11/9

Yeah a day off. I did my usual, I came home and went to bed. When I woke up the sun was going down so there wasn't much I could do. It was cold and the ground was covered with snow so I figured I would just stay home. The most exciting thing of the night was finding a new tail light for my truck. I was expecting the worse, a lens cover for a 20 year old truck, this might get expensive. Surprise, it turns out that the company used the same light on at least 5 different models over a 10 year period and there are multiple companies that carry replacement parts so it only cost me $25. This was cheaper than 19 years ago when someone crashed into my truck and broke out the exact same lens cover. I should have bought two so 20 years from now when someone hits me again I have another, yes I plan on driving my truck until it falls apart from rust. After that it was off to bed. It's kind of sad that the most exciting part of my days off is sleep.

No found money but a found bargain on a tail light.

11/10

I woke up in the morning for a change so I decided to go for a walk, the days of sunshine are almost over and winter is coming fast. It turned out to be colder than it looked so I stopped at the truck stop first. It seems the morning shift woman is fighting with her loser boyfriend, again. Every 4 to 6 weeks they get into a huge fight and break up, the guy then spends a week insulting her and causing her problems, then they make up because "they are so in love" and then they get back together and start the cycle all over again. Yeah everybody hates it but what are you going to do?

After the drama I went to see another friend. Her life is kind of dull, except for her pregnant unwed daughter and the fact that she is dating the ex husband of the morning shift woman, who was cheating on the guy with her current loser boyfriend. Did I mention that the morning shift woman thinks, every time she breaks up with her loser boyfriend, that there might be the chance to get back together with her ex husband? Yeah, I work in a soap opera.

Then it was time to go home. I wish I could say I did something to change the world but I didn't. My mother had dropped off her film at Wal Mart and I told her I would drive her tomorrow so I went to bed early, plus I was yawning and nodding off and surprised that it was only 9 pm. Again, enjoying sleep, it's become my hobby.

No found money but the manager gave me a 1953 and a 1963 nickle for my growing collection. 

11/11

Happy Veterans Day.

In my old job the rule was "If the post office is closed we are closed" but that was then. I do have the day off but I have to go to work tonight, he he he.

I had told my mother I would take her to Wal Mart today so I had gone to bed early, well that and I was really tired. I woke up around 6 and figured I would get up and get ready, after just a few more minutes of sleep. The next time I looked at the clock it was 10, I had slept an extra 4 hours.

I crawled out of bed and got ready, then it was off to Wal Mart. One of the best parts of taking mom is that we go to the Chinese restaurant, today was Sweet and Sour Pork. After lunch we went to Wal Mart to pick up the photos and a few other items. Mom was trying to find something in one aisle when this woman rolled up. First she said, "Someone is going to freeze their toes off" and then "What happened to all the crackers?" She was alone and she wasn't talking on a bluetooth. Yeah, I got as far away from her as soon as possible.

Even though the place was nearly empty, Friday morning and all, we got stuck at the register. It seemed the people in front of us bought something with a security strip on it and it just wouldn't demagnetize so the cashier had to go to the security desk. Oh well I wasn't in a hurry. After that I headed home and pretty much wasted the rest of the day. I have to stop doing that.

~

 To simplify last nights events I am going to break down the afternoon shift into three peoples initials. A, P and V. When I got to work V was gone and A and P were working. Thankfully A was already out so I could count in her drawer, P is the woman who leaves you nothing but $20 bills and is either $30 over or under even though she adds it all up to $200 (with a calculator!) Anyhow I counted in my drawer and opened up the shift and started counting the cigarettes when P tried to steal my pen! The place is full of pens so why did she need to take mine? BTW it is mine, I keep it in my pocket because it's a retractable and I don't have to worry about losing the cap or jabbing myself in the leg. She claimed it was hers but it was clearly mine, what a nut.

Anyhow I was the only one there, if everyone else didn't show up and I was stuck with P even for an hour someone was going to suffer, thankfully Diane walked in right then and I was saved. It seems that Amy decided to take the weekend off and Diane is working for her. I am worrying that Amy is getting into a bad habit plus she was just complaining that she needed extra cash this month due to bills and deposits. If she had come to work she would have 16 hours of overtime on this check but now she will come out at 80 hours, no overtime pay. People...

Speaking of Amy's overtime, the manager found out about the day the hippie didn't show up, and it wasn't from who you would expect. It seems the chips delivery guy came by and asked the manager who the new girl was. He then told the manager that Amy had been working on Friday morning and everyone was complaining about the hippie not even calling. I guess it was twice as bad that he didn't say anything himself and as far as I know, or at least was told, there will be paperwork and a final warning involved.  If the hippie had just said something himself it wouldn't have been so bad but now he will be on short notice.

Meanwhile Diane did her usual super clean and I was stuck behind the register all night long. She had commented that they had been busy all Thursday night and I pointed out that some people get Veterans day off so they had left work on Thursday to take full advantage of the three day weekend. It's important to pay attention to the calendar when you work at a gas station so you know when things are going to be busy and you can prepare in advance, which is why I am taking the Thanksgiving week off, bwa ha ha ha. 

The night turned out to be a typical one for customers. One guy came in and claimed the pumps were "pumping air", this is a standard complaint and totally false. The funny part was he wasn't even paying, another guy picked up the tab. Some people just like to complain and they probably make the same claim everywhere they go. Oh well there is another station, 80 miles down the road.

Around midnight I always seem to get the cigarette crowd. The first guy was scrounging pennies to pay for his smokes and the next guy was a total jerk. He ran his card and I asked if it was Debit or Credit, I have to select it on the register for it to run through the system. "What do you think?" was his response. I ignored his tone and repeated the question, "Credit or Debit?" He again said "what do you think?" so I just waited. Finally he said "whichever is easier" so I hit the debit button because it's more work for the customer and they get charged a user fee. Bwa ha ha ha. The sad part is Diane told me he is the boyfriend of the nurse that comes through every weekday morning at 5, she could do so much better.

A woman came in to prepay for her gas. After she was done she came back in but she looked completely different. She must have been wearing a wig and changed her clothes in the restroom because the first time she had black hair and modest clothes and when she came back she had multicolored streaks and was wearing something spangly. Maybe she had a hot date.

The next customer got some stuff and paid cash. Just as I went to give him his coins he turned his hand sideways and they went everywhere. What the heck dude? No wonder I find so much lost change.

Diane was finishing up her cleaning and was trying to vacuum when it started to really stink. She opened it up and the drive belt had broken. The sucky vacuum is dead and possibly for good this time. The big question is will they get a new belt or a new vacuum. My money is on the belt.

It was around 5 am when V from the afternoon shift showed up. She had been planning on taking the weekend off but then things changed. Well I guess they changed again so she stopped in on her way out of town to see if Amy would cover her shift for a couple of days. I had to wonder why she hadn't asked Diane or me since we both said we would do it. The problem was Amy had taken the night off and had her phone off. V decided to go anyhow and Diane told her that things would be taken care of. The good part, for me possibly, is that V is going to meet some guy and if things work out maybe she will leave and I have another shot at an afternoon shift job, if I don't get screwed over again. The only thing is it can't happen until after Thanksgiving because I have non refundable hotel reservation.

Surprise! The hippie showed up on time, heck a few minutes early. We weren't even ready for him, well mostly not ready. I had to wait because I had a customer prepay with a $100 bill and I still had change, the new drawer would be short on bills if they broke a large bill as their very first customer. By the time the customer finished and I could close out my drawer the woman from the morning shift had shown up and I could go straight home. Yeah and boo because I was hoping to hit at least 5 hours of overtime this paycheck and if both the hippie and the morning shift woman come in on time there goes my extra money. Maybe it's just a temporary thing until they feel the manager is over her latest anger storm. We'll see.

Found money 5 cents, A 1956 penny and a 1966 nickle. 

11/12

The Thanksgiving days off shuffle has begun, and that is why I planned well in advance.  People are scrambling to get someone to cover their shift so they can take off a couple of extra days. Adding to the fun, V didn't call her daughter to let her know how things were going in Wyoming or when she was coming back. But since I asked for the Friday after Thanksgiving off months ago I'm covered and don't have to get involved. Yeah for fore site. 

Amy took another day off so I am working with Diane again, and she is scrubbing down every inch of the building again, and I'm stuck behind the register again. The night was extra windy so I started off the night rescuing the outside trashcans that were trying to blow away, and a side panel off one of the pumps. Oh it was going to be a fun night, some people think the crazies come out during a full moon but they are even worse when the wind blows, I think it's because it echoes around in the hollow spaces in their heads. I didn't want to be here.

The only good thing was that it was a slow night. Most people don't want to travel in the weeks before Thanksgiving and instead wait until the long weekend, so the place was mostly dead. I still had a few interesting customers.

One guy came in to pay and I couldn't help notice mixed in with his change was a few little blue pills. I don't know what he had planned but he wasn't going to find it around here. I silently wished him good luck.

About midnight, when the wind was the strongest the lights started to flicker. At one point the lights around the lot were knocked out but thankfully the interior and canopy lights stayed on. Just to be on the safe side I went and grabbed the flashlight and kept it in my pocket for the next couple of hours.

The next customer, although he wasn't buying anything, wanted me to change out two rolls of quarters for a $20.oo bill. I lied to him and said we weren't allowed to do that, in truth I already had a roll in my drawer and the last thing I needed was $30 plus the loose coins in quarters. He stormed out and took off at high speed, he wasn't impressing me any. I almost told him "We aren't a bank, if you want to cash in your quarters go there and I'm sure your drug dealer will be glad to take them". I didn't but I thought about it.

I was so bored and since nobody was in I did my usual, I sang along with the radio and in my own special way. Lady Marmalade came on and I was singing it in Goofy's voice complete with the "H'yuck H'yuck's" mixed in. The best laugh, for me was when the Beatles Hard Day's Night came on, boy they got that right.

It was just before shift change when a car rolled on the lot, the windows were covered with the "Just Married" messages. The guy got out and came in for various junk food items but he left his wallet in his car. When he left Diane commented that he looked kind of young to be married. Then the bride came in, the very very pregnant bride. She was to the point where her belly button was poking out. It was pretty obvious why they just got married. They didn't exactly look like the "happy couple" either.

Finally the morning crew showed up, well the woman did, the hippie was late again. I got to hang around for an extra hour waiting, while the morning shift woman was being all lovey dovey with her boyfriend, who had called right away. I guess this months fight was a small one and they have already made up, which means Christmas is going to be extra special this year. Finally the hippie came drifting in and I went home, just as the sun was coming up. I went to bed but it took me a while to fall asleep so when I woke up the sun was just going down. I think I am turning into a Vampire. Oh well, at least I got paid an extra hour, gotta love overtime. 

 Found money, 10 cents. 

11/13

 Yeah, Amy came to work tonight, and I still don't have anything to do. The problem with working during the down travel season is that eventually everything gets done and I am left there standing. Sales are down so everything is stocked and I wiped down everything, there isn't anything else that needs cleaned. Mostly we just hung out and did a little of this and a little of that. One of the flavors in the cappuccino machine wasn't working but the best I could figure out was one of the gears in the back must be slipping and that isn't something I can fix, or at least I can't fix it without tearing the entire machine apart and I don't want to do that.

The night started off with a long conversation about jerky. Some guy felt it necessary to tell me all about the jerky he had bought in Colorado, Texas and Santa Fe. He did a full comparison of texture, flavor and even the moisture content. Yeah, I wasn't interested but I listened and nodded my head at the appropriate times. BTW, according to him, the best jerky comes from some company in Santa Fe.

Dust In the Wind by Kansas came on and I couldn't help but sing "Dust in my carburetor, my car won't run because of dust in the carburetor..." Nobody caught me this time. Ah fun with the classics.

It never fails, I probably hung out with nothing to do for at least an hour and then 2:30 rolled around. Every Monday morning the computer automatically cycles itself so it shuts down, including all the pumps, and then restarts itself. Just as it started people showed up and they all wanted to buy something. I had to tell each one that it would be 5 minutes and apologize for the delay. Finally the computer came back up, they paid for their stuff and left, and the place went back to being deserted. If they had shown up 10 minutes earlier or 10 minutes later it wouldn't have made a difference but they had to come in right then.

It must have been celebrity night. First a Draco Malfoy copy came in. The guy had bleached hair, was dressed in all black with chains and had the same facial structure as the actor who played the part in the Harry Potter movies. I laughed.

Then around 4 in the morning one of those large land yacht tour buses rolled onto the lot. The driver came in and prepaid and then took a quick look around, nobody else was there at the time. And then an older familiar looking gentleman came in. I wasn't sure at first but when he came up to the register to pay there was no doubt, it was Stephen Still of Crosby, Stills and Nash fame. If you don't know who he is google him and you might just be impressed. Amy had no idea who he was so she thought I was crazy for being so fascinated. Before you ask, no I didn't ask him for a photo or an autograph, I have an unwritten rule about not bugging celebrities that come in late at night. They want to be treated just like any other customer and I honor that wish. He told me they were on their way to San Francisco and I commented that it was a long drive, I restrained from saying "Sounds like a long strange trip''. If you googled him you would get that joke.

Mr. Stills left, Amy didn't believe me that he was someone famous and I had no witnesses to the event. But trust me, it happened. Amy was too busy being happy because they bought a new vacuum. We joked around about it sucking in the good way. The night finally ended and shock of shocks the hippie came in early. We had the shift change completed even before the manager showed up! I guess getting written up for not coming in on the Friday put the fear of unemployment in him. I wonder how long it will last. Oh well, homeward bound before the sunrise. My kind of night.

Found money, $20.00, and yes there is a story. It was early in the shift and I was busy with the 10 o'clock rush. When the customers cleared out and Amy opened her drawer I took my usual walk around the store to make sure stuff was where it was suppose to be, there is nothing worse than to find melted ice cream all over the souvenir rack because some tourists changed their mind. I was walking along the front counter and there were two guys wandering around, I looked down and just below the candy rack was a $20 bill! I had to be casual walking towards it but if either of the guys looked down there wasn't anything I could do. Thankfully they were more interested in finding the restroom so I casually bent down and grabbed it up. Woo Hoo! The thing I had to wonder was how long had it been there and how many people had walked right by or even stepped on it without even seeing the money. It was a Score for me!

11/14

SLOW!!!!! Diane was working again, she was on a major clean again, I was stuck behind the register again, and this was the slowest night since I started. Amy is covering for V who is still off on her Wyoming adventure and they had just as little business as we had so Amy did everything! The cooler, candy racks and ice hoppers on the soda machine were fully stocked. Also the Coke delivery people came and didn't bring any mix for the soda machine, so it is out of Coke, Diet Coke and Dr. Pepper so the cup racks are stocked and nobody got ice out of the machine. I literally had nothing to do. Well I could have gone out and cleaned around the lot but it was about 28 f and I wasn't going to hang around in the cold. So I spent the entire night sitting behind the counter and staring out the window. Even famous people didn't come in, and nobody believes me about my celebrity encounter.

The most interesting part of the night was when some Asian woman came in, or was she? I wasn't sure, was she a he or was she a she? I figured I wasn't going to ask and just did my job. It turns out Diane knows her and she isn't a her but a him. I kid you not, this guy could go to Vegas and do one of those cross dressing shows, he was that close to being a woman. The only reason I had my doubts was that he had on too much makeup and had that exaggerated feminine walk that comes across as rehearsed rather than natural. Best customer of the night, I really have to stash a camera near the register.

Another guy came in around midnight and asked if I was the owner. Seriously? If I was the owner I wouldn't be there at midnight on a Monday running the register. He was asking about the old air compressor and I told him about 15 people have asked and it is still there so the owner probably doesn't want to sell it. He didn't offer to leave his number, like all the others.

The night drug along and finally, mercifully it was over. Shock of shocks, the hippie came in on time, again! Usually he shows up on time on Monday, since the manager is in a bad mood the first of the week, and then he slacks off for the other four days but he arrived early. I gave him a hard time, Diane gave him a hard time, the manager gave him a hard time, the early morning regulars gave him a hard time. Did I mention that he is always late on Tuesday morning? I guess he is really afraid of losing his job but I still have to wonder how long it will last.

Found money, 10 cents and a 1946 nickle

11/15 

Oh boy, another slow night. Worse, Amy is still working for V and the manager decided to go on a major cleaning binge in the morning. Thenight before the tops of most of the machines needed a good wipe but it was already done, there was absolutely nothing left for me to do. Diane did her usual major scrub of the restrooms but even she ran out of stuff to do by 2 am. I had considered rolling up the runner in front of the register and cleaning the floor but someone had even done that. It was going to be a long night.

You can't be lucky all the time. I had a couple of customers and they were just about to leave, and I was just about to do my walk around when a woman got in line behind my last customer. She bent down, picked up a dollar bill and asked the guy if he had dropped it. He said "probably" and took the money, I doubt it was his. If she hadn't seen it he wouldn't and I could have nabbed it, oh well you can't find them all. 

A customer came in and bought at least 7 different kinds of jerky. I guess he wanted to sample different types and different flavors. It cost him around $30. For that he could have gotten a decent steak dinner, just saying. 

The next customer kept grabbing bottles and cans of drinks and bringing them up to the counter. He had soda, juice and energy drinks along with a pile of chips and toilet paper. The entire time the woman he was with kept complaining at him and saying "I could cook for you, I could buy you stuff tomorrow" but he just kept stock piling. I got the feeling he didn't have much faith in her and considering she looked like someone he picked up on the corner I didn't blame him.

Song of the night, "I'd love to change the world, but I can't find the remote".  I'm getting better at making sure the place is empty before playing "making up the lyrics as I go along".

Towards the end of the night a family came in, Father, Mother and grumpy Teen Son. He kept wanting to get something like an energy drink and him mother kept saying "nope, nope, nope" Finally he got a Starbucks cold coffee which has just as much caffeene and sugar as any of the energy drinks, plus a squeeze pop which is just jelled sugar. I'm glad I wasn't on that road trip.

Then a truck rolled onto the lot. It was your standard club cab which seats four comfortably, and five uncomfortably. Seven guys piled out, I kid you not, and big guys to boot. Both Diane and I kept wondering where they were coming from, it was like the clown car at the circus. They drained the coffee pot and bought up most of the donuts that were left on the rack and then they all piled back in the truck and left. Considering they had Arizona plates they had a long crowded drive ahead of them, another road trip I'm glad I'm not on.

The manager  and the morning shift woman showed up and I was off for my weekend. If everyone plays nice I will work Friday through Monday and then I will be off until Saturday, for Thanksgiving. A on the afternoon shift told me she had heard from V who was now in Pueblo and working her way back so I won't have to worry about Amy working a double shift and she can still cover for me on Tuesday. After my extended weekend people can misbehave all they want, as long as I don't have to worry about next week. 

Found money, $1.20