Ever notice how it's the little things in life that amuse us so much? More to the point, ever notice how it's the silly little idiocies in life that amuse us more than anything else? Well, this is not as much ''the little blog that could'' as it is ''the blog that enjoys going up the down escalator in your local mall.'' Will it have anything of real importance? No, probably not. But enjoy the ride never the less!

 

It's only mid-October.

For some reason, I stepped outside to walk the dog and had a blast of snow blown up pants. I was not impressed. In fact, I was very cold and said a few colourful words that made Mel giggle over my random nounage.

Ah, winter: why must you be so cruel and vindictive? You already get total control of 3-4 months out of the year. Why must you torment us when we're still trying to salvage what's left of autumn? Or are you so determined in your bid for power that you'd crush the other seasons if they show any signs of weakness?

In other news, happiness is learning that the Old School Sesame Street DVD box set will be out in stores at the end of the month. It's all 70's & 80's, and all pre-Elmo. Joy!

Today's Lesson: naturally, when Head Office wants you to switch the store around to display all sorts of new stock, they will send you all that new stock a week after the switch-around was supposed to be done. Bravo, Head Office. If wasn't so busy flipping you off, I'd applaud.
posted by Phillip at 9:30 PM

 

It's a day off. I'll take it!

And then I'll hit it over the head with a seemingly innocent yet blunt object (probably the rabbit cage), stuff it into the trunk of Mel's car and have us all drive off into the Hollywood sunset. I could use more days like this, especially since the winter kiosk is due to open soon.

Well...it was supposed to open this coming Wednesday. That wasn't an entirely fun prospect. While Mel & I very much enjoy spending our anniversary together, I don't exactly see opening a kiosk as quite the romantic outing we had planned. But then, early last week, I was suddenly possessed by the sneaking suspicion that someone at Head Office was on the verge of, or already had, taken their cranium, bent over with it and stuck it up their ass.

(Sort of like the same technique an ostrich employs, only more disgusting. And irritating for me.)

Acting on this premonition, I double-checked with the mall administration to see if they had a confirmation for the kiosk's opening date. The lady checks the papers sent down by Head Office. Last I checked, the 23rd of October does not fall on the exact same date as the 11th. So, the kiosk opening was pushed back for two weeks. So, yay, the anniversay is for the most part, ours again to celebrate with as we please.

On the downside, all the work I've thrown into getting a staff ready & able to work the damned thing by next Wednesday now has to wait another few weeks. Luckily, everyone involved can still get in a few training sessions and they didn't throw a hissyfit about the delays. Yet what boggled me more than anything is the incompetence on the part of our Head Office. That the kiosk was delayed didn't surprise me; it happened last year anyways. What did raise my level of disgust was that no one bothered to inform me or my District Manager about the dates being changed. The mall admin's got all the paperwork from our H/O a week prior...and yet where was the H/O memo to those of us in the retail trenches?

Though it was somewhat amusing to hear the sheer unimpressedness in my DM's voice when I informed her about the new dates. "It's what now? And they didn't even bother telling me?!" Ah, if only I could be there to watch as she reached through the phone to grab the Head Office person responsible for this communications breakdown, yank their head out from their butt and then throttle said person. (Ideally gloves will be used for sanitary purposes.)

But that's just me ranting.

It's Thanksgiving after all, and I really should be thankful I had the foresight to check the dates anyways. Or else I should really be thankful I didn't have a pick-axe and a plane ticket to Montreal handy. (Had I voiced my "exasperation" with Head Office in creative and physcially painful ways, Mel would have killed me for missing our anniversary due to being arrested, then find a way to resurrect me just so she could kill me again for being such a stupid tit.)

So, Thanksgiving then. Mel's family was down for the weekend, wherein there wasn't as much Thanksgiving festivities as there were "happy to see you again, and by the way, happy anniversary" festivities. They also gave us an advanced Christmas present: a fantastic-looking wood display cabinet/counter for some of our nicer dining pieces. I was ecstatic about getting furniture for a gift. Not blase or disappointed that it wasn't money or a movie...but genuinely pleased if not excited to see the cabinet up in our dining room.

Dear lord, I'm becoming a grown-up! Quick, someone fetch me my Puchuu hat!

We also saw The Guardian, which all in all wasn't a bad movie...if not for the 4-5 scenes where you could actually see the boom mike in the shot. You think I'm joking? Keep your eyes open on some of the interior shots (ie. Costner's wife's trailer, or the Coast Guard Rescue Command Centre during the last reel). The boom mike makes a few appearances like some silly, black chandeilier. Some blatantly to the point where you have to wonder just how the hell everyone else on the editing staff missed it. With today's technology, you could easily erase it digitally from the shots, which leads me to believe that no one saw Waldo--er, the boom mike until after the film was in theatres.

Beyond that, work continues to grind on, as always. The weather over here at long last remembered that, hey, it's not November yet so maybe we should really give the people some sunny, warm days before winter hits. The happy buffet Mandarin restaurant finally opened, allowing Mel & I to have our anniversary meal there. And The Project is off to auspicious and hopeful beginnings.

All in all, a decent beginning before the world spirals into Commercialmas craziness and sad product-pushing songs being looped over the mall speakers telling me how wonderful Christmas is, and could I please stop chasing the patrons around with a pick-axe while exclaiming, "The Christmas carols are out to get me!!", as it takes away from the spirit of the season.

So here it is, Today's Lesson: drawing shut the living room curtains is more complicated than I could have ever imagined.
posted by Phillip at 10:03 AM