New Years Day posed some unfavorable conditions in regards to the Video Store. At the start of my shift, nothing was ready. At least personally; I wasn’t ready to get in there and start working, my time just wasn’t spent productively before getting into the workplace, so my mind wasn’t committed to the possibilities of a long night at work. I jumped into it full force and it was starting off well. One downside to the whole process of working at our store is the amount of returns that are needed to be done. When I work alone I am running back and forth from counter to shelves putting away movies, because it helps me keep track of what is in stock as well as allowing the next shift to have the opportunity of not having to worry to much about putting things back, and overall making it an easier workplace for everyone. I look out for Number 1, and that is not something that I like doing, but I’ve learned that no matter how nice people are around you they are not interested in your mental or physical well being. Especially if they look down on you.

Further explanation: There was this customer that came in and asked for a request. Naturally I was going to step in and discuss the major possibilities of things to rent since I’ve seen way more movies than I should have. Like a scene out of High Fidelity, I step in because I’m a master of observation and a scholar in the knowledge of knowing what’s on dvd and what is good for certain times in life. However, the ironic twists of things is that this person did not want an opinion, they wanted a woman’s opinion. Not just any woman’s opinion, but one that is not 23 years old or less. 23 being my age, and less being anyone in the store at the time. She was obviously upset at some man, and for whatever reasons decided that all men watch Porn and only porn and could not sustain a natural thought or concept of what it is to watch a good movie. Consider with me my position in life. I am not a paid critic of film, but I am a rabid consumer and know what is good and bad. Clerks is a great movie because the conversations and story lines are located behind the counter of a minimum wage slave job. I work at a video store, my former jobs include working at a liquor store, a super market, and a casket store all of which paid me below what I am worth or anyone is worth. Those jobs are what has made my mind into this thoughtful engine of molecules and therefore I can put a sentence together to describe things in a proper fashion. So when dumbing my opinions down for a customer, I can connect with them on a level that even they can understand. It is o surprise to me that this particular customer, after stating that she hated her ex-husband and is now looking for a comedy decides to take shots at my sexuality (male) and my age by referring to me and all men as sex starved perverts. What does that leave me to do? To walk away and make a brash comment about how Clerks is great, and it is ironic that my coworkers do not like the movie even though the films as a standard are about us! They are about people that work behind a counter, or counter jockies as they are sometimes called. The irony is that no one sees it, and when trying to explain it, people stare at me like I’m an idiot. Not to mention they look down on me as if I don’t know what I’m talking about because of my age, what I wear, and where I work. So why Ask?

The Number one question at work is: What did you think of this movie?

Who CARES! WHO Cares what a minimum wage clerk thinks about a movie that you’re thinking about renting! Quit being lazy and turn on your brain! You make decisions about your life daily, why not make a simple decision to watch a movie and decided for yourself what you personally think about it. You do not ask me what toilet paper to use, or what magazine to buy or what book to read, so STOP asking me about what good movies are out, and use your own opinion. We are not a herd culture are we? Oh wait…I’m sorry…thinking is too much to ask for.

In looking out for number one, I make sure that the place looks ok. When I open, I come in early, vacuum, and look on the shelves to organize them slightly, before opening. Why? I don’t get paid for it. I just feel that the comments made by some of the customers is true. They state and I quote: “This place has gone downhill…” and it has. I don’t care about the wage, the job, but I do care about myself. I care enough to not want to add pressure or discomfort to an already tiresome profession, especially one that involves having to say my opinion no matter how harsh. Oh and Yes, I state my true opinion and don’t jump in on other’s conversations, or ignore people when they are talking to me.

Koodo’s to me right? Koodo’s to me. I’m a great person, hoora! Who gives a crap right? I can’t win.