The Adventures of Being Me

It's my 1st Sunday working. Boring as usual. Missed excitement last night. Person attempted to steal some hats at the store next door. Manager chases person into the parking lot where person turns into our store. Lady with a baby got punched as she was leaving our store, she blocked his path. Our security rushes over after manager tackled said person in our store.My coworker saw the shoplifter in cuffs while police and security are exchanging notes. The guy had a child running loose in the mall so the police had to go find the child. Had several people ask for sales, then specifically 70% off. No. Then had a jerk ask me to take more off cuz he didn't like the price. Oh hell no. Even worse he said he will take the shoes anyway and after ringing them up, he wants to think about it but doesn't want me to hold them for him. Voided transaction and put shoes away. My manager has been moving stuff around so it is harder to find stuff. When it takes less than 5 min. to find a shoes...

Today we retailers get out of the red ($ losses) and get into the black ($ gains). Right away the send me to Ladies shoes. There were 3 stockboys, the store manager, shoes manager, me, and 4 Ladies shoe people there helping customers. I hate their stockroom, I can't find anything. I told the stockboy their stockroom design is retarded. People got upset we were taking so long and hate getting in line. Then don't shop the busiest day of the year. Then went back to my place when customers disappeared.My area was less hectic. Men don't need shoes of each color. But we had arguments over what our ads say. Sorry we don't have copies of what you saw. You know, if people are going to be so bitchy about our ads then they need to bring the ad in to prove their case. How do I know you didn't read another store's ad instead? People ask about my Thanksgiving. Fine. My niece wanted to give me a present so my sister had her put their leftover Halloween candy in a gift bag she ...

Happy Turkey Day to one and all. I am thankful for uh, um, oh, give me a minute, ah, uh, I know, My Cats who miss me and a warm apartment to sleep in. My rest of my life sucks. Oh yeah, I am thankful for hot water when I want it. I will visit my sister's family and brother and then off to my parents' house for my Christmas decorations. Then spend the rest of the day putting them up. Too bad my mall is closed. I told my old car rental managers that sometimes I prefer to work holidays cuz sometimes I need a vacation from my family. They understood perfectly. What's so bad? The "When you getting married?", "Any boyfriends yet?", "When are you having kids?", "Are you going to adopt if you can't find a man?", "When are you getting a better paying job?", "When are you buying a house, apartments just waste your money?", "When are you getting health insurance?", and my favorite rude question, "When are y...

My trainer compliments how my guitar pick as a necklace pendant was so coool. It is a seashell. He takes a closer look. Ok, he sees it is a seashell. My trainer tries to explain how we get paid here and I still don't get it. OK, we don't have sales goal cuz we get commission. Got that. Then if we are in deficit, our hourly wage is severely cut, like $4 less an hour. Our real sales goal to keep from going into deficit is how much you make per day. The hourly wage is like a loan (excuse me?) where you give it back to the company by selling the same amount of goods. And if you don't pay back your wages they pay you less. Are you following this?Today I learned to stretch shoes and sell a gift card. Gift card lady brought in 4 print outs of shoes for her son. I found 3 out of the 4. The item number on the paper didn't match the ones on the boxes and she questions if they are the same thing. Worse, one has a bootstrap that is not in the pic. She wants one w/out bootstrap. T...

They gave us donuts, milk, juice for our graduation. The assistant manager came in with our completion certificates and business cards of our assigned departments. I was assigned Men's Shoes cuz I worked for a shoe store (yeah, 4 years ago). She said if we don't like our departments we can switch at our review time in 3 months. 2 got in their desired departments and I with another girl went to departments we never worked in before/and didn't like. I ran into a regular customer from the airport and he was surprised they didn't put me in fragrances like they said. I will be quitting as soon as I can. It took 2 weeks and 4 interviews to get this job, so I can get another. I didn't go to California, spend a fortune on make up supplies (4 bags plus an air brush in a box to make 5), work 14 hour days during my 2 week notice, and take a pay cut to work in Men's shoes. I told everybody if they put me anywhere but fragrances, I'm leaving. I am past the following the ...

We had an escaped Flamingo flying away from the zoo with TV crew following the zookeepers. They tracked it and it flew away a few times before trying to land on top of the fence where there is barbed wire, fell to the ground where it was restrained to be returned to the exhibit. The End. Had a lovely morning in Men's with assisting with markdowns, he scanned and I stickered. He asked if I were to work in this section. No. Apparently, they have done different training techiques. Once training was a week, and then 30 days, and also 2 weeks, now it is 3 weeks. Then some watched videos before attending the salesfloor while others didn't view any at all, Now we see a video on shoplifting and safety and just the extra help so I don't learn much cause every department is different. Hence my frustration at hating this job so much. Once I get into my assigned department and learn where everything is, I'll like it better. Then the store manager had the brillant idea of making our...

We managed to stop some shoplifters today. One must be shoplifter in training cuz the person was on their cell with somone in another department telling this person what sizes to get. This person had a pile of things, then saw the security person coming, put down the pile, and ran away. Another person took items into another department, went into a fitting room, and the items disappeared. This time a manager was standing outside the fitting room so the person went back to the fitting room, came back to lay the items on the counter, and left. These people must know who the managers and security people are if we clerks don't frighten them like that. Yet another person took items in the fitting room and stuffed them in a new purse, and left it behind in the fitting room. The clerk went in the fitting room and found the items this person stashed. I spent the day in Junior's (teen clothes). Then they left me alone and of course I have problems cause I don't know hardly anything....

I come in and get sent to the children's section. I ring up my first sale and then a few more by myselfcuz the associates keep disappearing. I don't like being left alone when I know very little about this section. Lady asked where winter coats for boys were and saw them behind me before I could say, Let me ask somebody. Another lady asked the price on something on the sale rack, but it is not marked on sale. I go tothe register and attempt to recall how to look up a price w/out ringing it up. I have to ring it up to get the priceand then can't figure out how to void the transaction when price is not on file. Next I hunt down one associate, who sends me to another cuz she's busy with a customer and she doesn't have a scanner I need with her. Go find this other associate who scans it and tells me the price. Tell customer the price hoping it is the right customer. People tend to move and look alike after a while. Another customer asks about tights and then shoes, and ...

Day 4 of my training. Today I helped put stock away in Housewares. My fellow trainee actually did a sale. We change bedspreads on 2 beds. There is 2 mattresses and a boxspring underneath. Though I never figured out why 8 pillows belong on a bed. Today was customer pampering day with snacks and goodie bags. They handed out these bingo stampers to stamp passport papers with different departments. When they passport is covered with stamps they go to customer service and pick up their goodie bag. One associate warned me on how nobody likes a certain person who is mean to everyone she comes across. She said, Just smile and act happy. My fellow trainee thought she was nice, but I know since we are trainees of course said person will be nice to us. Just wait until said person bites your face off when you make a mistake and see if you still think her as "nice". I got my pics from the make-up school. Everybody thinks they are beautiful. I noticed a few tan lines I wished wasn't th...

I woke up early today for my 2nd day of training. They had a morning meeting and new people were called forth. I turned in my direct deposit slip in so I don't have to worry about cashing in paychecks every week. This job pays every week. We began finishing the Chirstmas decor since the stockroom guys tried to be helpful by putting them out for us, but they displayed them in a helter skelter manner when the decor manager wanted it uniform (same wreaths hung in the same department instead of every wreath different in a department). Then when completed we split among children's department to help with marking sale items. When finished took lunch. Came back to be shuffled to the men's department. Clerk there had no idea what to do with us since nothing needed to be done. Lady came by seeing us standing around chatting. Suddenly we were given wax paper to rub against clothing rods. No purpose of this activity was explained but the clerk blurted out how smoothly the hangers sl...

Joy to the World. All the boys and girls. Joy to me cuz I got a new job. Joy to you and me. That's right. I am singing my heart out cuz I got a new job in a department store where they sell make-up and do makeovers, full time. It is a requirement to sell elsewhere before being promoted to Cosmetics where I want to be so I will be there for 3 months and move on to make-up. I'm sure Mom will be happy knowing I am putting my Make-up School in Burbank to good use (and the store is closed major holidays too). Freelance make-up artist is hard business to get into when you are an unknown. Oh, I forgot to mention the other day when a coworker was looking at my proof sheets from my make-up school. A lady who rented a car cuz she is making a movie here returned it while we were talking. The guy actor in it is suppose to be famous butI never heard of him. Ray Leoni??? Anyhow, I show a proof sheet saying I just graduated make-up school and I know youneed experience for movies so I'm no...