Where are the parents?

So it is 5 am and I am awake.  Wide awake.  Why you might ask?  My neighbours went away and have a young man looking after the house.  Whether he is supposed to be in the house or not, I don't know, but he comes and goes.  For a couple of nights, we have woken in the wee hours to air horns, people having a great time in the back yard and the like.   It's great, especially when I have to work in the morning.  At 4 this morning, the air horns and the cajoling in the back yard started.  When I got up, there were some youths in the back yard having a great time.  Did I mention it was 4 in the morning?  The fun didn't stop there, while I was up, I heard one of the girls(?) say, "Oh so we're going to drive around now?"  I know the neighbours van has been parked for a couple of months, I'm not sure if there's insurance on it.  After more slamming of doors, lights going on and off, the driver decides to carefully pull out of the drive.  I was standing at the front window by this time, and I think they saw me, as they were back in about 10 mins.  Did I also mention that none of them looked old enough to drive?
They came back and there was some more air horn action in the house.  They must have gotten brave, as they took the van out again with much hoopla, and this time I called the cops.  (I am cranky enough in the morning at regular hours and now I knew I wasn't going to be going back to sleep.)  When I called, the dispatcher said to call back if the van came back.  It did and 3 members reported.  Of the 3 kids I saw for sure, only one was escorted from the house. 

Where are the parents?  These kids are out and about at 3, 4 and 5 o'clock in the morning.  Don't they realize that their kids are not at home, let alone in their beds?  I have heard parents complain about the jobs that teachers do in the classroom, but where is the foundation that they are supposed to be getting from home?

Did I do the right thing?  I don't know.  Talking to them directly would have gotten me no where, as it is, the young man in charge has little respect for our property as it is.  I think that youth need to understand that there are consequences for their actions and if they are put in a position of responsibility they need to step up and act appropriately.

It is going to be a very long day today....

What?!?

Things are becoming a little more routine at work, which is nice.  Today there was a little excitement when a customer got on the PA and sang the entire store a little song!  It was badly out of tune and you could barely make out the words, but it was a good 15-20 seconds broadcast to the store.  I was laughing and asked "Who's trying to get fired today?"  That's what I thought was going on.  A little laugh helped the rest of my shift go faster.

Surprise!

It's almost August!  I can't believe that this summer is half over.  I have been completely submerged in my new job, trying to make it through each day.  Yesterday I had some more people tell me that I have to have something.  One was a big crazy lady with a starter relay for an ATV.  I really wanted to tell her to stuff it, but instead I kept my inner soundtrack masked behind a smile.  There was a point yesterday when I had customers 3 deep, the phone ringing on 3 lines and someone from the back wanting something too.  One phone call was asking for a product I was pretty sure we didn't have and instead of wasting time (mine and hers) I just told her that we didn't have it.  Have a nice day!  In that moment, it was exactly what I needed to do for my sanity.  Of course the next customer was wanting a starter for a boat (we don't carry those specifically) and had me pull starters that would fit into a 1978 Chevy.  Starters are a little heavy and I did not enjoy pulling 3 of them down off the shelf, just to have him say over and over "I need it to rotate counter-clockwise"  I don't know what the hell he wanted, and my computer does not give me that information. 
Today is a day off, thank goodness!  I have two in a row this week.  What are we doing for the long weekend?  Nothing too much.  We may head to a gold panning championship (yep gold panning) and maybe find something else to do that doesn't require too much brain power.  Michelle and Bryce invited us to go camping and as much as I would love to, we are not ready for camping.  We may try to find them and take some marshmallows-I love roasted marshmallows. 
Anyway, have a great weekend.

Let me explain...

My understanding of cars and their parts is rudimentary at best.  I can trouble-shoot very little, but I can usually guess which parts of the car things are in.  My computer helps me find the right parts for people (when they can give me the right info to work with)  The computers cannot use VIN#'s, I cannot take other part numbers and just magically make things happen.  You tell me the year, make and model of the vehicle (not snow blower, rototiller or lawn tractor) and then I get a little menu to look up what you need.  Oil filter?  Engine parts #17.  Brake pads, #13.  I then take the store product number and go and search for the part.  This can take a few minutes as things are not always easy to find.  It can also take time when I have no freaking idea what you are after and never  laid eyes on it before.  When you ask for a car battery for something other than a car, you risk that it doesn't fit properly.  That is not my fault.  When you ask for a rear U-joint with an outside ring and you actually need a rear u-joint with an inside ring, that is not my fault.  I give you what you ask for.  Oh and I don't sharpen lawn mower blades!

Know what you want, don't make me guess what you want

When people come to me to help them solve a problem, I love that.  When people bring me wrapped up pieces of @#@$ from inside another part and want me to identify and get them another, I don't love that so much.  The other day, I had an elderly gentleman come in with a rag containing bits and pieces of a ring-like thing.  He asked me if I had another.  Another what?  I asked.  I'm looking at 6 pieces of crap.  Well he didn't know what it was, but it came from inside another part.  So I go to the computer, what year is the vehicle?  Oh it's coming from a rototiller, not a car.  I can't look that up, this is the auto parts desk.  Well he thought that I'd have something that he could use.  My inner soundtrack starts playing.... seriously?  Not only can I not identify the part it came from or what he'd need, neither can he!  This ends with him getting a big smile from me and an apology because I was unable to help.  Hopefully, he found a part at NAPA on Monday.  He was nice.

Week 2 in Parts

Well things are starting to make sense most of the time, but there are still those moments where I look at the customer and ask "What was it that you needed again?"  Most of the time, they are patient.  The ones that aren't get my biggest smile while I'm telling them off in my head.

There are a couple of things that I find a little amusing though.  People coming to the counter, see that there are other customers, and flit about not really in line.  This happened today to me.  A middle aged man came to the counter while I was on the phone and my colleague was with another customer.  Instead of just waiting for a minute, off he went down one aisle after another and then came back to the counter for about 10 secs.  When he saw that we were still with customers, off he went again.  My customers served, I went to look for him and asked him if I could help him.  His snarky reply?  'No I'll figure it out myself.  You guys are too busy, I can't seem to get any help around here"!  I told him to have a nice day, and walked away with a smirk.  He bought the wrong oil filter in all his impatience.  Next time maybe he'll wait his turn.

Another thing that I find amusing are the people that tell me I have to have something.  Example; "I'm looking for a 6 mm bolt for this (points to some part of a car that I can not yet identify) where are your bolt bins."  I smile and say that we don't have bolt bins to which the reply is, "Of course you do!   You have to have a bolt bin."  Actually I don't have to have a bolt bin, and we don't carry open stock bolts.  "Well this is ridiculous!  What kind of mechanic are you?"  This is where I laugh out loud and say that I'm not a mechanic, I just read the parts boxes.. oh and have a nice evening. 

I do get lovely customers that explain things and answer my questions with courtesy and patience.  I like helping those ones solve their problems.  I also get to learn things that I normally wouldn't.  For example I know now how to patch a fiberglass boat, which products to use and how to apply them, thanks to a nice man from Nova Scotia.  I also learned how to make my own gaskets (with material that we sell in aisle 6) from a shy little man.

As the day gets longer, I remind myself of these little moments and laugh off the others.  A reminder to all you out there, remember when you are in a store and the person helping you looks a little harried, be patient.

So it begins

Today marks my first day back working in retail.  I never thought I'd be back in the red shirt, but here I am.

Just when I thought I wouldn't be working this summer, I got a call on Tuesday morning while enjoying my cup of tea.  I went for an interview later that morning and walked out with a job in the Parts department.  I know that some of you are laughing right now, as my idea of car maintenance is talking to my dad or taking it to the dealership. 

I worked my butt off today, trying to keep everything straight, remembering where things are and what order to key in things in the computer.  I am filthy dirty (car parts are really dirty) and pretty tired physically.  My mind on the other hand, is buzzing with all the things I learned today.  I love learning new things and always enjoy a challenge so I think this job will be good for me. I will be full time for the next month, but when I gets closer to start-up, I will be working less to get ready for school. 

While I was out working, Chris was busy inside the house.  I came home to my new curtains ironed and up, the floors washed and the kitchen cleaned.  So awesome.

The weather is still crap, so I don't feel so bad about working, although around 11 this morning I did think wistfully that I would be on my second cup of tea and trying to decide what I would do for the day.  Oh well, I also thought of the stuff I will be able to buy for the house (and myself) with the money that I'm making in the next few weeks.  I felt marginally better after that.  I have to go now and soak my feet a little and then probably to bed so my body and mind can recover for tomorrow.  Good news is that I have Sunday off, which is our second anniversary.   Where does the time go?