monday was my final day at B&N. i had set it up so i would have exactly 7 days off before i moved. this morning, i got a call asking if i would be at all willing to work a few hours because of a huge shipment and someone calling out sick. if my car wasn’t at the shop, i would have done it.
something happened last year that buckled my ass down and made me love work. after two years of fluctuating between loving the store and hating the store, i became a model employee who was completely cross-trained, worked nearly 40 hours every week, and was so reliable and learned in the ways of the store that every single new hire thought i was management until i told them otherwise. i did two over night shifts back to back. one of which, i worked for 6 hours the day that i did it. i built all the new displays that we got in this year. i cleared out our storage closet. twice. i worked 10 hour shifts. i worked split shifts where i went in at 7:00am, went to school, then back to work and didn’t get home until 10:30pm. my grades suffered slightly (i got a C and a C+ in my last two classes), but i was so beyond done with school and ready to be a steady working stiff that i didn’t care. ever since the days when i realized how pointless it is to sleep away everything when you’re feeling down, i’ve pushed to always “earn my sleep.” i earned every second of rest in 2011.
i am officially a college graduate. i have had a job since i was 12 years old. Tim and i used to work for our Uncle’s catering company feeding kids who were attending summer camp. that’s where we first met Mikey. it’s so funny that we used to feed one of our best friends. Catering by Patrick was one of the hands down worst companies, but i learned a lot about trust, proper food service, respect (and disrespect), and when to say “fuck this noise, i’m out.” the library was one of the easiest and best jobs i could ever have had. i met good people, got experience as a costumed character, and was fired. it was one of the biggest mistakes of my life. i’d probably still be there and be a supervisor if i had not done that. lesson learned. Einstein Brothers was the second worst job i ever had. i would go in at 6 am. i would work upwards to 50 hours a week. i would get treated like shit by customers. deep down, i would love every second of it. i learned how important it is to have a work family to keep you going back every day, how to lose myself in the insanity of a rush, and how to give myself heart burn issues from drinking way too much coffee. then, B&N taught me how to be a fucking grown up. there were times where i was a terrible employee, unfocused and worthless, but that’s long gone. i’m leaving there and they honestly don’t know what they’ll do without me, and that is an amazing feeling. that’s how i know i’m ready to go.
these are all points that lead me to the goal of my internship. i’m staying. there’s no “i’ll see if i like it and, if it’s not what i dreamed, i’ll come back.” it’s a fucking job, not a party. i’m going to work my ass off and make my own way. i’ve worked all across the spectrum of positions they could offer me, and all i’ll need to get through a rough day is the knowledge that, when my shift ends or during my next day off, i get to hang out in any of the parks. for free. people keep telling me that i need to be ready, it’s going to be hard work, but i don’t think it will. i’ve pushed myself so hard, catering, at Einstein Brothers and at B&N, that i can handle anything they throw at me. i love leaving work battered and beaten to shit. it’s one of my favorite things in the world. Disney World is also one of my favorite things in the world. i don’t see how i wouldn’t love the two combined.
it’s weird to have a direction, especially one that’s taking me so far from a hometown i wasn’t sure i would ever leave. i’m ready, though. i’ll miss this place and these people i love, but this is what i need to do.
on friday, let’s go to Rodos since i’ll be spending my birthday in a new town with a bunch of strangers. let’s make these last few days really last.
