Returns @ MindSay 
About half the time, I work at the service desk at work. (I work...at work. Nah. I just have fun.) I really like this, because it's far more variety than cashiering, I get to move around a lot more, I don't have to rush through everything, can talk with people, can make problems go away (often), and best of all, I get to SORT things!
I seriously have this thing about organizing. I love it. Especially when I'm not the one who has to put things away, I just determine where they go. Love it, love it, love it. This goes in this world, that one goes over here, this one we need to double-check the id on and I know how to do that! Oh, this needs to be reticketed? Me me me, let me do that! Oh! The keys! I get the keys, I get the keys, I have the keys of POWER!!
I'm a freak about the keys. I must have that little pink carabine on my belt loop.
Really, I'm kind of a freak about my job, but I really do have fun with it.
Anyway, so we get a lot of interesting returns. Sometimes people are just being dumb and trying to manipulate the system to get more money back. Yes, I know a few different ways to do this. No, I'm not telling you - I might if I hated my job, but the corporation I work for actually makes an effort to make sure we have fun at work, thus gaining my loyalty. Sometimes people are truly being honest about something, but because of policy, no matter how stupid we think the policy is, we can't do anything. I don't like those at all - I always want to help the nice people. Generally, we do whatever we can to make people happy - and it really makes US happy when they have their receipts.
We go through so much frustration over people NOT having their receipts that, towards the end of the day, we'll take just about ANYTHING back if they have a receipt, and, y'know, it's not something breaking copyright law like software or electronics (returned electronics are a pain in the keister - we can't repackage and resell them).
So, in the case of one woman, she was returning a highchair. Just didn't like it. Yes, it's open, but we understand that, and we're pretty good at repackaging. Nothing seems to be broken, this is pretty straightforward. The box and packaging are all intact, just needs tape. And she's got the receipt! Sweet!
Zip that one on through, haul the bulky beast over the counter. Put it in a pile, ask one of the other girls to rearrange the pieces so it fits properly in the box. She's more than happy to do it, go back to processing other returns. Just as I'm coming back from tossing something in one of the bins, she comes up to me, holding the cushion in its big clear baggie package, with a very odd look on her face.
Now, I have to say, I never actually got a look at it. But one of the other girls (I'm a rookie at the service desk, I look to these two when something comes up that I'm uncertain on) turned just then, and stared at the center of the cushion.
"What IS that??"
"I..."
"Is that a bug?"
"Um..."
"That's a cockroach!"
A collective "Ewww!" and willies ensued. Yeah, me too. I'm fine with centipedes and spiders, but cockroaches...we just don't get them up here that much. It's hard to be fine with large insects that you're not used to. Cicadas, there's a fun bug to play with...but even so, I wouldn't want it inside a presumably sealed bag on something I was processing.
The first girl, as soon as she realized what it was, slammed the cushion back in the box, flipped it closed, and triple-taped it. The rest of us stared at her.
"Are you putting that back on the sales floor?"
Well, technically, it was undamaged...
No, it turns out, she was not. However...
Well, when we get merchandise back, we've got four options. The first is to put it back on the sales floor. The last is categorize it to be destroyed. In certain cases (only when it comes up as such in the computer), it goes back to the manufacturer. Anything that's in fine condition, but for whatever reason we can't sell (packaging being torn past repair is a common one) goes to Goodwill.
Incidentally, my favorite one for going to Goodwill was a guitar. It was missing an E-string, but was in perfectly fine shape otherwise. I don't know why the person bothered returning it instead of just going and getting the missing string, but it's somebody's gain further down the line.
Anyway, I'm very sorry to the people at Goodwill, but if you get a highchair with a cockroach in it...you can blame a sudden contagious attack of feminine heebie-jeebies.
!! For a couple of months now, some old friends of ours have been on our mind...they were actually our upline in a MLM company, well known then as Amway... so it was about 10 + years ago, because we have been relocated here in GA for 8 1/2 yrs. But anyways, I tried to find them online, I couldnt remember their street address. So on and off I would check the internet, etc... but today I actually called the salon where he worked in Syracuse, and they told me he hadnt worked there for nearly 10 years... looked like another dead end, but the girl was great, she got the local phone book, and helped me find where he was working, and I was given his cell phone number.
So I just got off the phone with both of them.. it turned out that today was actually her birthday. What a riot! It was so good to talk with them. They are both still in Amway , but it's now called QuickStar which is more into the nutritional aspect rather than the laundry and cleaning products that it was. I may have to look into it, he mentioned a product that is no carb, no sugar energy drinks... I forgot how motivational and sweet these two people are! It was great to speak with them...oh! And he has a daughter that lives in Alpharetta...so they will be coming to the area in a month or so. How coinkydink is that?
change of subject:
Here is an update on my leg. I was a little loopy after my acupuncture treatment yesterday. And having a hard time adjusting to my new eye glass prescription, so was feeling foggy about that too....
I went straight home, and when I got out of my car, walking from there to my apartment and down some stairs, I was able to do so with barely a limp! The muscles had released that much... it felt freer than it has in a year! Incredible after just a acupuncture treatment and tends to boggle my mind, because I come from a different aspect of how to get muscles to respond and release, you know?
Today its a little tender, achey and like it wants to go back to being stiff again, could be partly weather related too I suppose...it's raining here in GA...but if by tomorrow its locking up I will make an appointment to come in sooner than next Monday cause next week I want to really nail this thing, so I will be ready for our trip back to NY to visit!
Change of subject:
Son. Called yesterday from the new jail...I dont know if I mentioned it or not, but last week, he finally went before the judge in Cobb cty, and they dropped the auto theft charges, set the court date for the drug charges for june 07 and released him on bond, which then promptly he was transfered to the jail here in gwinnett cty because they put a hold on him due to his breaking probation. So now he is in that holding pattern until he gets to the judge to find out what the penalty is for breaking probation. Then next June he will find out what the penalty is for the drug charges. In the meantime, Gwinnett wont release him on bail, cause they consider him a flight risk as well as the fact that he broke probation...so he is there until they figure out what to do with him. I think I am going to try to visit him either next week, or the week we come back from NY.
He apologized to me. He said he feels very very bad that we had to move on account of his violent behavior and the drug people he surrounded himself with. I said.. yes..that was 90% of the reason why we moved, the other 10% of the decision was to keep my office open and running and we couldnt do that and keep the house payments on top of it all. We decided to keep the move to ourselves after that because of who you were involved with.
I am glad to hear that he is owning up to his responsibilities. I am sorry that he will have a felony on his record now...for stupid drugs... what a mess they make of lives! I did let him know there was a chance that we may decide to move back to NY next year, just didnt want to surprise him by not telling him that at least. He took it fairly well. Considering he has the man that had him arrested wrapped around his finger playing on his guilt. The man is paying for my son's lawyer AND sending him money. He has 150 bucks in his account. I was like.. do you earn money....and he said, nope, Al sends it to me. I called him out on it, and he kinda gave me that laugh that says, yep, I know it.... but I will be damned if I will send him any money... and that still shows me that he is using people... I am sure he feels that he doesnt have a choice in the matter at this point...but it's kind of an ugly situation in my eyes..to have this older gay guy just doling out cash and bending over backwards to help my son who will drop kick him to the curb once he is out. Apparently he has already told my son, when you get out, you will be under lock and key here!
Ah.. come on man, reality check.. he had rules etc to live by the last time he got out of jail with us, then with them when he moved in with them... being under lock and key with the taste of freedom.. it will last ..um.. maybe ... 1 month...then it will go haywire... that is the typical pattern.
But.. I DO pray that this time the cycle is broken, that my son will pull out of this being a better man for it, it's just hard to see the 'games' still in play, and I know changes are slow...so I am going to be happy for the changes I hear him saying, and hope that that when he does come out, the changes will continue. I pray for solid men to surround him, and draw his heart to a better place, that he will begin to feel like he CAN do something and BE someone. I want someone in there to encourage him to get his GED. I think he is tired of hearing me say it..but he is so dang SMART.. but so dang lazy! EH! LOL!
I walk by faith, not by sight...and in that walk of faith, I know that God is doing a deep work, a deep cleansing in my son, and that he will continue to water those seeds that are dormant in him, that fell on thorny ground, that got choked out...and make the soil of his heart fertile to begin to feel better about himself and not cling to the past. To cut his ties with his biological mother in the fact that he relates the loss, the rejection, and the negative heritage she provided to him... to instead look to the little boy that we chose to bring into our family... and to know that we chose him, loved him, and still do love him.
Change of subject:
Ah.. I have a client in 20 minutes, my second one today.. .then I am going to go pick up my pants that I dropped off to a local alteration shop, why do they think that all fat people are 6 feet tall? LOL... I have another pair of jeans to give her to hem up for me.. .. I hate sewing.. so this is nice that my pants will finally all be the right length! Yippee.
Then I am going to Aldi's to return the gps that I bought, it is not working...I think I will go back to the original plan and get the one I really wanted. One that I can read..lol
Let's see... oh yes..then I am going to Walmart to pick up my prescription glasses, however I am going to have them check these new glasses out, they still are making my eyes very blurry and I am having a rough time with them, this is day 3 of trying to adjust to them.
I have to fill out my paperwork to apply for my National Massage Certification test. It is a complicated bugger and it costs 225.00 to apply...and you only get to take it twice...If I fail it , then I would have to pay the entire fee again. Incredible pressure there, eh? I should have taken it right out of school 5 yrs ago, but I was in the middle of building my business, and wanted to put it towards advertising instead. And well, there has always been a reason not to take it.
Now, I have the money from the income tax return, so I better do it, and I better get studying... At least 1/2 hour a day I think is a good committment ( I have never had to study..so this whole study thing makes me out of sorts!) I think I have 90 days from when I give them the application to go to a center to test.
OK.. off to do what I do! :)
Love and Laughter,
Dawn
Our brother Josh (Israel) showed up this morning and spent most of the day with us. It was so great to be with him again! Tonight we are all going to Olive Garden together. Looking forward to flavorful food and fun family frivolity!
Richard Donner's Superman, which was released in 1978, begins with John William's souring musical score and blue outlined credits flying toward the viewer. This is followed by the appearance of Marlon Brando and an explosion of the planet Krypton. A meteorite then crash lands on Earth at the farm of Ma and Pa Kent. As they quickly discover, an alien boy who looks like a human was inside the rock. Superman's first rescue is of Lois Lane from a flying vehicle (a helicopter), followed by the speech, "I hope this experience hasn't put you off flying. Statistically speaking, it is still the safest way to travel." While in a library in a tunnel under a train station, Lex Luthor hatches an evil plan to destroy half of North America (including New Jersey, where his female assistant's mother lives) and create new land to make millions as a real estate mogul. This is explained via a speech in which he begins to quote his father, saying, "My father always told me to," and his female assistant interupts him, saying, "Get out." Lex then laughs sarcastically and finished the quote with, "Stocks may rise and fall, utilities and transportation systems may collapse. People are no damn good, but they will always need land and they'll pay through the nose to get it." Before ultimately foiling the plan by chasing down cracks in the Earth, Superman is negatively affected by kryptonite strewn around his neck and left to drown in water (a pool) before being rescued by a woman. The final scene of the movie is Superman flying through space before banking right and leaving the audience with a view of the infinite blackness as the credits role.
Now:
Bryan Singer's Superman Returns, which was released last week, begins with John William's souring musical score and blue outlined credits flying toward the viewer. This is followed by an explosion of the planet Krypton and the voice of Marlon Brando. A meteorite then crash lands on Earth at the farm of Ma and Pa Kent. As the Ma quickly discovers, an alien man who looks like a human was inside the rock. Superman's first rescue is of Lois Lane from a flying vehicle (an airplane), followed by the speech, "I hope this experience hasn't put any of you off flying. Statistically speaking, it is still the safest way to travel." While in a library on a boat, Lex Luthor hatches an evil plan to destroy half of North America (including New Jersey) and create new land to make billions as a real estate mogul. This is explained via a speech in which he begins to quote his father, saying, "My father always told me to," and his female assistant interupts him, saying, "Get out." Lex then laughs sarcastically and finishes the quote with the idea that prices of gold and diamonds may change, but people, "will always need land." Before ultimately foiling the plan by chasing down cracks in the Earth, Superman is negatively affected by kryptonite stabbed into his back and left to drown in water (an ocean) before being rescued by a woman. The final scene of the movie is Superman flying through space before banking right and leaving the audience with a view of the infinite blackness as the credits role.
Then and Now:
The only major difference to the plot of the two movies is that Superman Returns supposedly takes place five years after the sequel to Richard Donner's version, except that the characters are somehow younger, and seemingly don't remember anything that happened to them in the other movies. Nonetheless, it is a new time, and they have new emotions (and in the case of Lois Lane; a new family).
What this means is that by doing something not very original, Bryan Singer has actually done something amazingly original - he has invented the remake sequel genre. Superman Returns is a sequel, but before that, it is a remake. It is a remake that continues the story as a sequel.
This really upsets me. After multiple writers and multiple directors exhausted multiple story ideas, the new Superman is the old one. Bryan Singer supposedly wowed the studio with his vision for a new Superman movie. And that vision was to make the same movie, only set it 5 years later and have some characters forget the history they once had.
Now, I'm not saying that the film is bad. It is truly a spectacle in every sense of the word. The tagline for the original was, "You will believe a man can fly," and this movie fully lives up to that and then some, making you reevaluate how movies can make you feel. And the previously mentioned airplane rescue sequence, followed by Superman and Lois's silent reunion, is one of the best movie scenes of the past few years. Plus, the cinematography and lightning creates some wonderful images that harken back to the healthy glow radiating off of all the stars in the 50's and 60's.
It's just that after 19 years and well over $200 million, as well as an apparently revolutionary idea that finally got this movie greenlit, I expected a whole lot more originality. I expected a unique vision, not a unique retread. Instead of something new like the idea of the startling plot twist at the end of a film [The Usual Suspects], or a the idea of a dark and brooding character driven comic saga [X-men], we have a very late sequel/remake with a Christopher Reeve look alike that doesn't emote as well as the actual Christopher Reeve, and a Kate Bosworth with dyed brown hair that doesn't have enough (or any) sass and feistiness to channel the Lois Lane we remember. And, here's the real kicker, is this what today's audience wants to see? The people who grew up with the original Supe will love it, but will the PG-13 crowd? The movie is 157 minutes long and is heavy on the type of Clark Kent that says "swell" and light on superhero action. Is that really what people familiar with Smallville want from their Superman?
I don't know. All I can tell you is that in Superman Returns, Superman literally returns to become trapped in the same plot from thirty years ago, but with a few modern touches. But hey, that's okay. Call it a $200 million trial run. Consider what Singer and company can accomplish when the amazing flying effects are used in an actual original story. Let's just hope that next time the screenwriters remember that Clark Kent and Lois Lane have a past.
So yesterday I made a silly purchase for Adam's birthday. Something I want to return tomorrow. However, tonight when I went into the bag for the first time, there was no receipt.
How am I suposed to return it?
UGH! Tick me off!!!!
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