People Are Strange

What a weird day at work.

First of all, I finally, after only one month of asking, got answers to my questions about the summer job. Not that I wouldn't have had one, but whether I get to play the manager's little helper or not. I can, so yay to that. It may also be that I get to play the holiday substitute to one of our mangers, which IMO is a bit scary but then again, I've worked for the company for over four years so there's little I do not know about it. I had the chat with our area manager this morning and when I raised the issue of getting chairs for the poor sods working the cash registers, he said we might get them in the autumn. Whoah. Knowing the way things are usually run, that's fast. Though thinking about it, he didn't specify in which year...

Then we got our share of weird customers.

There was a woman who spent better part of an hour screaming (presumably) to her ex on the phone. Apparently he owned her some money. I didn't catch all the words as she was sitting way across the room, but I definitely got the gist of it. It is exceptionally hard to concentrate on work when one wants to burst out laughing but of course as one is employed in the challenging field of customer service one can not.

Then there's the wannabe-androgyne we have the pleasure of feeding every day. He seems to want so hard to look like David Bowie but unfortunately fails miserably. I'd feel sorry for him if he didn't have this ultra-irritating habit of seating himself where he can stare us at work. And he has got to be the slowest mover ever. It's like he's sleepwalking. It takes him minutes to first fish his wallet out of his bag, then find his student card, and then put them all back again, pick up his tray and move away. My colleagues affectionately call him the stalker-boy.

And just as I was getting a bit worried that something had happened to Thesis-man (I've told you about Thesis-man, haven't I? The one who was our regular customer throughout the last summer and autumn, and who was so immersed in his work that it was a bit scary. He used to scream at us "I'm working on my thesis!! I do NOT have time to worry about what to eat!!" and then spend 15 minutes in front of the menu fretting about what would be best for him because, as he loved to remind us every five minutes, he was working on his thesis. I actually ran into him in a grocery store and was amazed to find out that you can find three different ways of mentioning your thesis during the small conversation you have with the cashier while handing over the money) he came to visit. It seems that there are people who need something to worry about, otherwise they would stop existing or something. This time he was in an utmost hurry to get to the library where he had a computer reserved so he had to try to skip in line. Oh dear. I bet he has very few friends in this world. Poor Thesis-man.

I guess he would have benefited if he had been with me and my family and all the extensions thereof yesterday at the theater. The play we went to see was absolutely hilarious, and once again proved my theory that we do need the occasional dose of slapstick comedy, with extra whoopee-cushion action. Every adult should see at least one children's play per year, that'd make the world a better place to live in in my very humble opinion. Especially if those plays are based on Astrid Lindgrens books. Her works should be obligatory reading in schools.

Today's recommended website/band: Sigur Ròs from Iceland. For some reason I keep thinking of Kent when I listen to them, but it's not the same. Kind of a cross between Kent and Björk, but more hypnotic - I'm wasting my time here, I can't describe them. They have few of their songs free for download on their site. Give them a listen and you'll see what I'm talking about.