Randomness from an overactive mind
Posts tagged work
The old man sleep schedule
02 years ago
by bangbang023
in journal
It’s almost 8:30pm and I’m going to bed in a half hour. No, I’m not 80 years old.
It bothers me every year since I’ve been in merch (my department at work). During the Christmas season, I have to be at work by 5am with some days requiring me to be in even earlier, with the earliest of days starting at 3am. On a day that starts at 5am, I have to be awake by 3:45am. When I was younger and working far fewer hours, I would simply ignore the need for sleep and go with less. This doesn’t work as a full timer, though.
The past month and a half has been rough because of these early days. In order to get enough sleep and make it through the next day, I have to be in bed by 9am. On some days, I’m in bed even earlier. This schedule makes for a paltry social life. On the weekends, the little time I have with Melanie is cut down even shorter as I try to get home on time to get some sleep. During the week, television shows I want to watch are, often times, simply ignored. The days, themselves, can all start to blur together once the stress from work is mixed in to this annoying schedule.
This is why I’ve been a tad miserable at times. I hate the Christmas season because, since I’ve been 15, it’s always meant more work and more stress. While you’re thinking about Christmas day, I’m hoping and praying I’m not working the next day. I know this is the life I chose, but it’s not always peaches and cream. All of this can really age a guy.
I’m on TV
22 years ago
by bangbang023
in general
So, during my Black Friday lunch break, a local news station, News12, was in the area doing various stories about holiday shopping. By chance, they happened to be interviewing a woman in the pizzeria that me and and a co-worker walked in to to get our food. Here’s my 5 seconds of fame:
I’m not physically dead
22 years ago
by bangbang023
in journal
I know I haven’t been posting much. Considering some people are wondering if I (and the site) am alive, I thought it would be a good idea to check in fast. Of course this means getting off my lazy ass and typing out thoughts, but I do this work for you.
Work has been really tough. It’s the holidays and I work in retail, so it’s one of those things you just expect. If I was surprised by it, one would have to question where I’ve been for the past 6 years. This is one of those years, though, where the store’s morale is terribly low and it’s really draining on a person over time. On top of that, I’m being tasked with a lot of responsibility that shouldn’t be mine, but I have to accept it to gain the experience so I can move up in the future. It would be a lot easier if other people cooperated, but when you work in retail with 150 other people, you’re bound to come across some of the dimmer bulbs in the box. Unfortunately, these people account for a lot of my stress as I continually have to cover up their mistakes or explain things that should be common knowledge. It can be outright maddening.
Even with that stress and a lack of motivation to write, I’m going to try to post something, at least, once a week. That way we can all enjoy some of the insanity that occurs in my mind.
What’s the next goal?
32 years ago
by bangbang023
in journal
I’ve been feeling a bit unmotivated, lately, and I haven’t been able to figure out why. I spent a lot of time pondering it today and I finally figured it out: I have no short term goals.
Leading up to the middle of July, my entire goal was to move up at work and get to the position I’m in right now. I spent a lot of time and energy doing whatever I could to earn what I wanted and it really kept me driving forward. Now that I’ve achieved that goal, I’m finding it hard to stay driven because I lack anything to work towards. The same goes for my personal life. Now that my life is going so well, I have nothing to work towards. Without goals, I’ve fallen back and have resorted to coasting through many aspects of my life. I do my work and try to succeed, but the drive isn’t there and doesn’t re-appear at home.
I really need to figure out what I want next. I need that carrot dangling in front of me, constantly forcing me to move forward as I try to get it. You have any carrots and/or goals you want to throw my way? This unmotivated horse could use some right about now.
More time brings more posts
22 years ago
by bangbang023
in journal
Well, now that the summer is over and I’m going to be home more often, expect to see more posts on this site, again. I really slacked these past few months, but, between work and spending time with Melanie, I simply had to let this place slip down my list of priorities.
Work has been consuming a lot of my energy, lately. With over 50 new hires and a large turnover in management, it’s been a bit hectic adjusting to all the changes taking place. My department, specifically, is starting to get a lot of focus put on it. That’s good in the fact that we’ll be able to get the attention we deserve, but we really need to make sure we’re on the top of our game, now. Luckily, for us, the team is comprised of mostly veterans who are all good workers. It’s nice knowing the people working beside me are reliable. Well, a good number of them are, anyway.
This time of year is also proving to be a big music period, for me, and quite unexpectedly so, at that. Smile Empty Soul and Chevelle have already released their albums, though the latter’s effort isn’t that great. Bands such as Paramore, Breaking Benjamin, Weezer, and Three Days Grace all have new material coming down the pipeline before the year is up. Thank god. The first half of the year was as dull as can be, musically, and I was starting to get really bored by it.
That’s it for me, for now. By the way, any other albums you think I should be aware of?
Jobs for everyone
42 years ago
by bangbang023
in journal
This has been a good week for Melanie and I. Financially, things are about to get a little easier for us and that’s always a blessing.
For starters, Melanie found a job at an Uncle Louie G’s that opened right near her house. The pay is only decent, but she gets tips which, so far, are pretty damn good. As the weather gets warmer and volume picks up, she should be able to get a nice amount of money together for the car she so badly wants to get.
In other news, I finally got the full time Merch position at work. Besides the extra hours, I also got a raise and will be able to get benefits such as health insurance and holiday/vacation/sick pay. Now, I’m not going to be doubling my income or anything, but I will have a bit more padding that will allow me to stress my bills a little less than I have been for the past year, or so. All of this is way over due, but I’m thankful I stuck to my guns.
Week of the work I love
02 years ago
by bangbang023
in journal
It’s been an interesting week. Because of continued problems with vital computer records, at work, I haven’t been able to do my usual work. Instead, I’ve been helping out merch, the department I left only a few months ago and the department I love being in. Working beside my buddy, I dealt with hooking up TV’s, displaying quite a few new washers and dryers, and the usually organization of tons of box stock. It was back breaking labor, at times, but also so much more enjoyable than the paper work nonsense I usually deal with these days.
It didn’t take long for me to realize how much I miss the work. The position I have now guarantees me off most weekends, but that benefit doesn’t outweigh the simply fact that I love the work merch has to do. It’s always different and, often times, forces me to solve puzzles involving wiring or changes to the store layout and such. It allows me to be creative. I miss that so much.
I’ve already told the GM that, if a full time spot in merch opens up, that he should consider me. He’s been very impressed with the work I’ve done this week, so I’m hoping he keeps that in mind. I need to get back to merch, eventually. There’s just so much more job satisfaction to be found in that department.
A day back inside the studio
02 years ago
by bangbang023
in journal
It’s been a while since I’ve done anything enjoyable at work. My current position involves a lot of numbers and a lot of paper work, but very little hands on work and it really sucks. Today, I got a slight reprieve.
My store has an audio room specifically set up with mid range audio equipment that needs a little more attention and finesse than a home theater in a box setup. Unfortunately, since I tend to work with people who don’t give a crap, the room often find itself torn apart. In this case, about 80% of the speakers weren’t working for one reason or another. It took a few hours, but I managed to fix it up as best I can given the power issues that are also plaguing the room.
It just felt good to work with my hands again, you know? I love that work and it’s the work I’m best at. Though the pictures are a little blurry because I mixed a dark room with a camera phone, you can see some of what I did. In the first picture, you can see the completely stripped down wall. In the next picture, you can see the final work. Everything was functional.
Eminem is dead and Best Buy is nuts
02 years ago
by bangbang023
in journal
I was really hoping Eminem would be able to capture some of the magic from his earlier albums in his upcoming release. My hopes have been shattered. I’ve listened to a few songs on YouTube, and such, and they are horrible to a point that they’re unbearable to listen to. I actually couldn’t finish listening to the song “3am” because it was just annoying. He’s using the same infantile voice he used on “Encore” and it wasn’t any good back then, so it’s just worse now. Give it up, dude.
Switching artistic mediums, Best Buy has lost their mind and started to allow people to reserve their copies of the game Modern Warfare 2. This is a game that is scheduled to hit shelves in November, November! Do people really need to reserve a copy six months in advance? It just seems so ridiculous. Each store is going to get in a few hundred copies (on release day, alone), so are reserved copies even needed anymore? Sheesh.
Those are my random thoughts for the day. Enjoy.
Where’s all the music?
62 years ago
by bangbang023
in journal
I had a brief, one minute long discussion with a co-worker, today. He, generally, likes the same music that I do and he was curious if I knew of any albums to look forward to this year. The answer? “There’s nothing,” was all I could say.
I did expand on that, eventually, and mention that Smile Empty Soul has a new album coming out this summer, but he missed their brief turn in the spotlight and had never heard of them. I have to say, though, that if there is only one album coming out this year for me to look forward to, then I am damn happy that it’s Smile Empty Soul’s fourth (third, officially) effort. They’re one of the three bands (Staind and Seether) I absolutely, undeniably love and connect to. Their albums are of a small minority; they are good from the first track all the way through to the last. Man, I can’t wait.
You people have any albums worth looking forward to? Before you bother, I already know about Lil Wayne’s rock album. Don’t even…