Posts Tagged ‘Work’

« Older Entries
Newer Entries »

Action Time Vision

Tuesday, June 8th, 2010

Well I’ve been home now for abut 45 minutes. I think I’ve turned a corner. Not as morose or as despairing as I had been the previous couple of days. It wasn’t an easy transition but I think it’s nearly over.

The weather has been very cooperative and today was the second day in a row where I wore my suit to work, not scrambling to find a place to change from street clothes into a suit. I hope it lasts but I know, summer is around the corner.

The guys I work with are good guys it seems, though the guy I was replacing was fired yesterday. He was supposed to be working until the first of August. But apparently when he was supposed to be working the weekend and Calvin wasn’t going to be around, he would call in sick, or have something come up.

That took it’s toll on his co-workers and Marcus and Calvin decided to do something about it. They asked him to resign but he wouldn’t so they fired him. I liked Harold. He was a good looking guy with washboard abs, but he also liked himself a lot.

Too much ego said Calvin. Calvin also mentioned that he thought Harold had a few sugar daddies on the side. A handsome muscular model living in Chelsea is bound to have a few sugar daddies if he so desired.

So that leaves a core group of 5 workers. Calvin, Raymond, Don, Ryan and me with Marcus managing the two Manhattan stores. I actually prefer this store to the store I frequented which was around the corner from Wanker Banker.

Calvin allows me to pick the music and the co-workers seem to like my choices. Some Latin jazz, some Woody Allen music. Today I opened the store with a Brian Eno playlist which was about an hour’s worth of music.

Not so much ambient stuff but some of his more interesting fare. James Brown was in the mix today as was The Bird & the Bee. And Raphael Saddiq. I sort of took over the music choices on the second day. The day started with just me and Don.

It takes a while for Don to warm up, at least to me. For about 2 hours it was the two of us and hardly anything was said. That made for a slow 2 hours, but he liked the Eno stuff I was playing, saying that it sounded like Pink Floyd.

No, I didn’t throttle him.

Calvin showed up at 11:30, scheduled to work the late shift. I worked the late shift yesterday with Calvin and found that working the late shift one night and opening the next day is no easy task, at least not yet.

Once Calvin showed up things got easier, and it being lunch time it meant customers started drifting in. For lunch, a turkey sandwich at what seems to be my usual spot near the park. And of course Calvin recommended a cigar, a Tatuaje robusto which was really good.

It’s great to spend time outside in the open air, just looking at people. I did have a good chat with Don, who said I shouldn’t be overwhelmed by the situation of starting a new job. It was good to hear, and also good to see that Don eventually thaws out.

I’ve been having some problems with sending photos from my cellphone. The pics are usually sent to Facebook but haven’t been showing up there. I thought it was a Facebook problem but it is actually a T-Mobile problem so a visit to the local T-Mobile store is in order tomorrow, my day off.

Have a few things planned for tomorrow, and the number one plan is sleeping late. It’s actually number one on my list.

a lunch time view

I also had gotten tickets for the Colbert Report tonight, but had to give them up since I’m working!

Tags:,
Posted in Interesting Things as of Late | 1 Comment »

It So Easy

Wednesday, June 2nd, 2010

I am quite a lucky guy. So lucky. No sarcasm intended. Sincerity. I have a good man who loves me so much. Bill is my rock. As much as I bitch sometimes about him, he is there for me, supporting in me and believing in me.

He is so happy that I am employed again, thrilled that I am working at a cigar shop. I can depend on him for anything. True, sometimes in my petulant moments I whine about him driving me crazy but I take a step back and see how miserable my life would be if he wasn’t in it.

The people in my life, Annemarie, my brothers, my sisters in law, Julio, Roda, even Roda’s mother are happy that I’m working again and sometimes they’re thrilled that I am working again. I am happy to be working again.

Sometimes.

The times that I’m not are when I am not at the job. I like the people I work with. It’s going to and coming from the job, where I find myself looking back at my life is when I wind up taking big gulps from the well of despair.

And it’s not my life per se, it’s the jobs that I had. Working at Wanker Banker, and Bio-ID. I left the Wankers at the right time inadvertently and Bio-ID collapsed from the economic climate and the lawsuit following the dismissal of a managing partner.

I know I’m not alone in this situation. Thousands, millions of other people are out of work.

I have a job and like I said when I am there I am fine. I am busy or trying to be busy. I like my co-workers and they seem to like me. The customers like me as well. I’ve been introduced to dozens and almost immediately have forgotten most of their names.

I have a lot to learn besides names though. I have to push the product and be very knowledgeable about the cigars. Try to form relationships with new customers and steer them to the brand of the store. It’s a good brand, internationally known.

And there are many cigars with the brand name on it, from mild to medium to full bodied. I have to know what they taste like, whether it has a spicy flavor, a creamy taste, things like that. Calvin, the assistant manager has been showing me these things but I am a bit overwhelmed.

At some points during the day he asks me what do I know so far and I generally draw a blank. Yesterday being my first day I didn’t know much but did my best. I was given a DVD about the founder of the company and had to watch it last night.

Now I have other homework to do, which is visit the company website and learn some more. Unfortunately I am toast right now. And I was toast when Calvin decided to see what I knew with regards to the brand’s cigars.

I drew a blank despite taking notes about what he was talking about earlier in the day and even read those notes eating a sandwich on a park bench at lunchtime. I was good with the customers, steered them to the brand, encouraged them to give it a try as I chatted with them in the humidor.

But at 6:30 when Calvin asked I came up short.

I also took the smart move and brought my suit and shirt and tie in a garment bag and changed when I got to the shop. I could have dressed better but chose black jeans and a dark shirt for some reason.

But I got through day 2 and will return for more. And I love my family and I love my friends and I love Bill Vila so much.

Tags:,
Posted in the day after yesterday | No Comments »

It’s Like That

Tuesday, June 1st, 2010

Wow. I am home from my first day back at work and I am watching a DVD about the founder of De La Concha as was suggested by Zach the assistant manager of the store.

I like Zach. He’s a nice guy. Seems to like me. We got along great during our meetings, I feel very much at ease with him around.

The day didn’t start off with ease. No, not at all. In fact I woke up and wanted to throw up. That’s how nervous I was. I showered, I shaved, I made coffee and had a bowl of cereal.

Last night I had my clothes all laid out, good to go. One less thing to worry about. Even though the forecast was some showers in the afternoon and the temperature headed for the 80 degree area, I wore the suit and tie.

Actually had the tie in my bag. I had to be at the shop at 9:30 and caught a bus around 8:15. Arriving at the bus terminal I headed down to the subway and caught the train uptown. I was about 20 minutes early and decided to head to the men’s room and put on my tie and also to change my t-shirt.

I had the dress shirt cleaned and pressed last week and when I tried to button the button on the tab collar half the button was missing and not making it easy to button. It could be done only after I muttered ‘fucking hell’ and stamping my right foot.

Perhaps if I stamped my left foot it wouldn’t have happened. In any event I was in the shop at 9:30 as planned. It was a slow start and for the first hour I was in the humidor, looking at all the different cigars. It seemed like I was in there longer than an hour but no, it was just about 60 minutes.

I was working with Don, another salesman and Zach. Harold also came in a little while later. They seem like good people and me being the low man on the totem pole I was in for a good ribbing.

They asked what kind of cigar I liked and I said La Flor Dominicana. That was the joke of the day. Not a good cigar in their eyes, like smoking cardboard they said. I spent a lot of time after that looking at and polishing various desk top humidors and other high end products.

Lunch came around 1:30 and at first I visited the market nearby but that was crazy crowded. I opted for Subway which was close and had a tuna sandwich which was like eating paste. I ate near the park and then wandered into the park, looking for a spot to sit down and relax.

Found a bench on with no one nearby and enjoyed a Avo cigar. Nice cigar, expensive too. I can see why they were mocking me at the store. I definitely have to get back into the swing of things, develop a routine again.

I worked until 7:00. It was supposed to be 7:30 but Zach said I could leave early since it was my first day. I left around 7:15 and walked down to the Path train. I dislike waiting on the lines for the bus. Walking is so much better than standing around.

I got home around 8:30, a zombie. I peeled off my suit and got another suit together for tomorrow. The plan for tomorrow is to carry the suit, shirt and tie into a garment bag and change when I get to the shop. That means I’ll have to get there earlier, but at least I will be comfortable and not too sweaty.

Yesterday's me.

Tags:
Posted in Iron my Shirt | 3 Comments »

Path to Wisdom

Tuesday, February 2nd, 2010

Well today was day two. It didn’t go well. I did well but I was so terribly unhappy. The workload was more than I could handle. The area of phones I did well in, but overall I was feeling overwhelmed. I know, it’s only day two.

But I just kept finding more things that I didn’t like about the job. I was being thrown into the deep end so suddenly and found myself grasping at and gasping for air. I knew it wasn’t going to work out. I was on a 3 month probation and a much lower salary than I used to have.

Greg Stevens advised me a few weeks ago not to take the first job offered to me but that is exactly what I did. I should have learned the lesson from McMann and Tate a few years ago, getting a job through a Craigslist advertisement isn’t the best method.

I know I could find something out there. I feel that way. One of the interviewers I met with couple of weeks ago told me when I told her about this job that I was definitely worth more than what these guys were paying me.

Am I disappointed? Yes. Have I disappointed other people? Yes. Perhaps even you reading this, feel some disappointment towards me. I just didn’t feel like it was a good fit. The people were generally nice but walking to the office felt like I was walking to the gallows.

Just such a feeling of melancholy. I know there is something else out there. But this wasn’t it. I shouldn’t have settled. That was a big mistake. I texted Greg Stevens this morning while waiting in reception at 8:30 for the woman who was training me.

I wrote, that I was still willing to be his assistant more than ever. I didn’t get a reply. On my half hour lunch break I was at wits end. I called up Bill who was home. His back and knees were messed up. He was reassuring and as supportive as ever.

I went through the rest of the days routine, eating bananas since that was all I had time to eat. The half hour lunch break allowed me to get to an ATM and the first machine wouldn’t read my card so I had to get online and try for another machine.

The whole time I was on the phone with Bill, who was searching my email for the phone number of the woman who interviewed me a few weeks ago. He got it and once I got off the phone with Bill, I called the woman and left a voice mail. She hasn’t gotten back to me yet, but I will try again tomorrow. And I will sign up with other staffing agencies.

I had to lie. I called up the company and left a voice mail saying I found a message when I got home and decided to take a job with better pay. I’m sure they would understand. They weren’t paying me that much and the workload promised to be more than I originally anticipated. In fact it didn’t even resemble the job that was listed on Craigslist.

“Office Business Center Operator in Manhattan seeks experienced bright self-starter to join our Front Desk team to greet guests, service incoming customer calls and existing customers in full service office centers. Must have strong PC skills & switchboard experience and be able to multitask. We offer competitive salary and a full package of benefits.”

I do have these qualities and can multitask but the competitive salary was not competitive at all. Even if I kept working there while looking for other jobs, the half hour lunch break would definitely hamstring my job search.

I feel I’ve done the right thing and moved while it was still early and while the company could still go with the number two person they had considered. I didn’t fill out any forms or paperwork so that shouldn’t leave me with any strings attached.

I know I can do better and I know I can get a better job. I think this is for the best. Sorry if you’re disappointed, but I am sure that this wasn’t the job for me. I think I know what I’m doing.

http://www.box.net/shared/z6yfzv7lrc

Tags:, , ,
Posted in Shed a tear | 5 Comments »

W*O*R*K*

Monday, February 1st, 2010

Well today was the day that I was looking forward to, anxious about and also dreading a little. Yes it was back to work for me. I guess it went well as I am expected in tomorrow. There are certainly things that I miss about not working.

No, don’t get me wrong, I do like to work, and I do like to get paid. But there is the whole staying up late, and waking up late that was nice. Last night I watched the Grammy’s which ran about a half hour long. Bill came home midway through and since the show ended later the 11:00 news and I kept thinking while watching the news that it wasn’t even 11:30 yet.

Bill asked what time I was going to bed and when I looked at the actual time, I saw it was close to midnight and therefore, time for me to go to bed. And I slept OK. Bill stayed up since he was off of work today.

I woke up at 6:30, the alarm clock waking up Bill before waking me up. I said I was sleeping 5 more minutes and hit the snooze button. I got up before the alarm went off again. Made coffee, cereal and jumped in the shower. That seemed familiar, eating breakfast before the sun was up.

I put on the gray pinstriped wool suit that I picked out last night, white shirt, tab collar and silver/gray checked tie, gray thick and thin over the calf socks and black cap toed shoes. By the time I hit the street, a little after 7:30, the sun was up and various worker drones were headed in the direction of their jobs.

I joined them, stopped by Mr. L’s to try to get my barber’s attention. He was awfully excited about me going on an interview last month. But this morning he was reading the paper and I didn’t have time to pop in and say hello.

I walked over to the Path train. No seats, just stood by the door. I was listening to Talking Heads, Fear of Music. It seemed most apt for some reason. Made it to the office building in a about 10 minutes, walking from the Path.

I was in before most anyone and found myself standing in the hall ringing a door bell. Someone eventually came out and asked if I needed help. I explained that I was there to start working there and sat in reception waiting for the receptionist who was going to train me.

She came in around 8:45. Immediately we went to work or she started showing me what it is that I will be doing. Such menial tasks. I know I should be grateful and I am, but I was an office manager at my last job, as well as an executive assistant.

Here it seems I will be answering the phone and dealing with all sorts of people. The morning went by with me taking notes of most everything Barbara Ellen was talking about. Then came lunch and we’re only afforded a half hour.

That sucks.

Though I used to eat lunch at my desk in 20 minutes, never really going anywhere except running errands, I did have the option for a longer lunch when needed.

The afternoon came and I spent the last hour answering the phone with Barbara Ellen sitting close by to make sure I didn’t make any mistakes. It was an OK first day.

A step down for sure from previous jobs and a step up from unemployment. So I’m in a limbo of sorts I guess.

I keep hoping for a call from Greg Stevens, offering to take me on. I would work at the same salary I am making now, just to work with someone I know and like. But it was the first day, and I hopefully have many more days ahead.

One day under my belt or rather, braces.

Tags:, , , ,
Posted in Shed a tear, Whats for lunch? | 2 Comments »

Shapes of Things

Tuesday, August 4th, 2009

It’s another hot day today, but not as hot as it was yesterday. Last night after writing I went for a Hoboken stroll with Julio. He certainly talks a lot, no getting words in edgewise for me.

I suppose that what friends are for, providing a forum just to listen. And that’s what I did. He has many things on his mind and can’t wait to hug Alexander again.

It will be about 2 weeks until he gets to do that again when Julio flies off to Copenhagen to reunite with Stine and Alexander, then it’s off to Spain for a week. Perhaps this weekend Julio and I will be able to make it the the beach.

Last week was a wash out, plus he had to attend a wake. Hopefully the weather will be cooperative and there won’t be any viewings to attend.

Came home Bill was watching I don’t know what on TV. It wasn’t Lawn Hors d’œuvre that much I know. He’s accused me on monopolizing the TV which I guess I do since I’m here more than he is, and I tend to watch other things besides Lawn Hors d’œuvre.

So to avoid the stepping on of toes I asked if we could watch Weeds & Nurse Jackie. He was fine with it and how could he not be? He watches and enjoys the shows as well.

Weeds was good, Andy was great as usual. It’s getting weird though and the bodies keep piling up in Nancy’s wake. Of course things were given away when they showed the preview for next week.

Nurse Jackie was good, but how long can she keep those plates spinning in the air? 2 shows about women with double lives and how they affect their families. Both top shelf, totally engrossing. Perfect for a summer night’s television viewing.

After the news and the Simpsons we watched a documentary on NYC in the summer of 1977. Son of Sam! Studio 54! Hip Hop in the Boogie down Bronx and punk rock at CBGB’s! I went to bed midway through, waking up an hour later to find Bill still awake and watching it.

I slept in today, waking up around 10:00. It was nice. I checked my voice mail, Greg Stevens was wondering where I was. I called him and told him I would stop by around 1:30.

I figured I would be later than that but of course I was early. There is nothing for me to do in the office anymore. Viveka who replaced me is handling things.

Not in a good way either. She’s overwhelmed, Vivek is losing his mind. I asked him how his wife was doing and he said it was a nightmare. She’s due to drop a baby any day now. He’ll be out of the office for a few weeks.

Viveka has a Sunday job working retail and she goes back to school in September. Who knows how that will work out? She doesn’t, I asked.

I’m going to help Greg out with a project that should take a few hours. I told him I will be in tomorrow, early so as to avoid Vivek. Greg said he would pay me for my time so that’s nice.

Tags:, , , , , , , ,
Posted in Whats for lunch? | No Comments »

« Older Entries
Newer Entries »