Random Thoughts
I've been on vacation all week. And given the snowy conditions, I just don't have strong enough a vocabulary to express just how glad I am I haven't had to deal with the nonsense of working a grocery store during a snow rush.
If you've ever had a delusion about people being kind and decent at heart, I invite you to stand in the front vestibule of a grocery store during a snow rush in a southern town. There's rushing. There's cursing. There's no reining in that impulse to be a total asshole. I'm not telling you it's mass insanity, you get the slightest hint of the hysteria that might grip a population should a major disaster befall the community. I make sure to say southern town because I know it's not this way everywhere. I know stores get a rush in other cities, but there's not the panic that's associated with it around here. People stagger in wild-eyed from the cold, where they parked their SUV cockeyed across four spaces, and wander into the store, trying to keep a mental list of what they might need in the case of an emergency, and failing.
I'm going to make a brief aside here and say that, as a salaried member of grocery management with 700 things to do besides running a register, that if I'm working a register, and we're trying to get a rush of people out the door, the one thing that will bug me more than anything is when you do anything delay the proceedings. These actions may include stopping to look for coupons, paying with a check, trying to decide which soda to buy, but more than any other, sending somebody back to look for something. Inevitably, this is going to happen at the grocery store during a snow rush. You're in the line that you've stood in for four people to buy your bread, Pop Tarts, lunchmeat, cheese, mustard, cereal, chili fixings, milk, eggs, Little Debbies, 3 suitcases of Natural Ice and 17 Reese's Peanut Butter Eggs when you realize that you forgot to pick up a can of Hartz Dog Milk Replacement for the pups at home. It happens, and I accept that. It seems to happen with every customer during a snow rush.
I dunno.
It's snowing today. I look out my front window, and at 2:30 there's somewhere between a half an inch and an inch of snow on the ground. We may get another two to four inches. I told Shyam that I was starting to feel bad for the weathermen, especially if this had turned into rain and we'd gotten no winter accumulation. I say that realizing that no matter what the weather conditions turn out to be, people are going to yell about the weathermen.
I was making smartass remarks during Channel 9's weathercast the other day, when David Glenn answered one of my smartass remarks by happenstance. I made the joke that the Chattanooga folks are stressing over this weather system, and that it wouldn't surprised me much for Mr. Glenn to have jumped from my TV to pop me in the mouth.
----
Watching the Olympics during my week off, when I get the chance. Men's Hockey started today, and I've been watching women's hockey, some curling and a bit of skiing.
Thoughts on curling? I am mystified by the draw to it, and I say that not being immune to it myself. Watching curling is a lot like watching bowling. In theory, I think I can curl. (Is that the right verb? curl:curling::bowl:bowling?) It looks like a game that would be fun, especially if there were beers involved. And I've enjoyed watching it with a group before, usually when we've been drinking ourselves. Watching it at 1 in the morning the other night, I was struck by how serious (like pro bowlers) these folks are. To me, it looks contrary to the spirit of the game. It's like an entire Olympic flight being made up of that one guy in the league who bowls a 120 every game but has all the gear and is really, really fucking intense about the game.
Except some of them get gold medals.
I've really gotten into the hockey, so far. Saw the United States women lose to Canada today. Saw a little bit of Sweden and the Czech Republic play as the men's side opened up today. Looking forward to a few good games there.
-----
Still getting used to driving a car. Something I'm getting used to? Assholes in giant SUV's and trucks that I can't see around when I'm backing out of a space. Tough to swallow that I was an asshole in a truck just a month ago.
No leads from the Athens PD on that. Discouraging. I still hold out hope that they'll find the truck somewhere down the line parked in a parking lot somewhere where it's been abandoned.
Even a month after, I'm still realizing things that were in the truck. Incidental losses. My Yazoo Brew hoodie, a surprisingly warm and durable sweatshirt. And Yazoo doesn't have anymore, at least during my last twitter conversation with them. I lost a handful of CDs--a few Chieftains, a Frank Turner, a couple AC/DC. I realized that my only copy of Ronald Reagan (Boston's Premiere 80's Pop Saxophone Duo) CD was in there, too. They'll be easily enough replaced via download--a couple have been already, including the Ronald Reagan disc. Still, aggravating.
Realized today that my big 24 ounce stainless steel coffee cup was behind my truck seat when it was stolen. Wanted to used that for hot chocolate today. Dammit.
If you've ever had a delusion about people being kind and decent at heart, I invite you to stand in the front vestibule of a grocery store during a snow rush in a southern town. There's rushing. There's cursing. There's no reining in that impulse to be a total asshole. I'm not telling you it's mass insanity, you get the slightest hint of the hysteria that might grip a population should a major disaster befall the community. I make sure to say southern town because I know it's not this way everywhere. I know stores get a rush in other cities, but there's not the panic that's associated with it around here. People stagger in wild-eyed from the cold, where they parked their SUV cockeyed across four spaces, and wander into the store, trying to keep a mental list of what they might need in the case of an emergency, and failing.
I'm going to make a brief aside here and say that, as a salaried member of grocery management with 700 things to do besides running a register, that if I'm working a register, and we're trying to get a rush of people out the door, the one thing that will bug me more than anything is when you do anything delay the proceedings. These actions may include stopping to look for coupons, paying with a check, trying to decide which soda to buy, but more than any other, sending somebody back to look for something. Inevitably, this is going to happen at the grocery store during a snow rush. You're in the line that you've stood in for four people to buy your bread, Pop Tarts, lunchmeat, cheese, mustard, cereal, chili fixings, milk, eggs, Little Debbies, 3 suitcases of Natural Ice and 17 Reese's Peanut Butter Eggs when you realize that you forgot to pick up a can of Hartz Dog Milk Replacement for the pups at home. It happens, and I accept that. It seems to happen with every customer during a snow rush.
I dunno.
It's snowing today. I look out my front window, and at 2:30 there's somewhere between a half an inch and an inch of snow on the ground. We may get another two to four inches. I told Shyam that I was starting to feel bad for the weathermen, especially if this had turned into rain and we'd gotten no winter accumulation. I say that realizing that no matter what the weather conditions turn out to be, people are going to yell about the weathermen.
I was making smartass remarks during Channel 9's weathercast the other day, when David Glenn answered one of my smartass remarks by happenstance. I made the joke that the Chattanooga folks are stressing over this weather system, and that it wouldn't surprised me much for Mr. Glenn to have jumped from my TV to pop me in the mouth.
----
Watching the Olympics during my week off, when I get the chance. Men's Hockey started today, and I've been watching women's hockey, some curling and a bit of skiing.
Thoughts on curling? I am mystified by the draw to it, and I say that not being immune to it myself. Watching curling is a lot like watching bowling. In theory, I think I can curl. (Is that the right verb? curl:curling::bowl:bowling?) It looks like a game that would be fun, especially if there were beers involved. And I've enjoyed watching it with a group before, usually when we've been drinking ourselves. Watching it at 1 in the morning the other night, I was struck by how serious (like pro bowlers) these folks are. To me, it looks contrary to the spirit of the game. It's like an entire Olympic flight being made up of that one guy in the league who bowls a 120 every game but has all the gear and is really, really fucking intense about the game.
Except some of them get gold medals.
I've really gotten into the hockey, so far. Saw the United States women lose to Canada today. Saw a little bit of Sweden and the Czech Republic play as the men's side opened up today. Looking forward to a few good games there.
-----
Still getting used to driving a car. Something I'm getting used to? Assholes in giant SUV's and trucks that I can't see around when I'm backing out of a space. Tough to swallow that I was an asshole in a truck just a month ago.
No leads from the Athens PD on that. Discouraging. I still hold out hope that they'll find the truck somewhere down the line parked in a parking lot somewhere where it's been abandoned.
Even a month after, I'm still realizing things that were in the truck. Incidental losses. My Yazoo Brew hoodie, a surprisingly warm and durable sweatshirt. And Yazoo doesn't have anymore, at least during my last twitter conversation with them. I lost a handful of CDs--a few Chieftains, a Frank Turner, a couple AC/DC. I realized that my only copy of Ronald Reagan (Boston's Premiere 80's Pop Saxophone Duo) CD was in there, too. They'll be easily enough replaced via download--a couple have been already, including the Ronald Reagan disc. Still, aggravating.
Realized today that my big 24 ounce stainless steel coffee cup was behind my truck seat when it was stolen. Wanted to used that for hot chocolate today. Dammit.
posted by Tommy at
14:53
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