Well I made it through Day 2 of working in the general store and I can now say I can run a cash register. Not that I did not make mistakes and need help from Bob who worked the register next to me. But all in all I think I did pretty well. They asked several of us to come to work 50 minutes early to help get stock straightened up on the floor and to bring new stock up from the catacombs. The group worked great as a team and we even gathered together to make a video challenging another store in the park to a sales contest. The comradery of the group is good and they all really do pitch in to make the store successful. My managers for today were Garth, for Pete’s sake stop grinning at his name, and Carrie. I don’t know how they do it but they do a great job watching over all the newbies. After we set up the stock I was told to go get my drawer money and take a position on the floor. I silently prayed that I would not be put on the grocery side of the store but when I came back on the floor my manager assigned me to, yes the grocery cash register. The reason I did not want to have my first experience there was that it is fairly busy and mostly all sales involve looking up produce prices and most of the sales consist of many many items. After an hour of working at the register my manager decided we were not busy enough to have a full group of cashiers on the floor so he assigned me and several others to work with Michelle down in the catacombs. Michelle desperately needed help in getting her inventory set up properly in the basement. Myself and several other cashiers met with Michelle and got assigned different duties. Michelle is another great manager and she has a very difficult job ensuring that the floor is stocked up with goods to purchase all the time. I worked with her for about 3 hours and then my manager wanted us back upstairs for assignments. Once upstairs he told half of us to get some lunch and then come back and relieve the ones left so that they could go to lunch. He expected it to get busier after lunch as the rains had started to dwindle down and the sun was shining through every once in a while. Did I mention it has been rainy and cold here for the better part of a week and it looks like more rain will be coming. There is still snow in the parking lot where it was piled up and I don’t think it is going to melt very fast.
After lunch I went back to my cash register station in the grocery area and worked there for the rest of my shift. It was fairly busy and I got to meet a lot of people from all over the U.S. and several other countries. It took me a while to figure out that sometimes my greetings of “Hello” or “How are you?” go into ears that do not understand English. I got to talk to many people at the register who were parents of a child in the U.S. and it was up to their son or daughter to interpret what I was saying to them. Mostly everyone who does not understand me just smiles and shakes their head. It really is an interesting experience. I got to meet a man with the last name of Hobbs today who was originally from Indiana. He got a kick out of our last names being the same and I came from southern Indiana. The only issue I had at the register was a woman who bought two pickles that are sold in a bag in their own brine. She brought them back later and said they were not crunchy but spongy. I had to get my manager to process the return as I did not know if we could return any money for food that they just did not like. Garth handled it well and I think the customer was happy too.
On a side note I do see a lot of young people buying alcohol. I asked Bob about this and he said most were workers for the park facilities who are on their day off. He said over the years he has observed that the young kids of drinking aged tended to spend most of their money on booze and he even knew when it came close to their payday as they would start buying stuff with change that they all collected. I told him this was sad and that I saw the same thing in the Navy. Guys and gals would get off work and drinking would be their hobby. The trouble with this pattern is that it will probably continue into their adult life.
I also got my schedule for the next two weeks. I get Sunday off and I will be going to church services in West Yellowstone. I will also use that day to find a lamp I can put in the room so I can read at night as the dorm room does not have anything but the overhead light. After Sunday’s day off I work Monday and then I get Tuesday and Wednesday off. I think I will use those days to start exploring the roads around the park and see what animals I can spot and get some pictures of. I will use the car to explore for a while as I want to hike but not in the cold or rain. I have learned something though that is a warning to you all who plan to visit. The higher altitudes takes a lot of water out of you. You MUST stay hydrated. I find that I am drinking a lot of water and trying to keep well hydrated at work and when off.
Well that was pretty much my day. Thanks for reading and you all be well and do good.
p.s. I now know what it is like to be behind the cash register now. The long hours standing and aching feet and knees. So whenever you find yourself at a cash register please tell the person on the other side that they are doing a good job and give them a smile.
No comments:
Post a Comment