The job at the bagel place did not work out. I'm sure many of you are gearing up the parental phrase, "If you commit to something, you have to stick with it." So ground me. This job sucked in every way imaginable. I knew after two hours that I didn't want to work there, and I stuck with it for three days.
Here's what I thought working at a bagel shop would be like- Setting: A sleepy little corner bagel shop. A couple of old people would come in and ask me to make them a toasted bagel with some cream cheese. I'd smile and tell a funny anecdote while I poured a fresh cup of coffee for the both of them. Ten minutes later, another couple of people would drift in, and I would start the process over again. Well, this surely did not happen.
I was told on the day I started that this was the busiest Bruegger's Bagels in the country. I worried a little at that, but I asked myself, "How many people could possibly want to eat bagels?" A freaking lot! The "rush" at this store lasted from 9 am to 2pm. My shoe came untied at 9:30 and I did not have a chance to tie it until I clocked out to go home. Some people might be able to handle this pace, but I cannot. I don't think I'm lazy. I just can't handle the "bustle," as David calls it. And what does it mean that I can't handle the bustle? Does it mean I pout? No. Does it mean I get tired? No. Does it mean I want to yell curse words at the patrons? Well, sometimes. But mostly when I have to rush around for hours on end, it means I get panic attacks. So while I'm making some lady's $2.19 cinnamon raisin bagel with cream cheese, she doesn't know that I'm so hot I could pass out, my left arm is going numb, and I'm envisioning that my windpipe is closing up. So yeah, I get panic attacks from bagels. After two days of this, I started asking myself if panic attacks and constantly smelling like red onions were worth $7.25 an hour. I determined that they are not. I don't think I'm above that type of work. I don't think I'm better than anybody who does that work. I'm just not good at it. Perhaps if I was 16 and this was my first job I could stand it. But as it is, I hated it with a passion.
So on my second (and second to last day), I pulled the manager aside and told her that I hated working at the bagel place. My mom asked if I really used the work "hate" when I told the manager. Yeah, I did. Why beat around the bush? I told the manager I would finish out my schedule, which was only one more day, and then I would not be returning. She was frustrated but nice about it. I felt bad because they went through all the trouble to "train" me(i.e. show me videos from the 90's and then throw me into the fray). But I did hate it and didn't want to go back.
I'll start looking for another second job soon, but David says I don't have to if I don't want to.
Well, admonish me in a parental fashion if you must.
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15 comments:
Sounds like the assembly line at Subway. And, yeah, it can definitely be stressful!
My coworker Benny also works for Jimmy John's. They sell more than $5,000 worth of sandwiches every day. That is many sandwiches.
Congratulations on doing what you knew was right for you! I wish I had known how to do what you just did several years ago. Can I say I'm jealous without it coming out wrong?
Hahah!!! I worked at Menards and it was the total opposite...complete boredom. I stood there and counted the 2X4's, the M&M’s in the little package at my station, I counted everything to keep me from going insane. It didn’t work and I quit pretty soon after they hired me.
I know exactly what you mean about hating a job.
Good for you! Life's too short for bagel-induced panic attacks.
I didn't exactly quit Burger King after three weeks, but let's just say I gave the manager little choice but to fire me. One evening at around 1:00 am Bracken came by and we just started driving. We ended up in Canada, a few hundred miles north of where I was supposed to be checking in for work. I never regreted it.
I saw the manager many weeks later at some sort of party at Bracken's in-law's. I asked if I still had a job. He didn't seem amused.
A relative of mine married Jimmy John, though I've never met him myself.
Wow Dave, you guys ended up in Canada? ... Wow... I am not really sure how to follow that one up...
Anyway, I loved the rush. The push. It made me force myself to do what I could normally not due (I am lazy and I worked at Wendy's for many years). However, I left for retail and then to a call center... I am actually looking at going back to the food service. I almost miss it...But then again most would say i am clinically insane!
Dave,
You've never met "Jimmy John"! Actually, he's a really nice, normal guy and he goes by Jim.
P.S. Is that the time they wouldn't let you into Canada?
Monica,
Nobody will think less you for quitting the job, except perhaps the coworkers who were sorry to see you go. But perhaps now you will feel more sympathetic when you go to order bagels.
Dave, your deliquency reminds me of the time Aric and I skipped school to eat lunch in Wisconsin.
Monica, I quit a job at Burger Chef in 2 days (or maybe it was one). They yelled at me for not saying things like "that will be one hot goldern brown french fry. Instead I said one fry. You had a long description for each thing on the menu. I believed then (and now) people just wanted their food fast. Maybe that's why they went out of business. I also only made it one night working for Pickerton Security. I had to pretend I was shopping for several hours while looking for shop lifters. I think no one was fooled. I was single at the time and working in a grocery store. I didn't have a clue about real shopping.
I don't blame you a second for quiting. I usually leave big tips at food establishments, mostly for the reason that I am pretty sure that I could not handle their job.
P.S. There aren't any good bagel shops in Fort Wayne. Any way you could bring us some bagels when you visit? I take it you don't get an employee discount anymore.
Well, not only does it take courage to realize when you're not fit for something and you have to just give up the dream of having your own bagel place one day, but man you should write a book on all these little adventures! I have to say I get a kick out of your writing style.Think about it. Write and never work again. That's the motto I'm trying to live up to. So far living down below the surface of that fantasy land, but maybe I'm wearing one of those hats that "swoops."
Guys-
Thanks for all the support. I really did feel bad about quitting so early on, but I see that many people have done it at one time or another or wished that they had.
Shaelin- You are right. I will most definitely have more compassion for bagel makers and the like.
John- I remember the time you skipped school to go to lunch in Wisconsin. If I recall correctly, you went to some ultra-exciting place like Wendy's, which made the story all the more funny.
Paul- We can definitely bring you Bruegger's bagels when we come to visit. I might have David order and pick them up though.
Ookami- Thanks for the compliment. Perhaps one day I will write a compilation of my stories.
That trip to Canada was the time that Bracken and I were denied entry. We were sent back into the States, so we turned the truck around, switched drivers, and went through at a different gate. Like the US, Canada doesn't have very good border security.
On the other hand, that mark on my record has haunted me ever since. Whenever I enter Canada, even if just for a lay-over, I am questioned about my intentions. The mark on my record does not say that the only reason they rejected me is that we didn't have any money.
I can believe that J. John is a jerk to his workers and friendly to his family. Sounds typical.
John, how would you feel about a trip to Texas for a steak? I have my eye on this Amrillo steak house called the Big Texas.
Monica, I ate a bagel this morning and thought of YOU!! I had posted something about how boring it is to have a job for a long time and how having lots of little jobs makes for better stories, but I must've done it wrong or put it on someone else's page (won't they be surprised?) because now I can't find it. Anyway, good job for quitting!
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