I am not your cash register! (by anon)

My little script is so ingrained in my brain that when my grandparents call me for a quick chat, I sometimes instinctively ask them if they’ve found everything okay. Mine is one of the most repetitive jobs in the world, so I’m told. Most days are monotonous and identical in every way. 

And others completely suck.

I get that every job has its ups and downs. Anything worth being paid for has its challenges. But what baffles me is that 90% of my heartache in the workplace is because some customers seem not to give a care in the world about the fact that I want to be there even less than they do.

This one’s for the cashiers.

“Hello. How are you today?”

Oddly enough, in some cultures people actually answer politely when a stranger asks them a polite question. If only I had a dollar for every time I’ve said my little spiel and gotten an annoyed groan or a snippy little “FINE” thrown in my face. What’s even more aggravating is that I’ve never gotten a rude response from a fellow millennial- only from people middle-aged and older. It kind of makes me wonder- do they actually look down upon me because I’m younger? Do they realize that the only reason why I’m a simple cashier is so I can save up to be an adult just like them?

I’m a college student. Just because I don’t have a job as well-paying as yours doesn’t make me any less deserving of respect, and I’m really not too stupid to understand the world. I get that your day may have sucked and the absolute last place you want to be right now is here, shopping for over-priced produce.

But c’mon. It’s not like I’m celebrating the joys of scanning barcodes all day.

It’s cool with me if you don’t want to raise the minimum wage or take the store survey or pretend that your day was wonderful or whatever. But when I’m looking at you with a smile on my face and your five hundred coupons in my hand and I ask you, “Hi! How are you?” It’s okay to smile back. I promise no one will judge you for talking to the stupid little cashier.

…And even if they do, it really and truly will make my day. One time an awesome customer picked up the two conveyor belt dividers, handed me one of them, and started the most epic sword fight in the world.

One year on Labor Day, a customer thanked me for coming to work so that he could buy a snack for his cancer-stricken wife.

One time a three-year-old handed me a piece of corn, pretending it was a magic bean and sparking the most interesting conversation of my entire day.

These people are my role models, the ones who treat me like equals instead of acting so high-and-mighty. They’re the reason why I stay here. Plus… you know… I’m broke. The bottom line is to remember who it is on the other side of the conveyor belt. Scorning a worker is no less harmful than racism or internet bullying. Can’t we all just be human beings together?

So thank you. And have a nice day. 

Brainwashed (by anon)

We as citizens of the United States are constantly brainwashed about many different things. But there is one in particular.  One of the big topics brought up by our political representatives and displayed in the media over and over again is “Gun control”.

We are told that without gun laws, we are not safe from people who own firearms. For example politics continue to bring up that shootings could erupt at any moment from people who legally conceal, which is completely ludicrous. In fact, the very people who are constantly ridiculed for being armed will be the only people saving your ass in time of need. Police officers may not always be there right when needed; for example in recent news a 13 year old boy was home alone, when two men tried to break into his house, he opened fire and killed one of the men who happened to be a 6 time felon. What if that young boy did not have access to a gun? Would he have still been alive today?

It is sad that shootings throughout the world and especially in our own country are wake up calls for us as humans; and an even more sickening realization is how our political figures use such events such as mass shootings and in recent news, the killings in France, to strengthen their political campaigns. No more than a month later, the tragedy will be forgotten by the press and we will move on to the next big story, leaving behind only the affected families and close friends to deal with the pain and suffering with the results of the tragedy. France is literally a gun free zone and somehow people with assault rifles shoot over one-hundred unarmed civilians; it’s crazy to think that in a gun free zone you are safe from attacks like this just because there is a law “protecting” you. It is safe to say that the status of the people in power in this great country is more important than the well-being of the people of this nation. 

The sad truth behind all of this is that we have been brainwashed for so long that it will only take a tragic event like we have experienced in the past to wake people up from this idea that we still live in a perfect world. If you think tragedies like we see in the news all the time could not happen to you, or people around you are, then you are sadly mistaken. If we look we can see the chaos going on all around the world today; we as a people need to stand together and be prepared for what is to come before it is too late. Whether the the media wants to admit it or not, there will continue to be violence in this country and if we are not armed i believe this country will be weakened in a time where it is crucial to be strong. Are you truthfully at peace with your life being put in our government’s hands?  If not you have to do what is best for you and your family and arm yourself and prepare for the worst. Don’t be brainwashed into not having a gun to protect yourself and the ones you love.

Shitting on Black Thursday? (two anons)

 Black Friday on Black Thursday?

The newest trend for Black Friday shopping seems to be stores opening earlier and earlier. Some stores even are beginning to open as early as Thursday night. That Thursday night, November 26^th, is Thanksgiving though, as you all should know. This new coming tradition of Thursday’s Black Friday is becoming more and more ridiculous. Americans need to realize this outrageous tradition is getting out of hand and need to wait to deal shop until the actual date of Friday, November 27^th.

            First off, the biggest issue of a store being open on Thanksgiving evening is that it prevents all employees from spending this holiday with family. How can the Thursday night workers be thankful for what they have when they are forced to be around greedy deal shoppers? I work in retail myself, and from experience I have found that Black Friday shopping changes the moods of some customers for the worst. Attitudes and arguments over certain items on Thanksgiving eve only takes away from the true purpose of the holiday: giving thanks for what you have.

Secondly, retail stores opening earlier on Thursday seem to think that means crowds and lines of people will become shorter. This is not the truth, all it does is make those extreme sale shoppers come earlier and earlier in those same long length lines. Similarly to workers being away from family on Thanksgiving, the people who go out shopping on Thanksgiving eve are being torn away from loved ones as well. It seems as though some super deal shoppers just cannot resist that urge to be that first customer to go out and get every item on their list.

To conclude, it seems that the tradition of Black Friday shopping is turning into a holiday itself – the worst part being that this “holiday” is beginning to overlap with the more important holiday: Thanksgiving. In the end, all people out in retail stores on this special evening, both workers and shoppers, are losing out on precious family time and bonding over the true meaning of Thanksgiving. I strongly suggest that when debating whether or not to go out deal shopping on this Thanksgiving eve, you instead decide to wait until the actual Black Friday to continue the tradition.

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Black Friday Turned Black Thursday 

            Is it just me or do you feel like Black Friday should start on FRIDAY??? Everyday, I see commercials for Black Friday sales starting on Thanksgiving…… How is this appropriate? Is our western culture really so obsessed with saving a couples bucks that they would abandon their family on an important holiday? I get it maybe having your sales start at a time like 10 or 11p.m. on Thanksgiving because then most family gatherings are dispersed. But no, almost every store I’ve seen is starting at 4-6 p.m. If they are already starting that early, I wonder what they will be like a few years from now. With such early sale times, it also increases the number of employees they need for Thanksgiving night. It’s unfair to ruin the people’s holiday who aren’t even there for the sales. I just see this holiday turning into one about shopping and wanting more things rather than coming together with family and being thankful for what you have in that moment. Black Friday totally ruins the idea of THANKSgiving. It makes me upset because it seems as though our culture is pretending.

            Some opposers might say that Thanksgiving is just a day and we have the chance to be with family any day of the year and that this is one day of sales only happens once a year. I find that to be false because Thanksgiving is a holiday and therefore many get a day off from their busy schedules. It’s a day when everyone has off and is meant to be spent together. Another opposition might be that the reason they go Black Friday shopping is to buy Christmas presents for the family they just left so it's fine. Does anyone feel like that is wrong too? I mean are the savings really worth it. Christmas is another holiday where it is not about presents and things but being with your loved ones. Don’t get me wrong, I love Black Friday and going shopping. It’s definitely an experience but, I think the stores should stick to standards or almost have rules when it comes to Black Friday. Once they start to change sale times, shoppers think they are missing out. Therefore, it should be a change the stores have to do. They should respect the Thanksgiving holiday.