Monday

Wild day at work:

A disheveled elderly woman meandered into JD's today, and both my boss and I greeted her and offered our assistance. She ignored us, and continued to saunter along the front wall of wine racks for what must have been 30 or 40 seconds. I had snuck past her to stock a few bottles in the far corner of the store, and came back around asking if there were anything I could help her find. I found my inquiry being ignored a second time as she walked past me back towards the front counter. A few feet from the door she stopped, looked my boss and then myself in the eyes and told us that we worked/ran "an inappropriate business to have [pause] next to such a beautiful college..." She padded two steps closer toward the front door, looked back and recanted, "...excuse me for being straight and old fashioned." And with a final defiant "humph" and a head nod, she pushed her way back outside and continued towards downtown, my boss's "...mm'okay ...thanks?.." drowned out by a car accelerating through the 4 way intersection, and our front door clicking shut.

In disbelief, mouth gaping, I looked around for an army of angels or blinking neon signs, sirens, whistles, a flock of sea gulls or something, anything absurd to truly confirm the likely-once-in-a-lifetime event that had just taken place. I laughed... we laughed. She certainly told us.

*It brings me to an interesting point for contemplation and thought however. It's 2009, and thousands of people are finding/ will find themselves trying to enter/re-enter one of the toughest job markets EVER in our countries history. Employment means so many different things to so many different people. And many jobs or positions we take for granted; we take little notice of, or lack the understanding towards the importance and significance behind.

Who is the person who drove the truck, which carried the pallets, which contained the beans, that were boxed on the conveyor, which were cleaned by the hands of the woman whose family was out in the fields, that worked beneath the sun and rain clouds....all for you to enjoy your single drip, double espresso amaretto mocha as you frantically wait in line with a dozen other suits, desperate for your caffeine fix, hoping it will subdue the gut wrenching dread of the next 6 days ahead of you. Or the individual that's responsible for the perfectly creased cloth napkin that adorned your reservation of 8 last weekend at Alinea or Vermilion . Someone is cleaning. Someone is building. Someone is assembling, or stocking, or researching, picking, pulling, driving, washing... doing the unglorified dirty work that is perhaps underpaid, over-worked, and wrongfully cheated of liveable wages or job equity.

So I could care less if I was the victim of an attempted shaming this afternoon. I know that my work mean's something; to LOTS of people here in D-town, even if it is at JD's. There is purpose behind it. Perhaps not global purpose, perhaps not life changing or life saving [I suppose it would be ignorant not to include, life-ending as well...although that is a lengthy side-street of a conversation of its own], but I think being an employee at that store is rewarding. I think my employment, and that business is a part of something positive, a piece of something worthwhile. I have never felt sorry for being "a guy who works at a liquor store." Not once. People say things like, "God, I hope I never grow up to be a _____." or "I hope I don't end up being a ______ doing _____." [Electrician...bus driver....mail man...newspaper boy...late shift gas station clerk....Big-K-Mart Manager....McDonald's employee...a recycling center can counter or a garbage/trash pick-up...a second hand store....a toll booth operator...a waitress/server...ETC.]

The woman's comment today makes me slow, not necessarily stop, but certainly slow...and think: Why are those people working in those "unglamorous" positions? What is their reasoning? What causes them to take a position like that? Lack of education? Lack of ambition? Age? Sex? Family? Tragedy? Addiction? Automatically, I'm making an assumption, that you...that we, think and list, hardships, challenges, outside interferences, uncontrollable variables...

Maybe they work there, because they "know what they do [and know what they're doing]." Maybe they work there because they're getting paid more there, than they were at their previous job. Maybe they choose that job, that business, because it's the only plausible option for them at that time.... and maybe, amidst all of the what-if's, possibly's, and perhaps' is that which turns heads and ears, defies our societal desire for heirarchal status... maybe they choose it because they're happy.

In other news: B-Man has some how finagled his way into avoiding surgery--by doctor's consent--and continuing on with his season with basic a splint/covering and basic precautions. Lucky little bugger. Praise the Lord.