It's snowing again. This time Raleigh is supposed to see anywhere from 8 inches to a foot. Of course I'm supposed to open in the morning, but instead of me having to be there at 5am I have to be there at 8am, since we're opening 3 hours late. We're also going to run about 10 people short, with just a baker, one of my assistant managers (who I'm staying with tonight since he's close to the store) & myself.
I don't mind snow. I love snow! I love the cold! I just hate how there's never any preparation for this stuff, plus people not being able to drive. When I was driving earlier people were honking & slowing down before it was even sticking.
It snowed yesterday while I was at work & it was awful. My employees were threatening to sue the company if they got in wrecks going home, threatening to go home if they were given breaks (so I didn't give them a break), & just generally complained the entire day. There was a wreck outside our parking lot & multiple people drove up onto a median/island next to our store while trying to turn; one guy even hit the light pole & the light fell on his car.
I "love" North Carolina.
Wednesday, February 25, 2015
Monday, February 23, 2015
Homeboy Died. Maybe.
I'm pretty sure that my friend, Homeboy, died. I found him on his back so I flipped him over. His legs are kind of shriveled up underneath him & he's laying crooked. I'm still going to leave him there between my desk & TV stand just in case this is another stage in his hibernation.
And tonight is the night that I realize that I've gone from keeping a hibernating bug in my room for a pet to keeping a probably dead bug in my room in case he's alive.
And tonight is the night that I realize that I've gone from keeping a hibernating bug in my room for a pet to keeping a probably dead bug in my room in case he's alive.
Friday, February 20, 2015
Bad Ass
In the past month, I've been responsible for training 2 new people on bar. This terrifies me.
It's not that I don't know what I'm doing because it's far from that: I'm actually so good at what I do that I'm worried that I'll teach them the way of someone who has been a barista for 4 1/2 years & can eyeball milk proportions, syrup amounts, & the temperatures of drinks without using a thermometer because of how the milk sounds. Plus sometimes the SOP (Standard Operating Procedure for those not in the know) changes without any fanfare, & then you check the recipe cards & you realize something is supposed to be made differently for the past year & the manager didn't tell you.
Something else I always struggle with is being a hard ass. I get that since they're learning that they need someone to point out their mistakes, which I do. But since they're still learning I just say, "Ok, so that could have been done better" & tell them what they did wrong. If it's completely jacked up I'll have them totally remake the drink, but otherwise I'll have them fix whatever it was they messed up on. Maybe that way is better than making them hate learning....
I guess it just boils down to feeling confident in my leadership abilities. I know what I'm doing. I'm a bad ass. I just need to FEEL that bad ass.
It's not that I don't know what I'm doing because it's far from that: I'm actually so good at what I do that I'm worried that I'll teach them the way of someone who has been a barista for 4 1/2 years & can eyeball milk proportions, syrup amounts, & the temperatures of drinks without using a thermometer because of how the milk sounds. Plus sometimes the SOP (Standard Operating Procedure for those not in the know) changes without any fanfare, & then you check the recipe cards & you realize something is supposed to be made differently for the past year & the manager didn't tell you.
Something else I always struggle with is being a hard ass. I get that since they're learning that they need someone to point out their mistakes, which I do. But since they're still learning I just say, "Ok, so that could have been done better" & tell them what they did wrong. If it's completely jacked up I'll have them totally remake the drink, but otherwise I'll have them fix whatever it was they messed up on. Maybe that way is better than making them hate learning....
I guess it just boils down to feeling confident in my leadership abilities. I know what I'm doing. I'm a bad ass. I just need to FEEL that bad ass.
Wednesday, February 18, 2015
The Ice Man Cometh
So currently North Carolina is shut down due to ice.
I'm spending the night with my assistant manager since he lives within walking distance of our store & I work early.
I know a lot of people make fun of southerners about how we can't handle the snow but I'll tell you what: we can't. But what makes it worse is that we don't just get snow: we get ice. Lots of it. All of the snow & ice we got the other day is melting since it was sunny & got up to about 40 today, but tonight it's going to be 0 & tomorrow will be about 17.
Sunday it's going to be 57.
I'm spending the night with my assistant manager since he lives within walking distance of our store & I work early.
I know a lot of people make fun of southerners about how we can't handle the snow but I'll tell you what: we can't. But what makes it worse is that we don't just get snow: we get ice. Lots of it. All of the snow & ice we got the other day is melting since it was sunny & got up to about 40 today, but tonight it's going to be 0 & tomorrow will be about 17.
Sunday it's going to be 57.
Monday, February 16, 2015
Baesitting
I'm currently staying in Rocky Mount because my mother is having hip replacement surgery & my parents didn't want to board the dogs. While Sammy would have been fine with it, Maggie (the pug) would have had a total nervous breakdown. Plus the fact that Sammy recently scratched his eye & has to wear a a pillow-like cone around his neck & get eye drops 3 times a day.
The downside to all of this is that my area is about to get hit with a snow/ice storm. While snow isn't that bad, the ice that we always end up getting makes eastern North Carolina shut down. This wouldn't be a huge deal except that I'm supposed to work tomorrow in Raleigh, which is an hour away. I...just don't think that's going to happen.
I'm going to get up early & see what it's like. I really am. I don't want to call out. I NEVER call out. When I lived in Rocky Mount for 8 months & commuted to Raleigh I was always on time. I'm one of the ONLY people that's always on time. But...I'm not going to risk getting in a wreck on the ice driving an hour both ways.
I'm a little nervous because I've heard rumors about me getting a promotion & I don't know if this will negatively impact that. If it does, then all of my current reservations about it will be proven true. I've worked for this company for 4 1/2 years, have been in management for almost 3 1/2, & I don't even make $10 an hour.
Yeah, I'm not going to risk anything for that.
The downside to all of this is that my area is about to get hit with a snow/ice storm. While snow isn't that bad, the ice that we always end up getting makes eastern North Carolina shut down. This wouldn't be a huge deal except that I'm supposed to work tomorrow in Raleigh, which is an hour away. I...just don't think that's going to happen.
I'm going to get up early & see what it's like. I really am. I don't want to call out. I NEVER call out. When I lived in Rocky Mount for 8 months & commuted to Raleigh I was always on time. I'm one of the ONLY people that's always on time. But...I'm not going to risk getting in a wreck on the ice driving an hour both ways.
I'm a little nervous because I've heard rumors about me getting a promotion & I don't know if this will negatively impact that. If it does, then all of my current reservations about it will be proven true. I've worked for this company for 4 1/2 years, have been in management for almost 3 1/2, & I don't even make $10 an hour.
Yeah, I'm not going to risk anything for that.
Friday, February 13, 2015
Playing With Balls
I've never been the most athletic person. Ever. When I was in kindergarten, my class had a walk-a-thon to raise money for....something or other, & they made us practice. Yes, they made us practice walking around the gym in a circle. They must really have not had anything else for us to do those days (yes, this practice took up multiple days). Anyway, at one point the walking turned into running & I fell; the very next day my leg was in so much pain that we thought I had broken it. It turned out to just be a severely pulled muscle & I was out of commission for a few days. That's the story of how I hurt myself practicing for a walk-a-thon.
The next year, after we had moved towns, my parents decided to put me in t-ball. My 6 year old self was so overwhelmed by trying to deal with all of the kids, as well as trying to retain all of the intricacies of the game, that I had a hard time remembering for sure what I was supposed to do. Luckily, I just did what my heart told me & it was usually right (that's always the case, isn't it?). One time after hitting the ball off of the stand I ran to first base & asked the kid on there if I went to the right place. "Yeah, stupid" was his response. After the first game I asked who had won, since I noticed that no one was keeping score. "Oh, both teams won!" exclaimed the adult that I asked. I responded, "What's the point then?" They didn't really have an answer.
Also, t-ball was where I learned my first cuss word. Damn. I learned it from the Baptist pastor's son (I was the son of the Methodist minister) & it was LITERALLY the end of the world.
About 4 years later we moved to Rocky Mount & my parents put me in a soccer league that one of my cousins volunteered in. The team I ended up on was literally the worst. We only scored once the ENTIRE SUMMER & it was because a kid from the other team got confused & kicked the ball into their own goal. I really struggled with soccer. For starters, it was summer in eastern North Carolina, which is miserably, insufferably hot & humid. We had also just moved for the fourth time in my 10 year existence & I was over it (it didn't help that there had been a lot of tension due to our move). I also had been home schooled for a few years & it was around this time that I started to develop into the social person I am today (i.e. not). Anyway, I had a hard time trying to talk to the other kids so I just did my own thing. During the first game I got hit in the stomach with the ball & it hurt so bad; I had a hard time breathing for a little while after that. A few games later I looked up right as the soccer ball came soaring through the air & hit me in the head, subsequently knocking me unconscious. When I opened my eyes, it was a few minutes later & multiple people, including my dad, were standing over me. They decided it was ok if I finished the game, & a few minutes later the ball came soaring back at me & I put up my hands to shield myself & was penalized with a hand-ball. I almost threw a temper tantrum because I HAD JUST BEEN HIT IN THE HEAD WITH THE BALL. OF COURSE I'M GOING TO TRY TO BLOCK IT FROM HAPPENING AGAIN. In the end, our team didn't even finish the season because of "rain."
That was 19 years ago & I haven't attempted to do any other organized sport. While I'm more coordinated now, I just don't have a desire or a competitive streak to get me to do it. Do I wish I had become a soccer legend? Absolutely. But I didn't. What did end up happening is a few months later I started playing piano & taking art classes. I was good at both of them, & then a few years later that I started doing community theater. Everyone has their own thing & while none of those things are still my thing, they were back then.
The next year, after we had moved towns, my parents decided to put me in t-ball. My 6 year old self was so overwhelmed by trying to deal with all of the kids, as well as trying to retain all of the intricacies of the game, that I had a hard time remembering for sure what I was supposed to do. Luckily, I just did what my heart told me & it was usually right (that's always the case, isn't it?). One time after hitting the ball off of the stand I ran to first base & asked the kid on there if I went to the right place. "Yeah, stupid" was his response. After the first game I asked who had won, since I noticed that no one was keeping score. "Oh, both teams won!" exclaimed the adult that I asked. I responded, "What's the point then?" They didn't really have an answer.
Also, t-ball was where I learned my first cuss word. Damn. I learned it from the Baptist pastor's son (I was the son of the Methodist minister) & it was LITERALLY the end of the world.
About 4 years later we moved to Rocky Mount & my parents put me in a soccer league that one of my cousins volunteered in. The team I ended up on was literally the worst. We only scored once the ENTIRE SUMMER & it was because a kid from the other team got confused & kicked the ball into their own goal. I really struggled with soccer. For starters, it was summer in eastern North Carolina, which is miserably, insufferably hot & humid. We had also just moved for the fourth time in my 10 year existence & I was over it (it didn't help that there had been a lot of tension due to our move). I also had been home schooled for a few years & it was around this time that I started to develop into the social person I am today (i.e. not). Anyway, I had a hard time trying to talk to the other kids so I just did my own thing. During the first game I got hit in the stomach with the ball & it hurt so bad; I had a hard time breathing for a little while after that. A few games later I looked up right as the soccer ball came soaring through the air & hit me in the head, subsequently knocking me unconscious. When I opened my eyes, it was a few minutes later & multiple people, including my dad, were standing over me. They decided it was ok if I finished the game, & a few minutes later the ball came soaring back at me & I put up my hands to shield myself & was penalized with a hand-ball. I almost threw a temper tantrum because I HAD JUST BEEN HIT IN THE HEAD WITH THE BALL. OF COURSE I'M GOING TO TRY TO BLOCK IT FROM HAPPENING AGAIN. In the end, our team didn't even finish the season because of "rain."
That was 19 years ago & I haven't attempted to do any other organized sport. While I'm more coordinated now, I just don't have a desire or a competitive streak to get me to do it. Do I wish I had become a soccer legend? Absolutely. But I didn't. What did end up happening is a few months later I started playing piano & taking art classes. I was good at both of them, & then a few years later that I started doing community theater. Everyone has their own thing & while none of those things are still my thing, they were back then.
Monday, February 9, 2015
My Pet
We aren't allowed to have pets of any kind in my apartment complex (obviously they've never met my roommates).
A few months ago I found a dead bug next to my desk; he appeared to be deader than dead. I put him in a paper towel & took him to the trash can in my room. In transit, it felt like he was moving & lo & behold, he was. Homeboy immediately started crawling around. I freaked out a little & sprayed him with some cleaner but immediately felt guilty so I walked away hoping to never see him again.
When I got back from work that night I checked the trash can & he was gone; I figured that he had just fallen further down into the trash & I called it a day. The next day, however, guess who is back in the same exact spot next to my desk: Homeboy. I was freaked out so I immediately went to the Wikipedias to investigate. It turns out that the species of bug that Homeboy is hibernates during winter, & I guess there's a certain spot that they're drawn to (in this case, the area between my desk & my TV). I didn't have the heart to kill him, or put him outside, so....he's just been chilling in my room. He's kind of turned into my pet, to be honest. I know it makes me sound like I'm crazier than a shit-house rat, but knowing Homeboy is in here makes me feel a little less lonely.
Today I checked on him & saw that he was on his back. I really hope that was a defense mechanism & he isn't really dead. I'm going to leave him there for a little while longer until it starts warming up to see if he springs back to life or if he really is dead.
God, I sound crazy.
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