As if there wasn't more

And you know what else? I'm sick of being rostered willy-nilly at stores not on my availability and further than 30mins away. Driving past 2-3 other stores to get to the one I'm covering is no fun. Especially given the price of petrol now. Grr, at least they used to have the courtesy to ask if I'd do it at first. That was funny. But I guess now that I've done a few shifts at those stores, they realise how much I really will let them get away with, and just roster me on there anyway, knowing I won't say no. Remember the book, Who Sank the Boat, anyone? Yeah, one day I'll snap. Again. Hahahah! No crazy customers when I am doing people favours, thanks. Yeah, thanks for the heads up.

Actually, despite all my bitching, most of the time, I quite like my job and enjoy the responsibility and opportunities that we are afforded. I do like the people I work with (on the off chance that I actually get to work with someone during a shift) and my current AM is great. Managers are great too. It could be worse, a lot worse. I'd know, last Christmas was a killer, and I'm ashamed to say that it broke my spirit. After 1.5yrs, my spirit had been crushed like a aluminium can. The time did pass, after much frustration, rage and stress. All this from a casual job. Why should I get so cut up? Because I care, and I just can't help that. I try because I care. But the better days made me appreciate the learning experience, and how good things can really be. How they should be. Don't get me wrong, things aren't always hunky dory, but most of the time, I think I come out on top. Or at least I come out. It's a start.

Yes, my job in retail, with customers and policies and situations as frustrating as they get, has made me a different person. I'm not sure yet if it's made me a better person, but I can say I can smile and lie through my teeth when someone is being a butthead while I am serving them. That's an important life skill if ever there was one. I'm probably a little more bitter than when I started, but it's shown me a side of people that has given me more than a year's worth of therapy can erase. You just can't learn these things from books! I wish I had the same ascerbic humour, sangfroid and quick wittedness as Waiter. Man, that guy's vocabulary too! He obviously reads voraciously. I am ashamed to admit that I haven't read a book for leisure since high school. Seriously. And to think that I used to be such a bookworm and loved English and Literature. Disgraceful.

I suppose seeing as I'll probably be in this job, Company and field for a while yet, I should just bite my tongue and smile that fake service smile and do as I'm told.