever without an advancement.
"NEVER!" I shout with my lightsaber drawn and slashing wildly and madly.

I think I should concentrate more on getting out of there. My efforts to help others have been futile, from what I can see. I suggest person after person for more comprehensive training and for what? The bossmen do nuttin' fo' dem. This "spacemonkey"++ needs to get out before I grow crazier.

+ entry title quote from, Return of the Jedi
++ from Fight Club

old story

Where I once worked, come five minutes til, I'd lock the doors. I grew tired of flakes coming in ... "hey, are you still open?" Uh, you walked in the door, lights are on, what do you think? Hey, how many can I check out? Here is where I would think, crud! This dummy doesn't have an account and it'll be ten minutes with that and then more time with putz-a-palooza picking movies mixed with, "Hey! Doyougot ..."

I remember screening calls about my behavior, "Yeah, this guy wouldn't let us in at 12:10, even though there were other people in the store." Dude, I was getting out of there at 1:00 or later each night. Screw off! Perhaps, because I have had the low-end and stupid jobs I tend not to do what I hated and come in at the last minute or run in at the opening of a store expecting prompt and friendly service. I also tend not to start fights with the business, for it they don't do what's right, I'll not return ... simple.

I remember one day, at the old job, that some person was pulling on a "push" door, but with such force (rocking) that it would have easily opened with her movements. You know, if you saw no lights, no cars in the lot and the times of operation on the door and windows, you might have been given some tiny clue that the place, "WAS NOT OPEN". I would think that I couldn't be surprised by generalized stupidity, but I still get shocked by the depth of stupidty and lack of reason of some people.

I'm ranting here for, what people don't understand is that each minute after we close that I'm still doing typical operational work, means at least two minutes more work. At that rate, five minutes late = ten minutes more work. I don't like leaving later than I have to leave, especially with my long stinking drive.

Antiquated systems, like abacuss aren't nearly as useful as using tools in a faster, meaningful manner. Work has yet to pull its head out of its backside to see that.

smells like empathy

I've put in enough time at work that I actually feel for some of these people. Crud, I was hoping to get out before I cared. Anyway ... each has her or his own story and some are frot with self-destruction. One person, I had the bad task of letting her know that the management turned down my suggestion for her to be trained as a "specific manager". They cited that she had an, "attitude problem" and she was made aware that were she ever entered into the management world, the area would be where I suggested her to be trained, but only there.

While at work yesterday and catching on fire from the 90 something degree heat, due to ovens and the adjacent (not closed off by doors) room's heat was set at a brisk 84 degrees making my area around 5000 degrees. Later someone came in and changed it to human temperatures, but didn't affect me for 90 some minutes.

I am hoping that more and more people see and understand the simplistic laziness of the next-levelers+. I know at work I am the horse, "I will work harder", while the at times pigs-as-farmers develop new plans for windmills. I'm not quite sure who plays the role of Snowball yet, but I'll find out. Yes, it's akin to Animal Farm, but in a less Communistic way. One next-leveler remarked that something should be in one position, but walked away empty-handed, leaving someone else to move the things to the place where she went.

Now for these next-levers, I feel almost not compassion or empathy, for generally they are hypocritical and not worthy of much attention as it is most hot air. They have all the time in the world to pull people aside and give remarks here and there and experiential teachings, but aren't often willing to do the work. Oh no ... shouldn't do that.

The other people who work there, all have some kind of situation. Now, my hero-complex notwithstanding, I can't save any of them, but I can feel for them. One woman has a son, "he's an asshole", as she remarked for he is in jail for robbing a place. There are ... two married servers (waitresses), but most of them have children. That's right, do the math ... single moms, some who are living with the man responsible for the child, but can't commit to marriage. "Let's spend the night together", as Mick Jagger might say.

One newly pregnant woman/girl was complaining of feeling like crap. Huh, in an overly hot place working hard and first tri-mester of first child. Imagine that! I instictly offered an Excederin, but she was thinking more clearly than I was remarking that she couldn't take it. Kryptonite ... can't help. Another girl at work, who reminds me so much of Jennifer -- it's almost scary, wanted to learn another area in the place. So, I told one of the next-levers ... or was it a brick wall, I can't remember.

I typed a long-overly elaborate letter dictating one girl's interest in learning another area of the store where I think she would shine. It was actually something she brought up wanting. I will have to do the same for this Jennifer-like girl who wishes to move around yet some more. Perhaps the I should skip the intermediary steps, or middle management and go straight to the unit's top dog. I hate not following protocol, but if it doesn't work, then I'll have to skip it.

Finally, for I should stop here, one girl was telling me about a guy she's dating who -- by her description, is the vandal. You know ... he's the rough guy, to make other girls jealous. Then later, she'll likely say, "Hey! He was a jerk, just like he was acting to be!" Well, I let her know my opinion and expressed that I'd rather not see her hurt -- in a brotherly sort of way. She appreciated that and "don't have a brother who protects me", seemed happy that I was interested.

Also, being the rumor-stop, meaning that if the grapevine news hits me ... it's done at me. I think this is why people don't mind talking with me, for I consider things, share an opinion sometimes, but don't work on keeping the rumor mill going and keep secrets, secret. I know of people at work seeking other employment and know that some are leaving, but they haven't yet told management. These secrets I'll keep, for they were told to me in confidence. I guess this is being a hero of sorts -- a shoulder and an ear, no flying through the air required.

Schedule

T: off
W: 5 - close
R: 4 - 10
F: 5 - 11
S: 12 - 8
N: 11 - 8
M: 5 - close

Hello ... tech support

I was at work and a guy there posed a question to me, starting from a statement of failure when installing new RAM in his desktop. After installing it, his monitor went kaput! Huh. Not seeing his computer, I thought of the many possibilities for the plug & play feature of the monitor to fail. Now, it could be that the monitor indeed failed at this curious time, but that is highly unlikely. It is likely that the memory, despite claims, wasn't compatible with the computer.

Now, as far as it disabling the monitor -- whereby eliminating the computer's functionality, I don't find it likely that the installed then removed RAM would disrupt the computer in such a fashion. Now, not seeing his computer, though he had a (rhymes with SMELL) -- I have a laptop from them, I know squat about their desktops. I made a few suggestions and we'll have to see if they work.

If so, I can then also be the "turn to" guy, as in, "turn to" [my name] for tech issues.

Candyman

Well, at work I picked up some candy by request for a woman I call, "naughty". Then ... I got a, "Hey [my name], I like licorace." So, the list began and I have some shopping to do. Who can take a sunrise ...

I also have to find out how to rig cords for a fan in the kitchen in a spot not directly near an outlet. I could call maintenance, but then I could wait for the sun to engulf the Earth* which would take the same amount of time. The area nearly completely melted the two ladies working there last night.

* millions to billions of years

joys of work

I got to pick up puke today! I also did a fartload of paperwork for a closing m, but he'll likely not return the favor for me.

My word ... it was better today, but for all I did, I appear to have accomplished little, for the paperwork is time-consuming for no good reason.

token payment

I was asked to run an errand at the home office. My payment is ... [drum roll please], a half-hour of pay, as I was directed to adjust my clock data an additional half hour for my trouble. Let's see, last time I didn't get a thanks for running around a couple places in town for stock they didn't have. This time, while I'm in town, run to home office and pick up stuff for a "quarter" essentially. So, I get no "thanks", but "okay".

There is no equitable trade here, for what do I get in return ... little/nothing.

I'll trade my half-hour pay for each of the "uppers" to do 30 minutes of work at my pace, more especially the pointless paperwork that tends to keep me there late at night. For that, I'll be happy to run to home office on way to work more often. The migratory humpbacks don't swim like dolphins or sailfish. I, myself, work and move like a sailfish (or related species Marlin). I dare them to pick up their pace!

I'm still looking for another job, as I spend too much time venting.

soon to be re-re-re-released (otherwise a sequel)

This is a sequel with the same lines. The returning product has less and, dollar for dollar, isn't nearly the bargain people claim, but people do like it. The [my employer] pot pie, for that's close to what it is, is due soon. It takes less more time on one end to make it. It is a money maker -- shake it.

Meanwhile, I was late to a meeting today as I read the wrong schedule. The sales reports were in and the company itself showed unhappy turnouts in profit, labor percentage, sales.

I would have offered the comment, 'if you aren't the cheapest, which we aren't, we need to be the novelest and more innovative.' I find the same-old, same-old probably doesn't sell well to people, but convincing the dinosaurs there that although 'we've always done it that way', doesn't make it the best way, is a challenge I haven't won.

There was a bit of a pit fight between two people today, but it went nowhere. As the young pup, having two old dogs fight it out and grow weaker, would naturally make me stronger by default. At the end, I was no stronger for the fight.