3-Ring Circus...a.k.a. Retail on a Saturday

So,
Today was a typical crazy Saturday where I work.
Saturdays tend to be the most interesting,
fun-filled days for me because Saturday is the
only day of the week that I work a full 8-hour
shift.

I would have to say that the highlight of my day
was when I witnessed a group of about 8 high-school
students with Letterman "band" jackets on singing
(and doing the motions to" the song "YMCA" quite
loudly...AT THE ENTRANCE OF THE STORE!

If only everyone could have that much fun during
a grocery shopping run!!

Other than that one amusing moment, I had the pleasure
of dealing with irritating customers. One person in
particular had 50 or 60 items that I had to ring up...
In the 10 items or less line!

Later, I was at Customer Service and I had a woman
that wanted to return a bra with the tag not attached.
This, of course, is not allowed (I would think that is
common sense). However, she said it was sold to her
without a tag. In the end, she kept the bra.

Usually, where I work if a customer complains
enough about something it WILL be returned in one
way or other...regardless of the return policy.

Oh, well...guess that's the way it is in retail.
Where I work, anyway.

Let the fun begin...

Today was an extremely interesting day. I only had two classes,
but I was so tired that I had some difficulty waking up. I
wanted to stay in bed until my evening shift, but since I only
have classes 2 days a week I realize I cannot afford to miss any
classes.

When my classes ended around 2:00, I was wide awake again. I sat
in the computer lab with my friends and fulfilled my "Facebook
obsession" (as my boyfriend calls it). OK, OK, so maybe spending
1 to 2 hours on there after class may be slightly obsessive...but
that's a generous estimate.

I headed straight to work on the trolley, like I always do on
Mondays. The only difference is I actually fell asleep on the
trolley! I mean, sound asleep to the point when you wake up
and feel a little achy. Luckily, I somehow didn't miss my stop.

The day only got more interesting by the end of the night. I didn't
have many customers until the last hour or so of my shift. One lady
caught me by surprise when she mentioned that the men's shave gel is
great to use, especially on the bikini line! Too much information!
She did give a piece of helpful advice..."You need to try it!"

I have to say that I doubt I would say something like that to a
cashier at any store, but that's just me...

A Romantic Valentine's Day in the Retail World

Today was ridiculously crazy at my job. There were long
From the moment I went to the front to ring register.
I was glad that the customers seemed nice today, more so
than usual.

I would advise people to buy gifts for their "sweeties"
BEFORE Valentine's day, though. My boyfriend was lucky
enough to forget Valentine's Day a few days before today,
so he was able to proceed with his plans after I reminded
him over the phone.

Honestly, I do not believe in the commercialized "holiday"
anymore. Last year on this day I sat around in the lobby at
college feeling bitter from being burned one too many times
by guys, and now that I am happy in my current relationship
I don't feel the need to celebrate us 1 day of the year.

After spending a full day at Point Park, it's always
fun to go straight to work and deal with interesting
customers. Lucky for me, I have both class and work
only one day a week this semester.

Today was yet another day of being annoyed by customers.
I rang up an older woman's purchases, and she was the "I
need a separate bag for each item" type. I understand that
food and chemicals must be bagged separately, but she made
her own rules for bagging items!

The greeting cards needed to be bagged separate from her
paper gift bag, her movies needed to be separate from her
books, her books needed to be double-bagged, her silk
flowers weren't in a bag big enough to suit her needs,
and so on and so forth.

Things That Have Been Irritating Me...

I notice that the retail store where I work seems to be a top
place for social gatherings...one would think that a restaurant
would be a better spot for those kinds of things.

I was standing up front near the checkouts where I work,
and I watched a group of about 7 people stand in a circle right
in front of the cart return area at the entrance. This was such a
convenient spot to be in the way of customers leaving and entering the
store.

Another thing at work that annoys me...people that repeat themselves
when asking me for help. It would not be so bad if those people did not
use a sarcastic voice when repeating themselves, like I have some type of
mental disorder.

For example, I was standing at my work post and a lady came up to me and
began asking me where the jewelry counter is, but she was not yet close
enough for me to hear her. I said, "The jewelry counter?", and she
practically yelled back "Yeah, the jewelry counter!" in a not-so-pleasant
tone. My only intent was to make sure I heard her correctly and to
help. You can't please everyone, I guess...

Both of the things I mentioned above happen more than I would expect
them to, and the rude customers wanting help actually happened twice
today during my 4-hour shift.

Hopefully not many of my blog entries will not be ranting ones like this!

Steelers Victory Parade!

Today was quite an eventful day. First and foremost, the Steelers victory parade took place downtown. I heard on Channel 4 news that an estimated 350,000 people attended the parade. Although I was planning to go, my friend and I decided that we would rather enjoy our day off from classes and watch the parade from the comfort of our own homes.

I felt that the crowds of people downtown would be too much to handle, but I did get to experience the people coming home from the parade on the trolley. Amazingly enough, I quickly got a seat. As an added bonus, I even made the trolley driver angry by trying to get off too early! My only intention was to make my way to the front to avoid missing my stop! However, as soon as I got up and told someone that I was getting off, a bunch of girls on the trolley started screaming "GETTING OFF!"

So, in the end I did get the best of both worlds...getting a good view of the parade from my television AND people watching the hyped crowd when it ended.
Needless to say, everyone was in a good mood...except the poor trolley driver!

If anyone has a good firsthand experience from being at the parade, feel free to leave a comment!

Superbowl 2009 Highlights

As you might have heard, the Steelers won the Superbowl last night.

Santonio Holmes was named MVP of the game.


Bruce Springsteen played the Superbowl halftime show.



More importantly, there was a lot of good commercials. My favorite commercials were the ones for Budweiser.



What was your favorite commercial?