Pompous asses

In the store i work in, we have a private room where they do the special orders. The managers don't want people in there unless they have an appointment, which is fine. The door to this private room, is an over engineered, over complicated sliding door. It couldn't just be a door activated with a mark 1 power supply and motor (An arm) no, it has to be 'special' and magically slide open with the press of a button. It's all very (not) Star Trek. When i started working there the door was fucked, some times it closed, other times it didn't and we had to use the Mark 1 device to force it, which i'm guessing isn't a good thing. Well now the door is totally fucked and doesn't close at all, in fact it's so stuck in it's hidey hole that i, and others, can't even pull it out to close it. And so this door remains open. To all.

So, i now spend a good part of my day standing in this door way. People look passed me but don't try to enter it. Usually what will happen is this. Someone will sit down near me, i'll be in my door way being all 'Security Guardy' 10 minutes might pass, i'm still there, but then i get called and have to move to some other place, i move, and before i get to this new position, that person has gotten up and is now entering that private room. Now i have to stop what i'm doing and go back, and politely ask this person to leave the room. I'd like to ask them "Why did you think i was standing here, to be awkward?"_

 I usually say "Excuse me Sir/Madam, but this is a private room, and none of the shoes in here are for sale anyway". I say the same thing each time this happens. More often then not they just apologise and leave the room. If they ask to see the "Shoes" in there (there are some one off's. This is high fashion, and women go nuts for it) i say 'Sure" but i have to stay there until they leave the room. Yesterday a woman rolled her eyes at me and turned her back on my. A guy yesterday said "With the amount of money i spend in this shop you should invite in here 30 times over" (Wanker!) and today i got a "Tut, i'm just looking gaaaawwwwd".


You can really tell the nice people from the pompous asses this way. The nice people say say sorry and leave the room. The pompous asses think you owe them something so they stay.

These are the kinds of people it's okay to punch to the ground in public.

Twice a week.

I'm going to try to build some consistency here, by blogging twice a week. Every Monday and Thursday, at least.

Now i'm going to try to keep the bitching and moaning about work to a minimum, but don't expect to loose all of that altogether, sometimes it just beats me over the head with a frying pan and i can't help but yield to it.

Something that irritated me today for instance, on my way to work i thought up a great blog. I even dictated it to myself (That means i was talking to myself in public), it all sounded great until i realised that i'll never remember any of it when i get home and start up my computer so i could type it up. Then i realised that i could use the 'Memo' app on my iphone to dictate to myself, i'd look less crazy in public and i'd be able to remember shit that i say to myself.

So i guess to the point of this particular blog. This blog will be used for documenting my writing.  I've said to a lot of people that i'm an 'aspiring writer', which basically means i'm not a writer at all, i just want to be. I aspirer to write. So once i start writing (which i've already done) i'm no longer aspiring to be a writer, i am a writer. So i need to change my aspiration. I aspirer to be a better writer, to be a published author, to use more of my free time to write instead of using excuses to blow it off "I only get 4 hours, 5 if i'm lucky, after work before i need to go to sleep", I could easily spend a hour or two writing shit out, anything really so long as it's a) writing and b) about the novel i'm working on. This Blog is included of course, i need to spend far more time writing and to spend all that time working on one WIP (Work in Progress).

The reason why i want consistency is that it'll make building an audience easier, and once i finally get a book finished i'll have people to tell. And maybe use as proof readers, maybe.

Why is it that i know that my dictation earlier was far better then this write up, i hate that shit dude. It's kind of annoying knowing that i can do this better. And did do this better. If i could only remember what i was talking about, than i know i could repeat it, or get pretty close anyway.

I'm not going to talk about the actual book, although i might drop hints every now and then if needs must. No this blog will document the process i take, weather it works of not, if i screw up if i get stuck all the bullshit i go through trying to complete my first book. This is not a 'How to' or an 'Advice' blog. You want advice go to terribleminds.com (Chuck Wendig is great). But mostly it's neither of those things because i have none of either, i have no idea how to do this, i'm just winging it, forging ahead into uncharted seas, kicking the Rhino in the balls to see what happens. (You may of noticed that this blog has a little Wendig influence). If i make mistakes, i'll deal with it, and tell you about it.

Time to go.

Confessions of bad customer services.

I thought of a great blog topic on the bus on my way home from work today, but like as ass i didn't write anything down, like a note to remind myself. Now i can't remember what it was.

So in stead you'll get this.

Hey guys, now i could go on and on about how much i fucking hate my job, that i now i'm better than the dull mindless void that it security, and that i want to be a professional writer (I'm still not even sure that i'm any good), that i have a higher calling than standing up for 8 hours a day watching people with to much money and not enough sense spending thousands of pounds on shoes, talking about how it's an addiction. People who are to stupid, ignorant or self important to close a fucking door when it's 2 degrees outside. People who can't even muster a "Thank You" when someone opens a door for them. Someone who'll pick up a shoe,  down it to the floor, slip in a foot to try it on for size, then remove their foot, and walk away, leaving the shoe in the middle of the floor. Has that particular nob-end ever done anything for himself, i mean at all, i suspect that the muppet who did that has never had to clean up after himself, so doesn't now how to. People who wear so much perfume or aftershave that as they walk past it actually burns my eyes. To have superiors (And i use the term loosely, and only because they are above me in the corporate food chain) who once you've voiced certain grievances can only muster a shoulder shrug and a "Oh well" look on their face. Or even people who want a particular pair of shoes so bad, they'll actually buy a pair that are either to big or to small (Because they size is out of stock), and then come back the next day saying that, they are either to big or to small. How is it that these fucking monkey sperms get to have the money and the freedom to shop at all hours of the day, in stead of having a job, and the rest of us muppets have to spend far to long standing up for 8 hours a day to earn far to little money.

I've leaned to hate these people, but that could easily just be jealiously. Who knows?

Here is something else that kinda bugs me, on my site, that i might as well tell you is a shoe shop (high fashion), there is a policy that you can't take photos inside the store, it's simple enough, i don't get it, i mean who cares, if it were about not letting people "steal" a product for a counterfeiter, then why do we tell them to google the shoe if they want a picture. Makes no real logical sense to me, and when i ask for a good reason i get the same one, "It's policy" "Yeah, but why" "It just is" that is what we call stalling or stonewalling, which basically means they don't know, they've just been told by their higher ups. Anyway, i got a little off track there, so anyway, most people would just respond with an "Oh sorry i didn't know" i say that's ok and life goes on. But every now and then you get a prick who, i'm guessing, doesn't get told 'No' very often. Take today for instance we had a bunch of people in and the man, who i guess was hired to carry a woman's handbag, was going to take a picture of a chair, i stepped forward and just said "Excuse me Sir, but you can't take photos in the store" i said it slowly, politely and with a smile, i was nice and not aggressive, i then said "Thank you" and just before i stepped back, he looked at me with a puzzled look. His boss, the husband to the woman who can't carry her own fucking handbag then stepped up, and basically shouted to my face "WHY CAN'T HE TAKE A PHOTO, IT'S NOT OF THE SHOES IT'S OF A CHAIR" I said politely, "I'm sorry Sir, but it is store policy" This guy lost his rag, threw this rattle of the pram, had a hissy fit, a tantrum, you know, stomped his feet and shook his fists, and then accused me of making up the rules, bit of a weird rule to simply, make up, he then said, along with gestures, that their should be a big sign on the wall, maybe he isn't exactly sure that he is standing in a Boutique not a high street shoe shop, then he asked to see it in writing, like i carry rule book around with me. So, in brief this dude lost it because he wasn't allowed to take a photo of a chair. These kinds of responses are rare, but they make me laugh. I guess i get a kick out of telling people "No" when those people don't get told "No" very often. But still, that kind of aggro for what i earn, simply ain't worth it. What i'd like to say is "Dude, shut the fuck up and do as you're told, dumb motha fucka". But i'm forced to be polite to this apes. Apes that manners forgot.

I need a job where customer care isn't such a big deal. Or at least dealing with customers who aren't stuck up their own asses. You know?

But, I'm still looking. Hey, just because you have a job doesn't mean you should stop looking for a better one.

I need to write more.

More procrastinating.... Sorry.

Where to start?

I guess I'll start by saying that I'll try not to moan and complain to much, but yes his is another blog about me and work. As you may or may not know I work in security, more specifically, retail security and I've been doing that for about 3 weeks and I'm hating every minute of it. The standing the travelling the working six days a week yea I hate it all, you might now be asking yourself "then why are you doing it?" and the answer is simple, it's all I'm really trained for.

What I want is a job where I can work all day, arrive and have a set amount of work to get done by the end of the day, over the last few weeks I've looked into a few jobs that I'd much rather do, window cleaning and bicycle service and repair, two jobs that have a set daily work load with maybe a little extra, but these are two jobs that I know I can do, window cleaning doesn't take a lot of training and bicycle mechanic is something I loved doing, I loved repairing and servicing my own bike, I even built my own bike.

The thing is now-a-days employers want people with experience, usually around the 2 year mark. I haven't done that for either and sending in a CV that's all security is kinda pointless I think. I'd really like to leave the security game behind to find some other, more active, job that I can be happy doing.

Right now I'm waking up at 7 - 7:20am and I get home around 8:30pm. Just anther reason I hate commuting into London, is it to much to ask that I work closer to home? And working 6 days a week, from 9:45 till 18:45, but I don't get out much before 19:20 most days. 70 - 80 minutes of travelling (home) is a nightmare as my feet don't fully recover from the day before. Come Sunday (my day off) my feet hurt and I don't want to do anything except relax them, which kind of makes it feel like a waste of a day, then on Monday morning it just feels like a dream. At 9 on Sunday night I start getting depressed which carries right through to Monday and once that subsides the boredom sets in and I have to watch a bunch of self important wankers spend ridicules money on silly shoes.

I just want a normal job where I can work all day and not spend my time standing around watching people buy shoes, or clock watching waiting for my watch to say 18:30 so I can lock the door and then sit around waiting for the shop staff to get their shit together so i can leave. At least they get 2 days off a week.

Not sure how much longer I can keep this up, I'm just taking it one day at a time. Training costs money and I need to get my drivers license, but I no longer have the time for any of this. I feel trapped in an endless loop. I do security because I have to, not because I want to.

Now, I was unemployed for 16 months so finally getting work is a good thing, which is the only reason I haven't walked out. I actually need this job, well I need it far more than it needs me. Because I don't want to be unemployed again.

You ever felt worthless? Only able to carry out a mundane job with no prospects. To be in an endless loop. Also, I feel inspired to write now. Unless of course I'm just bitching about something, which isn't what I want to write about.

Open letter to my security firm...

Hello,

I've worked for you since the 18th of January. A total of 16 days. So after these two and a half weeks i have a few things i need to get off my chest.

First then, my feet, they fucking hurt every single day. I actually can't think of one day since the 18th that my feet haven't hurt. And i don't know about you, but no one should go through this pain for that long, for only 7.50 an hour. No, screw that, i wouldn't accept double for it. I start work 9:45 and i stand until 11:30, when i get to sit down for 30 minutes. Then at 12:00 i'm back on my feet until 16:30, at which point the pain is set in and my next 30 minute break has no real effect. At 17:00 i'm standing again until at least 18:45'ish. I spend 8 hours on my feet and i'm not allowed to sit down, not even to rest my feet. This is BULLSHIT.

Because of the foot pain, i get pissed off much easier, simple things start to aggravate me and i find myself swearing at them under my breath. Almost feels like i want to get sacked, get caught calling some fucktard, who walks in from the cold, who opens the door and leave it open, who steps into the store and says "It's really cold outside". And i say "Well, close the fucking door you idiot or it'll be cold in here too".

Secondly, Working six days a week, ARE YOU FUCKING KIDDING ME? i get Sundays off, but by Monday morning Sunday just feels like a dream, like it never actually happened, since i started working for you all i feel like i'm doing is working. I leave home at 08:20 and arrive back at 20:10 - 20:30. I get a Sunday to do shit, i can't even buy a new note pad from the post office because the post office is closed. I can't even go buy new shoes. Or get my uniform dry cleaned without getting someone else to do it. My LIFE is now dependent on other people. Working six days a week is ribbing me of my freedom. And i hate that.

Third, Travel, i spend about three hours a day travelling, 90 minutes there and back again. This is to fucking much. I can't afford to spend money on the underground, that'll be around 180 quid a month, 180 quid i just don't have. So i need to get a bus, which takes around 60 to 70 minutes, and then a 20 minute walk. And yes, i have to walk to the bus stop after work too, even thought my feet are fucking killing me. No one should have to travel that far and for that long, for a messily 7.50 an hour.

Now i hate Security, as a job, it's not a career no matter how you guys spin it, it's just not a career move, it's a shitty dead end job that goes no where except on the road to brain death, weight gain, and flat feet. The job itself is by definition 'Unhealthy'. I mean, on my hours and travel times and only getting one day off a week, i can't get any exercise. So, well. if you think different. You're an ass.

I've got an application form heading out to another security firm, which is corporate security not retail, because i fucking hate retail. A bag got stolen today, lucky for me, or not depending on how you look at it, i was on a break, which is the only reason i still work there, but i would have most likely not seen it anyway, the place was pretty packed and the thief knew exactly what she wanted and where it was, she made a bee line for it, looked around and took it, then left before anyone knew what happened, i seriously doubt that if i were there, that i wold have seen anything. I mean i have the whole store to watch, not just one corner of it. So yeah, i fucking hate retail security and seriously doubt i'll be here for much longer, and if nothing better comes along soon i'll end up walking. I don't want to take the blame because i haven't got eyes in the back of my head or a fucking radar.

I'm also applying for two other jobs, jobs that aren't in security, i'm applying to be a bicycle mechanic, i really want to get out of security. I'm sick of wearing suits, shirts and ties, with crappy shoes, i hate wearing this shit and want to stop wearing them. I'd be washing window or even picking up the trash if i could. 

So in closing, I fucking hate security, always have. I don't care about you or your clients, or their staff, they all mean nothing to me, in fact the only reason i'm even doing the job is because you're paying me to, that's it, plain and simple, you pay me to provide a service to your clients, so i do that, as best i can. I don't need to care about it to do it. If you think different. Well, i couldn't give two shits, sorry.