But it's not even December yet!

[keelywolfe]

It's so easy for me to get out of the habit of posting anything personal. I read my friends list on livejournal several times a day but never manage to write a post of my own. Guilt complex, maybe, for when I don't have any story to post. Which I don't. Been working on it but time is at a premium right now and I'm lucky to be getting sleep!

As a retail manager, I have a kind of love/hate relationship with the holidays. Oh, I love holidays. Halloween, Christmas, the works, I love the whole season from October first to the first week of January. That is to say, I love the holidays, when I am not at work.

Holidays at work are a different animal, dominated by rampaging shoppers determined to get the best sales. And I'm not dissing them...entirely...I like a good deal myself, but even if I had to deal with only the shiniest, happiest of holiday shoppers I would still be exhausted after seeing a few hundred of 'em.

Holidays are also when we start getting increasingly urgent emails from our higher ups to do...stupid shit. Hey, we all know that this is IT, this is go time, this is when retailers makes their money. All their bonuses are dependent on the candy-striped peppermint shopping season and the jingling bells of my cash register, and believe you me, they are NOT shy about letting us know it. Oh, but don't ask for more payroll, we cut that for, you know. Our bonuses.

It hadn't even hit the proverbial Black Friday and I am already holidayed out. Stepping into the meagerest grocery store is an invitation for an assault on my ears with Rudolph and Merry Christmases, and my personal favorite, "Happy Texas Christmas, Y'all' (Note: It would be difficult for me to be further away from Texas than I am now and still be in the United States. Why do they play that song here??)

Yeah...so. Tired, and it is only beginning. Someone send me some caffeine, stat.

On another note, my husband has started his 'new' job, in that he is now a permanent employee, not a temp, and is thus far very happy. I sincerely hope this works out for him and not just because he really needed a permanent job for more reasons than just our bank balance. I've been mostly supporting us for about three years now and if his job pans out, I may be able to begin a job search that would take me....gasp....out of retail.

That's what I want for Christmas, Santa, whatcha got?

Comments

[piplover.livejournal.com]

Retail will suck your soul and leave you a dry, bitter husk. I've been trying to escape for years! I'm pretty much halfway there, lol. What makes me sad is how commercialized the holidays have become. I remember when they used to put the Christmas stuff out AFTER Thanksgiving, and people weren't quite as crazy. Well.... Maybe that's wishful thinking.

Good luck to your husband, I'll be thinking good thoughts!

[keelywolfe.livejournal.com]

Heh, thank you. I survived Black Friday, anyway, we'll see how the rest goes!

[inyadreems.livejournal.com]

I do feel for retail workers, especially having to listen to jolly Christmas songs from October onwards.

[keelywolfe.livejournal.com]

Luckily, I work in a small business that doesn't pipe in music. Unluckily, we have a television with a looping commercial program, but since that's all year long, I barely notice it anymore. *G*

[amatsubu.livejournal.com]

I used to work retail and especially during the holidays it becomes the lowest level of hell. *hugs*

[sunhawk6498.livejournal.com]

I know what you mean. And I'm not even sure which is more irritating. The music or the insensate and unrelenting demands we sign more people up for credit cards.

I'm already mentally exhausted and it's not even gotten 'bad' yet.

Good luck to you and your husband. Routine can make all the difference in the world to how you feel. ^^

[keelywolfe.livejournal.com]

unrelenting demands we sign more people up for credit cards.

Oh, man, I remember having to do that. Ugh, do NOT want. Hated it, with a passion.