Brown Business

So I toured the new store today and boy is it Brown. Not in a bad way but it's just so different after seeing so much blue for so long. It's a very nice store. The most modern Canadian Wal-Mart I've seen so far. A few things that have been said about it have proved to be untrue but for more details on that you're gonna have to come and talk to me in person. I doubt they'd be very happy if I started leaking details of their brand new prototype store on the Internet a month before it opens...

What a long day at work. We had two people get into a fight right in front of the Photo Centre and then when we tried to kick both people involved out one left fine while the other wouldn't. We ended up having to kick him out several times before mall security finally came and escorted them off the property. I was getting really mad at them and needless to say I was most pleased to see them leave for good.

Now I'm off to the cabin with my folks. I'll be back Saturday in time for another day of work which means I'm not quite sure when tomorrow's post will be uploaded. You'll just have to keep your eyes peeled I guess. Have a great Canada Day everyone!

Worlds War

Today I carried out my "threat" and went to War of the Worlds all by my lonesome. I did try to invite a couple of people but with such short notice and such a weird time that I'd chosen I knew things were gonna be grim from the start.

So how was the movie? It rocked. I don't want to give away any of it since that's partly why it was great, the trailers give away very little. The entire movie doesn't feel like your typical blockbuster which is good, mostly. It keeps a fairly good pace except near the end where I thought it slowed down a bit too much while still not giving enough time to answer all the questions needing answers. Once you all see it come talk to me and we can talk about the ending without spoiling everyone else.

I did lead a life beyond the movie today however and in fact before I even saw the movie and before I was even up for my day I bought a new album off of iTunes. That's a very big deal for me since I very rarely ever buy albums, usually just singles. I bought Super Beautiful Monster by Bif Naked and so far I'm very much enjoying it. That purchase combined with my continuing interest in podcasting kept my iTunes player and iPod quite busy for the majority of the day.

Tonight I worked in Electronics with Brittany and Andrew which turned out to be nothing like I expected. It was really busy and we had to cover out of department breaks as well as our own which kinda made things tough for a little while. I swear, I still don't know how much of a store is going to be left by this time next week. The place seems to be deteriorating by the second both physically and mentally...

Tomorrow I have an early shift back at csm starting at 7. Then I have my new store tour at 4 and after work I'm heading out to my parents cabin for some (hopefully) good times on the short Canada Day weekend that I'm getting this year. Stay tuned for a post before I leave tomorrow!

Totally Toys

Today was another day in Toys, almost exclusively this time. I only got pulled to csm once as our credit card woes had been solved overnight.

I've come to learn that Toys is a department where I don't really want to spend much time working. Between pulling bikes for the rack and pulling stock from the top of the store (both on the tallest ladder in the store) it's alot of muscle work, especially for someone who used to (apparently) be afraid of heights...

I only worked a shorty though today and when I arrived home I found out that behind everyones backs Apple had released new iPods and iTunes 4.9 with podcasting. That's pretty much been what my life has consisted of ever since.

Tomorrow I plan on probably going to see War of the Worlds before work and then of course I have my last department shift in a row in Electronics at 5 o'clock.

Credit Card Collapse

Well today was an interesting day. After a turbulent final few hours I woke up from my slumber with my alarm at 10 O'Clock this morning. I got ready for work, and then off I went.

Work today was a challenge. As the first weekday with north store prep was thrown into full gear we had some changes to contend with of our own at the south store. The most problematic change was our new store number. Our usual store number of 3004 got transferred to the north store and we received the end of facility life store number of 3960. This caused our Gift Registry to stop working and halted our Mastercard transactions right in their tracks. My shift in Toys soon became a panicked rush at the checkouts as 4 csms tried to keep up with not only the regular csm stuff but all the manual approval calls that we had to do. That kept me at the shop till just after 7.

Right at the end of my shift the store was visited by a former employee who asked about the baseball games we used to play most sundays through the summer. This gave me pause and soon I was talking up a storm with Travis, Naseer, and especially Sarah about who we could get to play and where we could get equipment from. My hope is that we'll be able to play at least one game this summer, perhaps as early as Sunday, July 10th. I've gotta talk to Sarah about it again tomorrow though. All you evening shift associates get your catching mitts and prepare for the game of your life!

Tomorrow I've got another shift in Toys although it's a couple hours shorter then the one today was supposed to be. It's still anyones guess whether I'll spend the whole shift in the department or not. Hopefully they'll have most of todays problems fixed by tomorrow.

Sunday Shoppers

I have come to the conclusion that our shoppers have become spoilt. It's a problem that I don't quite have a solution to, although I imagine closing the store for a couple of days when we switch to the new building will be a good start on punishment.

This morning I woke up just in time to get ready for work and so that's just what I did. At work today I came to the conclusion that dealing with our new managers could be trying over the next several weeks however the good thing is that it seems they're more interested in just keeping things running instead of rewriting the rules of the game. I'm all for change, just perhaps not in the middle of a store move.

After work I came home and had a wholesome evening with my family. Having supper and watching a movie (The Aviator.)

Tomorrow I start three days in a row outside of Department 990 starting off with Toys tomorrow morning. I'm hoping it's not gonna be as boring as I worry it will be but I guess we can only wait and see...

Sad Scheduling

Well today was another steller day in the workplace as you can imagine. I'll get to that in a second though.

I woke up today around noonish after the busy day my family had yesterday. I pretty much just lazed around for most of the afternoon until it was time for work.

I started work at 4:30, although I was a little late thanks to a ride I had to give to my sister. We had new managers on tonight thanks to the fact that we're getting new managers in to run our store while our current managers prep the new building. Due to our severe lack of staff tonight we were able to talk them into closing both the mall checkouts and layaway earlier then usual. We usually close layaway on Saturday nights (in fact I can't remember the last time we were able to keep it open on a Sat evening) but closing the mall checkouts at 7:30 was almost if not a first and so that took some doing. If only we'd get scheduled proper staff we could keep everything open and everyone would be happy.

The bright spot of my day was talking to some of the associates about last nights grad. More people attended then I had thought would (especially safe grad) and there were some good stories to be told.

Tonight after work (which ended at 9:30 for me, another part of the crazy night) I called Jessica and she came over and watched Boogeyman with me. This one as opposed to some of the scary movies we've watched in the past was actually a little bit scary...

But now it's time for me to haul my exhausted butt off to bed to the sound of a thundershower outside my window. Night.

Grad Gala

Well, today was my baby sisters graduation from high school. I officially feel old.

Not only because my sister graduated do I feel old but because all of the other grads looked so young too! You people can't be graduating yet! Take their diplomas back and give em another year of seasoning. Then let them join the "real world."

As was mine and probably every other ceremony since the beginning of time, everything today took a l o n g time. On the plus side most of the speeches were quite good, especially the ones prepared by the students. There was a video at the banquet that I thought was stupid and poorly crafted (probably thanks to my year in Media) but otherwise as far as this sort of thing goes it all went ok.

So congratulations to my sister, a couple of my co-workers, and to the entire class of 2005 for your graduation.

Late Lottery

Wow, I actually considered not making a post tonight for a second. Lucky for all you I'm just such a dedicated blogger that the dice fell the right side up. Snake eyes is good, right?

Today was another early morning where I got to open the store. It was a pretty standard day and there's not much to report. We called Alix in to work AGAIN today which I kinda found funny for some reason, poor girl isn't getting much time away from the place these days...

After work I sat around and did nothing, it was nice. Today was my dogs birthday and as a gift to herself I suppose, she got herself stuck under the neighbours shed. We finally managed to get her out though which gave us time to have supper. After supper I was supposed to cut the grass but the darn lawnmower would not start despite me and my dads best efforts. Instead I sat around and did more nothing utnil I got into a big huge convo on msn which has kept me up way too late.

Tomorrow is grad day for my sister and as such it's gonna be a busy place around here. I'm thinkin me and my laptop can go hide in the crawl space although I doubt that will work for long. I have grandparents coming in for the big event and I'm all set to go to all the big shows too. If any of you are going to the Crocus grad tomorrow I'll see ya there!

Green Garden

Welcome to Wednesday, the day where I can pretty much officially say I have recovered from my trip to Chicago. Meaning of course that the slideshow from my trip has been posted and you can find it on the menu to the right of this block. It's not as nice as the copy I have on my laptop but it does still leave an impression of the city.

Like I said today was Wednesday which means I didn't work until 4:30. So what did I do with all my spare time? Well after some of my patented sleeping and lazing around I had myself a shower and went over to Matt's to fix his router, again. After we got it working I returned home where I built some chairs for my sisters grad on Friday. We're having some people over for the big event, not only because she's graduating but also because my dad is vice principal at the school she's graduating from. As a "reward" for my help with the chairs my Mom gave me a tour of the garden she'd planted while I was out of the Country last week, It's amazing what a whole lotta rain can do for a Garden.

At 4:30 it was of course time for work and tonight wasn't really anything that special (Andrew asked for a mention in my blog so here it is.) Rumors of the blond haired girl continued to swirl among the CSM's and Vision Centre Associates and just as all the last of our day staffers left, the people started to come and the checkouts lined up. I don't know what the day timers have to complain about. They're definetly getting the right end of the stick right now...

Speaking of day timers, tomorrow I get the "pleasure" of opening the big ol' store. Afterwards I expect I'll be spending more time preparing for the big day on Friday although I hope to fill at least some of my time with something, anything more enjoyable.

Back to Business

Well today was the official restart of what my life usually entails. Starting of course with a shift of work at seven am this morning. That was rough I tell ya. But I made it through the day and afterwards I went and got myself I haircut. Something I was in desperate need of.

After all that excitement I went out and did another TV Production mobile with some chums from school. That was fun, nice to get out of the house and do something.

Anyways if you hadn't noticed I'm not really in the mood for writing tonight so I'm keeping this short and sweet. Well, short at least. Still no Slideshow, I'm havin trouble gettin that posted to the net. Hopefully tomorrow. Night y'all.

"Where?" - PM 6

The question I've asked myself almost continuously over the last 6 days is "Where am I?" Shawn and I seem to have a knack for getting lost, especially when we're trying to find huge freeways that should just pop right out at you.

Today was the last of my 6 days off from work. I got back to Brandon just before 10:00 tonight and i've been mainly just lazing around ever since.

It's been a fairly lazy day altogether. About all I've done since my last post today was show of the Chicago pictures and go to Red Lobster to pig out for our final and best meal of the whole trip.

Tomorrow I'm back to work starting at seven. A shift I'll no doubt barely make it through. I'm interested to see how things went while I was gone since apparently they called my house for me 3 times while I was on the road. Also tomorrow I hope to post the slideshow I made up of the pictures from Chicago and finish up all the other Chicago Blog stuff.

Stay tuned for another exciting day tomorrow, maybe...

"Where?" - AM 6

So, what happened last night and what decision was made? Shawn, after drifting in and out of consciousness all the way to Fargo woke up and decided he was going home. So, a few hours later after crossing the border (no search this time) we arrived back in Winnipeg. He went to his room, I went to his guest room and we've been sleeping ever since.

Since we're early getting back to Canada I actually have more free time today then I had originally thought I would. I'm thinking about waking up shortly and then I have a class reunion here from grade 8 that I might attend. It's actually my sisters class that's having the reunion but I haven't seen the teacher in a while so I might crash. After that it's back to Brandon in time for more sleep and (joy) my first day back to work after six days off. Why oh why does tomorrow have to start at six am...

Wa-Kee-Gan - PM 5

While the time below may state this post as being from 11:59 and the date above may state this post as being made on Sunday, I can assure you that this is all just a ruse to make things fit chronologically. The reality of the situation is that until the bugs forced me to move I was sitting in front of a closed and darkened Burger King at almost 2 this Monday morning in Fargo North Dakota.

After driving all day I've made a pit stop in the back parking lot of a 24 hr Perkins Restaurant, where a bunch of punk kids are smoking, laughing and doing what I didn't think anyone did this early on a monday morning. So here I sit, in the drivers seat of the car I've been driving for most of the day, writing this post and trying to decide what my next move should be. Do I make a break for the border (and home) allowing us to arrive in Winnipeg just before sunup? Do I close my eyes and try to get some sleep here, hoping I don't meet my doom at the hands of those darn "punk kids?"

Today was an adventure in map reading. We got lost several time and drove almost non-stop since we left the hotel this morning around noonish. We visited several cities but I feel more importantly, as a consequence of getting lost we also visited several small towns, many of which had water front or river front property where families, couples and kids all enjoyed what summer had to offer them.

I think what I'll remember most about this trip is not the places I went or all the time I spent with Shawn (some of that time being rather trying,) but the people I saw. All the unknown faces that I'll likely never see again but have still become an important piece of the puzzle of my life. How we all had a place to go and a reason to get there and how we all got there with a little influence from people we never have and never will have the chance to get to know...

Wa-Kee-Gan - AM 5

Well we just left the hotel, late. Before I leave Wi-Fi range though I thought i'd make a quick post about today.

We checked out of the hotel today because while we still have today to waste we have to leave no later then midnight tonight so I can be back in Brandon in time for work on Tuesday.

We're not quite sure what we're gonna do yet but i'm sure we'll find something. The PM post tonight may be late depending on whether I have Internet access when I write it. We'll just have to see I guess. If anyone wants anything from Chicago call my cell now because otherwise it will probably be too late.

It's another beautiful day in Chicago. See you all soon!

Downtown Drivers - PM 4

Well we accomplished alot today and saw alot more of Chicago. We started off driving down the tollway to the Chicago core. We parked at the Navy Pier parking garage and jumped on a seadog speedboat trip which sped us through the Chicago harbor and then down the Chicago river which recently graduated from 'Toxic' to 'Highly Polluted' apparently.

After that trip we grabbed our first meal of the day at where else but McDonalds. Not just any McDonalds though, the 'McDonalds of the Future' at Navy Pier. With a seperate desert bar, fancy elctro static thingies and a snazzy paint job it's a pretty cool place.

Continuing on the journey we then took a cab to the John Hancock Center where we took an elevator to the observation deck where we looked out onto the city and went out on the open air deck. The sounds of the city sure are loud even up that high...

After that we went shopping along North Madison Avenue at The Apple Store, Nike Town, Virgin, and others. While walking the strip we came across a lady who every few minutes would stop walking, and start yelling at the top of her lungs about how evil the spanish were and how they muck up Chicago or something like that. It was quite the experience and as we walked away from her we could still hear her yelling for quite some time. We also took a look at the rocks implanted into the Chicago Tribune building. There you can find everything from Moon rocks to pieces of the former New York World Trade Center to pieces of the Great Pyramids in Egypt.

Feeling hungry we went to the California Pizza Kitchen where we each had a personal pizza. Then we went and saw 'Mr. and Mrs. Smith' which turned out to be a much better, if not slightly different movie then I had expected.

After all that excitement we started heading back to the hotel (getting lost along the way again) and now here we are. Time for bed once again, good night everyone!

Downtown Drivers - AM 4

Welcome to a Saturday morning in Chicago. After planning to take the train back downtown today I believe we've changed our minds and we're probably going to drive downtown, find a cheap place to park, and then take the CTA to wherever we want to go.

Where we want to go today is the Apple Store, the John Hancock building, and the Navy Pier. The Apple store in downtown Chicago is on North Michigan Avenue. A trendy shopping district where there are bound to be other retailers we'll likely want to visit. We visited the Navy Pier yesterday but today we plan on going on the speedboat tour that launches from there.

But now we're off on todays adventure. Stay tuned tonight for another thrilling installment of BBBB, Vacation edition!

Train Travellers - PM 3

Well as I mentioed in my post this morning today was transit day and it turned out to be an exercise in both patience and organization.

We departed our local Metra train station here in Waukegan early this afternoon and arrived in downtown Chicago at the transportation centre about an hour and a half later. That was the patience part, we had no idea it was going to take so long. The train made so many stops on the way down it seemed like as soon as the train got up to speed it would have to slow down for another stop.

Once we arrived at the beautiful downtown Ogilvie Transportation Center it was only a quick walk to the Sears Tower. There we were herded like cattle up to the sky deck which provided a magnificient view of the region (you can see four states on a clear day apparently.) Afterwards we continued on our mission to find ourselves some CTA (Chicago Transit Authority) passes which we finally purchased at a downtown hole-in-the-wall Western Union store.

With access to public transit finally within our grasp we jumped on the nearest 'L' train and started heading towards the Navy Pier. A sort of Forks/Red River Ex/Convention Centre rolled into one. After several rounds around the Chicago loop, a dart down the red line subway and a trip with a rude bus driver we arrived at our destination.

Along the way we lost our way several times. Once we were helped by a homeless gentleman who pointed us in the right direction. We gave him $5 for his trouble meaning that we've donated money to the homeless in Chicago. Now I just hope he doesn't run off and buy smokes and beer with the money...

After all that running around we headed back on an express Metra train at 6:31 and less than an hour later we got back in Waukegan. After a brief rest we went looking for a 24hr Wal-Mart Supercenter where I used my first self checkout.

Today was quite the day and tomorrow will likely be another busy day too. Bed time!

Train Travellers - AM 3

Well we're sick of the traffic in downtown Chicago. Today we're on a mission to get ourselves transit passes for the next 3 days. Partly because of the traffic, partly because we just wouldn't feel right if we didn't take the 'L' train at least once on this trip. We're not quite sure where we can buy these passes but we think we have a lead on the 'Metra' train station just a little ways away. Since we're not actually in Chicago we have to get to Chicago before we can jump on Chicago Transit (the cta.)

Anyways i'm hungry, Shawns wining so I guess it's time to go. I'll let ya all know how we did in our mission to achieve transit this afternoon.

Six Shocks - PM 2

Well today I am a spokesman for the natural tanning movement. I have a sunburn and no doubt that regardless the amount of aloe vera I use it's still gonna be stinging and peeling tomorrow.

Today we visited Six Flags (and forgot our cameras) to enjoy the amusement park life. Despite Shawns talk prior to our arrival we didn't go on every rollercoaster after all. We started off going on one of the first rollercoasters we walked past, a huge wooden coaster that's celebrating it's 10th anniversary this year. That thing would get anyones blood pumpin and gravity prooved to be little match for it's G-Forces. Afterwards we went on several water rides which soaked us several times over giving me chills everytime there was even a whisper of a breeze. We also went on a simulator ride and a scenic ride that rose up and looked out over the park.

After the park we went on another drive to the downtown despite the extra traffic time thanks to rush hour. We took some pictures and further planned what we want to do for the next 3 days. I've posted some of our pictures so far to a Web Site so you can all go and take a look. We got lost on the way back to the hotel but eventually we did find our way. After a trip to Target and a supper run to McDonalds we've spent the rest of the night watching TV at the hotel.

Well I guess it's time for bed though, post to ya all again tomorrow morning!

Six Shocks - AM 2

Well, i'm up. I don't want to be up but apparently we're on a mission to go stand in line at the gates of Six Flags. I'm not really into the whole Six Flags/Amusement park thing (as evidenced by the fact that I didn't go to the Summer Fair this year) but Shawn really wants to go so sacrifices must be made I suppose. Considering I don't really like rollercoasters this may be an interesting day...

Currently in Chicago it's +19 degrees Celcius and there's nothin but sun outside. We're supposed to get up to +23 today and it's supposed to be nothing but Sun and warmth until we leave. Not even any clouds in the forecast until Tuesday. Looking forward to that.

Anyways I suppose we should get a move on.

Tourist Time - PM 1

Well, things picked up rather quickly this afternoon and we actually made it to Chicago earlier on this evening. At first it seemed like just any other city but after taking a quick trip to the downtown I can tell you now I was wrong. One of the most amazing views I've ever witnessed was driving down the freeway towards the downtown core of Chicago tonight. It was a great view and I'm looking forward to spending more time downtown over the next few days, hopefully giving us a chance to take some pictures.

The trip to Chicago today was long but we managed to squeeze in some movies and the view from Minneapolis to Milwaukee is really actually quite nice. Almost as nice as driving into Ontario from Manitoba. The Highway was SO busy though, just incredible for what seemed like the middle of nowhere. Along the trip I also visited my very first Wal-Mart Supercentre which was of great excitement for me. All I bought were some cookies and donuts though.

Our Hotel is a Super 8 just a little ways from the Six Flags that Shawn wants to go to tomorrow. It's got free wireless Internet and free donuts every morning. Seeing as my new found addiction has proven to be donuts from Krispy Kremes I'm not sure which of those two will be more useful...

As you might have noticed by now I'm posting at a rate of two messages a day. I'm hoping to keep up this pace till I come back since with everything going on I expect to have alot to say.

Tourist Time - AM 1

Well, after an interesting night with many adventures and no sleep we've finally arrived in Minneapolis. We're parked in an Ikea parking garage waiting for stores to open since our timing got pushed ahead of schedule. But let's start at the beginning of the story so far...

It seems like I last posted a week ago but really it was only 13 hours. I left Brandon an hour ahead of schedule and when I arrived in Winnipeg at 9 Shawn was waiting in the car, ready to go. I was a bit ticked since we were supposed to finish a couple things before leaving BUT with his mom pushing for us to get on the road and his insistence I agreed and away we went.

Our first problem surfaced before we even left Winnipeg, my brand new Inverter from Canadian Tire quit on us. That left us with only my half charged laptop battery to last us not even all the way through one movie we started watching. It quit just after we got into the States.

Getting INTO the states was an entirely stressful experience. After being questioned in our vehicle for several minutes they brought us into a garage where they questioned us further and searched the car while we sat in a small white room with security glass looking out. It wasn't anymore worrisome than a bad day at work but still, would've been nice for them to just let us through! Anyways, about a half hour later we were free to continue into the states and away we went.

We stopped for gas in Grand Forks and sped through Fargo, before entering Minnesota. All along the way I continued to swear about my damn Inverter so we stopped at the first rest stop in Minnesota and charged my laptop up to 9% so we could watch a bit more of the movie. That charge didn't last us through the end of the movie either but before we knew it we found our salvation. A 24hr Wal-Mart in some small town along the road with 100W Inverters on sale, hurray! We hooked things up and finished watching "Death to Smoochy" and also watched "Rat Race" along with several Simpsons episodes.

About a half hour ago we started hitting some heavy traffic and since I was driving at the time I was left with the enviable task of navigating the crazy drivers and construction that seems to spring from nowhere here. But we've arrived safe and sound in Minneapolis and after a bit of a rest over here we're going to continue on with our trip to Chicago!

Travelling Tuesday

Well, today is the day. I'm essentially done packing and I'm talking to Shawn over Skype about the final details (pretty much just him yelling at me to hurry up.) I'll probably leave a bit ahead of schedule since I had an early supper tonight and didn't take the rest I was planning on taking this afternoon.

Work today was busy but good. Katie reminded me of what the quote of the day yesterday was. "Oh, don't worry Jason it's ok that you're not Gay." It's probably one of those you had to be there moments but it was funny as all hell. Thanks for the permission there Katie, glad to hear the ladies all noticed you on Sunday...

My grandparents came over for supper tonight which rocked since we had Romanas. Good stuff. Their Lasagna is good but their Cheese bread or Garlic bread or whatever it's called rocks even more.

Anyways that's about all I've got to say, I'll post ya all tomorrow when I'm in another Country. Later!

Unusual Usual

Today felt like a weird day. I was out of wack all day long yet nothing was really different.

The biggest jolt to my senses was probably when my mom woke me up this morning at quarter to eight wondering if I wanted to go to work for a day shift instead of an evening shift. I thought about it, decided that this close to a big trip I needed my sleep and called work back telling them no.

Then I couldn't get back to sleep, with the sun shining in my eyes and the hot air of my room all around me like an unwanted fleece blanket I thought I was doomed. The worst thing is knowing that you have to go to sleep and not being able to. Eventually I did manage to snooze off for an extra few hours but more then anything I think that's what messed me up.

Once I woke up I actually got things together pretty quick. I got showered, had some cereal, and then started getting ready for the big trip tomorrow. Part of that was a trip to Canadian Tire (apparently they're renovating) where I picked up a neat little inverter that will let me charge my laptop, cell phone, etc while we're on the road. I realize now that I should've used my Canadian Tire money to make the purchase but oh well, I guess i'll just have to continue saving it for something bigger and better.

I got to work at three to find out that Faye had been by herself all day today. That sucks, if I had known that I might've considered going in at least a little earlier then three to let her get a bit of a rest from the hustle and bustle. Naseer and I closed tonight and it's a good thing that they didn't pull either of us to the day shift after all because after having two people call in sick/unavailable we were up to our beejeebees in customers. At the end of the night we had to rush to get everything done and we even had to pull Alicia from till for a few extra things. In the rush I forgot all about my promise to help Madeline with bags if she didn't get things done by the end of the meeting. I hope she did because otherwise I owe her an apology...

That brings me to now, where i'm rushing to get to bed since I won't get anymore sleep after tonight for probably at least 33 hours. I work 7-3:30 which means I have an alarm for tomorrow too. Oh well. I plan to post tomorrow right before I leave home for Winnipeg so be sure to look for that sometime before 8pm.

Suddenly Sunday

Welcome to another timeless edition of BBBB. Brought to you by Suddenly Shoplifting, where you ain't seen nuttin, ya hear?

Today was rather tiring truthfully. You see last night i stayed up too late watching a movie i've never seen before and I didn't finish watching it. Which means all that time laying in front of the TV was for nothing, NOTHING! That combined with an early wake up to the sun poking through my lashes made for me getting less then the 8 hours I need so close to a big road trip. Sigh...

Work got off to a quick start since we didn't have enough staff in the "special services" areas of the front end and no greeters. However we did have enough cashiers so everything did eventually even out. The highlight of the day for me at least was teaching Naseer how to put the big bags on the till properly. He only gave up 3 times or so, if it weren't for Alicia and my constant words of "encouragement" he might never have learned the lesson. Would've been a shame really.

After work tonight someone else and me managed to accidently tick somebody off and so we've been in avoidance mode ever since. That's alot of fun I tells yea since it means I spent most of my evening at home. Oh well, such is this complicated thing called life I suppose.

Tomorrow I have the honour of working 3-10:30 at the front. That's part of my deal I made with Devil *cough* Devin to get Wednesday off. I hope to get up in good enough time that I can start to prepare to leave on Tuesday night, although no doubt most of that will be left till before I leave anyways.

Daily Digest

Wow, time for another post already. This one would barely even be worth it except for one thing, plus the fact that i'm used to making posts daily now.

Today was the laziest day ever. I slept till almost one, lazed around till 4ish, then I went to work. Work sucked. No where near enough staff (a shocking surprise for a Saturday night) plus a customer who a cashier forgot to give change to accused me of being racist. I don't think i've ever said the word "policy" so many times in a row in my life...

The "one thing" that I mentioned earlier is of course my trip to Chicago this week. Devin and I switched shifts today officially finalizing the schedule for when I'll be away with my buddy Shawn in the states. We'll be down there for 6 days (four days in Chicago, one in Minneapolis, another dedicated to Travel) and i'm leaving for Shawns house in Winnipeg after supper on Tuesday. We'll probably leave for the states around midnight and make a quick dash down to Minneapolis where we'll hang out till grabbing a quick snooze and heading off to Chicago around midnight again. After eight hours to Minneapolis and eight hours to Chicago we'll get to our destination Thursday morning.

During our time in town we're planning to visit Six flags and take a speedboat river tour, but i'm sure we'll fine other things there to occupy our time as well (there's a flagship Apple store i'd like to visit downtown.) We head back on Monday morning (around midnight, again) and if all goes as planned I should be at work for Tuesday morning.

I hope to continue this young tradition of daily blogs during my trip, leaching off of Internet access wherever I can find it. Hotels and Apple stores are bound to be open options. Either way I'll continue to talk about the trip as we get closer to Tuesday, no doubt.

As for the present I have to work tomorrow afternoon 12-6:30. Hopefully it should be a good shift, better then tonight. We'll just have to wait and see though I guess.

Time Travel

This post is a wee bit of a lie. I modified the date for it so that it will appear that it was posted on the 10th when really it's being posted on the 11th. Sorry but I got busy, more on that in a minute.

Today I had what felt like the shortest shift ever. Probably because despite how boring today felt I still managed to find something to do for pretty much every second of it. I worked 8-2:30 when Naseer came and rescued me. A fairly uneventful day except for the gossip about me I overheard a couple of associates saying...

After work I ran home, changed, grabbed my laptop and took off to ACC with the mission of getting my school e-mail downloaded onto my iBook. After thinking i'd gotten the info I needed I have yet to have any success. They're supposed to be e-mailing me next week though so we'll see if that bears any fruit. The cool part is the school now has Wi-Fi in certain spots so i'm hopeful i'll be able to connect to the Internet in the radio station with my laptop when I start my radio job. That should be helpful with my show.

After that adventure I came home, watched "Bandits," had supper, and then took my dog Hillary and went for a drive around the "region." Good times I tell ya. After that I came home and after searching high and low found a movie to watch from 1969. But I grew bored of it rather quickly and so instead I took off to Chater and picked up Jaime to go see the fireworks. I got to Chater just as the fireworks were starting and so we had an ok view of them as we came back into the city. After that we drove around for a bit, I drove her home and now here I am. Great story, eh?

Tomorrow I work at 4:30 with that rat bastard Devin who won't return my phone calls or e-mails. C'mon man, i'm trying to plan a trip here! No respect I tells ya...

Monster Movie

Well I started off today finishing up my two day mission to watch the movies I haven't seen in the "Back to the Future" trilogy. My favourite part is the train at the very end of the last movie, it's so much flashier than the DeLorean...

I spent the rest of my afternoon lazing around until I went to BBQ myself something for supper and managed to sizzle the ends of most of the hairs on my right arm. That's the second time i've done that in my life, the BBQ is not my friend. Stupid Propane.

After supper I went out to do my first mobile since I finished school. Jessica volunteered me and it turned out to be a nice excuse to get out of the house for the evening of my day off. After the mobile Jessica and I raced off to watch "Madagascar" a movie that i've been searching for someone to go with for more than a week. FYI, the movie was actually quite good!

Tomorrow I'm working an odd shift, 8:00am - 2:30pm. A favor for Naseer who "claims" to have an eye test in the morning. Fireworks for the fair are tomorrow and lucky me I work all this weekend.

Late Laugh

Well todays post is a fair bit later than usual. However that doesn't mean it won't be as stirring and provocative as ever! Well, maybe it does...

Today was quite the day at work. I had two people threaten to report me to a manager above me. One threat was more joke than anything but the other one was fairly similar to yesterdays. That gives me 2 threats in 2 days not counting the complaints i've also received. I don't know if this is pick on Jason week or what but people sure do seem hell bent on pressing my buttons and trying to get away with it. Unfortunately for them i'm apparently not quite the push over they seem to think i am, and i've taken all the threats to my Managers already, beating them to the punch. I've been assured that I don't have anything to worry about and that all of this is just a part of the job, part of being a supervisor for people I once shared job descriptions with. I don't like being the bully, I like for us to have fun! But that can only happen if you all work with me, instead of against me.

After work today I watched 2 movies, and i'm lookin at still watching another one before bed (depending on how quickly I start to pass out.) I have the day off tomorrow and if it turns out to be nice I hope to do something other then sit inside with my laptop. The summer fair is in town (even though it's still Spring and raining) so perhaps that's an option.

Workplace Wonkiness

Well the Garden Centre wasn't as fun yesterday as it was last time, possibly thanks to how many times I bumped my head on the roof of the shack. Plus the zoning in HBA was a bit of a downer, but oh well it's work.

Today was so incredibly stressful at work and i'm not even sure why. I had lunch with a friend who used to work at Wal-Mart today but past that the whole day seemed kind of foggy and went really fast. The Cashiers were a wee bit more difficult then usual and Courtesy was a bit of a mess after the opener showed up an hour and a half late. I also got another couple complaints about my CSM performance today but for the most part they were stupid comments. One of the complaints was for scheduling one cashier next to two others. Gimme a break people, for my sake will you please just try and get along? Sometimes I feel like a babysitter there, only to realize I don't get a free popsicle out of the freezer...

Tonight I watched a movie I picked up at work today and I also surfed the web (imagine that.) The Web is still a hoppin' with word of Apples switch to Intel and the community is really reacting strongly to the news. Too strongly in my opinion but to each their own I suppose. I watched the WWDC keynote last night and once again it was a great show. I tried to watch it again but there seems to be a bug either with the video or the QuickTime software.

Tomorrow I work at 8am and i'm hopin it'll fly by a little less stressfully then today. Guess we'll have to wait and see though.

Slacker Sunday

Wow was yesterday a slack day at work. It was slow, we had enough staff, it was weird. We still got a fair bit done though (including a whole pile of reports Naseer and I had to do.) End of the day got a bit disorienting though as Brian left and the game plan kinda fell apart since we hadn't really shared what was done and what still needed to be done. Communication is everything in retail (or at least it should be.)

After work I watched TV and a movie. Exciting stuff. I never called Nicole and company so i'm not sure what they were up to and I have yet to find someone who wants to go see Madagascar but hasn't already. Might have to wait for it to come out on DVD...

Today is WWDC in San Francisco for all you Apple fans who know what that is. They've already announced they're switching to Intel processors (dunno how I feel about that since I just bought a Mac with a PowerPC chip) and i'm just waiting for them to post the webcast of it so I can see what all the excitement was for myself. For all you Windows fans out there QuickTime 7 is being released for WinXP and such later today.

Also later on today I have another shift in the Garden Centre 4:30 till close and then tomorrow I start early with a CSM shift starting at 7am. Whoopee.

Driving Disaster Diverted

All the excitment was after work yesterday, and it all happened while I was out on what I thought was going to be a nice leisurely evening drive...

I was out driving along one of my normal driving routes. Out around Kemney, down the Trans Canada to the Chater turn off and then back to Brandon. Well I was on my way back when just past the turn to go down the bridge towards Simplot I nearly hit two deer. Never have I braked and maneuvered the Echo like that in all the time i've had it. Then I get back into Brandon, i'm going down Victoria and I get pulled over by the cops at a check stop. I talked to a nice officer with an English accent who politely asked me if I was drunk (shit son, that's why I almost hit those two deer!) It wasn't all bad though. The female cop smiled and waved at me. I'm not sure if she felt bad for me having to deal with English dude or if she was flirting with me. Guess i'll never know now.

Work was work, lots of staff but it still felt busy. Gotta work again at noon today which will probably be a whole lot more boring then today. Today was actually kinda fun. Great staff to joke around with. For those keeping track Monday is my next shift in the ol' Garden Centre. It's a shorty but it still manages to fill out my hours for the week. We've got two CSM's on holidays this week so i'm pullin alot of day shifts.

As for post work activities today i'm not quite sure. I gotta do something after Saturday nights lack of socialization but i'm not quite sure what. I think i've managed to guilt trip Nicole and company into inviting me to their BBQ tomorrow but I have yet to see Madagascar which is on my list of things to do so we'll see what happens.

Workplace Warning

Oh my god was work crazy tonight. We had one person call in sick and another who apparently quit. That left us very short for a Friday evening. It ticks me off a little since the day staff had things SO easy today and yet my perfect little evening shift goes to hell in a hand basket as quick as you can say "Coffee Break."

Work WAS crazy tonight, however I still had great staff which despite all the work managed to make their way through it. At the end of the night we even managed to have a chuckle about Alyssa's Hanger disorganization, Madeline's violent tendencies with the Bags, Travis's touring trip to Hanger land, and Gayda's attempts to clean up the Courtesy Desk. Or maybe it was just me doing all the laughing, I do tend to lose my decency past 10ish...

Before work I did very little. Surprise, surpise. A couple episodes of 'The Simpsons' and some tunage was the primary source of my entertainment. Oh and the Ice Cream, can't forget the Ice Cream.

Tomorrow should be an interesting day. I'm back on the day shift and here's hopin we have enough staff and that Faye will have forgiven me for the mess I left tonight (it's really not THAT bad) by the time I arrive. I also gotta try and make some kind of plans for tomorrow night. Who's up for a Saturday night of fun?

Blog Boppin

I don't know what to say. I just sat down to type out this new post and Spice Girls started playing on the radio. I'm not sure if I should wait till the song is over to make sure that this post will be 'unspiceified' or if I should just continue with it anyways.

Yesterday was a good day. Had to work at seven but that's alright to do every now and then. The funny thing about those shifts is that the morning half goes SO fast while the afternoon half goes SO slow. I handed in my new work availability which is effective starting July 4th, so we'll just have to wait and see what they say about that. I must say though that I feel i'm being fairly kind to them all things considered, especially when you consider how much i'll be working at the other job.

After work I watched one of the movies I got for my Birthday from my parents 'Daddy Day Care.' Good times, I even went and bought 'ABC' off the iTunes Music Store when it was over. I also talked to Shawn about our upcoming road trip which we think we might expand by a day which would rock since we're supposed to be going to Chicago which is 15 hours from Winnipeg.

Today is the day i've been waiting most of the week for. I said earlier this week that if I could work all evenings AND get the hours I want, I would. Tonight i'm workin 4 - 10:30 and I think the staff is pretty good so it should be a good time. As far as work is concerned at least...

Tired Turtle

Boy was I moving slow yesterday. I don't know why exactly but i've been soo tired the past week or so and my lack of sleep last night didn't exactly help me recover from that. Tonight won't be much help either. I have to work at seven...

Yesterday was fairly slow, almost all I did was work and watch stuff on my laptop (Simpsons mostly.) I gotta start doing something more with my days besides working and sitting at home. Otherwise summer will be over before I know it and I won't have accomplished anything. Today might not be a great day to test that theory (with my early, long shift) but maybe Friday will bring some excitement with it.

It's raining pretty bad right now, feels like Monsoon season here. Apparently there have been Tornados north and south of the city. I'm just kind of hoping that they don't start drifting this way. What's the point of going to sleep if I don't get the chance to wake up?

Hey, I just saw a flash of lightning.