Tag: Walmart

Anti-Social

The thing to know about a person who is introverted and antisocial is some of us ‘fake’ our daily existence to get by. The smile. The ‘how are you?’. The ‘How was your weekend?’. All pre-programmed triggers to make others think you give a damn.

It’s like at Walmart or any other retailer. We’re trained to ask the customer ‘How can I help you?’. Do we REALLY want to help you? There are some who are genuinely interested in helping that customer find that right blouse or cake mix. The rest of us would rather get through the day without talking to the scum.

We’re doing it because we have to. 

The thing with me is, after a full day of ‘how can I help’, yes ma’am this and yes sir that … when I come home, the last thing I want around me is another human being. Wife, son, daughter … No ONE.

The argument can be had that I never want anyone around me but that’s not true. I actually love spending time with my wife and my children. 

It’s actually a sensory overload for me that I’m willing to compress for eight hours of the day. After that, at home, shut the fuck up. Leave me the fuck alone.

I know. It’s terrible. In the past, I didn’t quite understand that feeling. Why I was so much hateful when family and friends tried to reach out. I recognize it now and it’s my DNA make up. Typically, I can’t stand crowds and gatherings. But for a pay check, I can suck it up for a few hours.

At home, the family may not understand that and want to bond, talk about their day, complain about something, need help with something.

The need to keep a reserve of ‘give-a-damn’ is important after giving a damn at work all day.

Maybe I can figure out how to package ‘give-a-damn’ so I can pop a pill or two when I get home to continue smiling and caring for another hour.

In some cultures, I think it’s called ‘Cocaine’.

Suddenly, I miss my adderall.

Walmart and Other Accomplishments This Week

On July 19th, I officially started classes online for the bachelor’s degree.
On July 20th, I officially became a Produce Associate at Walmart, leaving the job I had at a factory; on track to reach a pre-defined future as a manager. Why Walmart? I’ll explain.

It will not be my first rodeo with Walmart. Back in 2003, I started with the company as a Department Manager. I eventually made it to an Assistant Manager. Shortly after my kids were taken to Albany, Georgia by my ex, things went downhill around 2005. It was an extremely stressful time I don’t want to rehash. I couldn’t do my job and I was angry every single day.

I regretted those years. It was the best money I made, without a degree, in my life. Relatively easy money. Yes, it was hard work. Compared to other jobs, I was able to actually have ‘money’ and do a job that didn’t get under my skin as much until the problems with the ex kicked in.

Flash forward to today. Up until recently, I worked at a factory making plastic for restaurants and stores. Full of Spanish speaking people during the day and all the African-American’s at night. 12 hour shifts and I was considered only a temp/work-to-hire. I needed more money than being a ‘packer’ (packing the plastic into boxes for shipping). The next step up was an ‘operator’; someone who operates the industrial machines that made the plastic. That was $11.50 for training. After training, either packer or operator, it was mandatory that I went overnight. Only after awhile, if something during the day opened up, would I go back to days. The fact is, no one was giving up a day shift slot.

Not if you didn’t speak Spanish, anyway.

I HATE working overnights. Even worse, 12 hours — 7pm to 7am — doing the job as an operator. After 4 months, I made it to the operator training, but always knew that overnight shift was looming on the horizon. I tried to arrange a way to work days …. or at least work an opposite overnight than my wife’s day shift. You see, she and I had the same days off (three off/two on/three on/two off). If I worked overnight, I would be getting off work the morning she had to be at work. We only had one car. Plus, I would need to be AT work the time she gets off and she often gets off at 8:30pm, whereas I had to be there at 7pm.

What got me annoyed, when I tried to explain this to my wife and the people at the factory (why I don’t want to do the overnights and the bad timing), everyone was so helpful to offer that I take ‘Uber’.

Idiots. Each and everyone of them. Why would I spend money every day and every night, about $10 each way or a little more, for a job that I don’t want to do at that time of night, be stressed out and STILL try to do my classwork while sleeping. 

Working overnight is unnatural. I’m not interested in hearing about the person who did it for twenty years and they did what they had to do to make it work. After doing overnights for a year, your body adapts. It sucks no matter how you train your body to sleep days and stay awake nights.

I’m telling you, I do not want my body to adapt to working after midnight. I did it before, hated. Will never do it again.

Being an operator would have given me a raise of $14.00. Still not worth it. 

Additionally, I seen the class of people who work the overnights coming in as I am leaving. Assholes most of them; underscoring why they need to work overnight and stay overnight—out of sight. Out of mind. Plus, I was offended that the majority Spanish-speaking crowd found cause to keep the Blacks in that shift.

Let me also add, the company was a little suspect with their race division — promotion policies. Yes, I got to be an operator in training. I wanted to work days and they had no place for me to work days — conveniently. I’ve been down this road before working with Spanish-speaking supervisors. They keep they’re people closer to them and others get the cheap shifts. I went through this way, way back (doing an overnight) working at NYU Medical in maintenance. All the workers and supervisors were Hispanic I was the only Black male on the shift and I got the least work or no shifts to work at all.

Witness how a racist gets built. Often its how the same person gets hit by the same culture the same way repetitively. Often it’s just ignorance. Still, I’ve had a theory that racism is contributed by the stereotypes our own cultures produce. Another topic for another time.

Anyway, I put in an application at Walmart when I knew the storms of change were coming. I gave the factory one last chance to see if I can work a better shift. They declined me. That same day, I accepted a job offer from Walmart as an hourly Produce Associate. You see, I would be making the same money (plus a little more) as I would as an Operator in training, only 8 hours a day DURING THE DAY. No overnights. 

And I’m closer to home. Should I have any car issues, I can walk.

So, with a tip of my hat, and a warm ‘fuck you’ to Pactiv (the factory), I left for better work-life employment. A place where positions are mandated by talent, not race. I’m positive a few class action suits in the past made sure of that.

This chess game of life can only be played by you and you alone. To others, why would I leave a job that ‘could’ pay $14.00 overnight?

To me: why would I work a stressful job that paid $14.00, that interfered with my attempt to get a degree when I can work at Walmart and become a department manager making $16 in 6 months and never have to work overnights? Get back to Assistant Manager in 6 months to a year; making between 50k-60k a year? I f I stayed at Pactiv, in a year, I’d be bitching about why I’m still on overnights making maybe $15.

I made the best move for me and it’s already paying off. Play your own chess game. I do recommend taking some advice that might be helpful. Otherwise, fuck the excess voices around you. When I last stopped by the temp service office to pick up my check, they were still fucking around with printing out checks for folks late. No direct deposit. Always delays.

Get the fuck out of here with that bullshit. Never again.

As of today, I’ve completed the assignments that were due. I’m on a steady course toward success. No issues. I’m sticking to the plan.