Sam finished the last paragraph of his book as he looked outside the shed to see if anyone had come. Usually if there were several orders a server or a cook, would come outside to get them. He had told Kevin he was going outside, but it was hard to tell if it had registered. The Diner had been open for two weeks and Kevin had just started and Sam still wasn't sure what to make of him. Sometimes he would be on time and seemingly with it, easy to get along with. Other times he would show up late and give strange long convoluted excuses. He had heard he was Zach's friend which had probably gotten him in.
He had checked the time on his phone when he went out and he checked it again. Five minutes, good he thought to himself. The shed was more clustered than usual with a several stacks of the local paper, some from several weeks ago. 'Hey, Sam?!' He heard a voice call. 'Can you come help me with these orders?' he got up closing the book and putting it on top of a box of paper towels. Breaks had been a strange issue the whole night. Whenever he went outside, told Kevin he was going, Kevin would go outside also. This in turn led to one of them having to return, usually him, to cook what was up there. Still whenever he went out for any amount of time Kevin would come out and ask him to help. Sam walked back up through the back door putting back on his apron as he walked out unto the line. Two slips. A burger and a fry and two large fries, the fries had already been dropped. What the fuck? Sam thought.
'Do you mind if I run to the store real quick?' Kevin asked. 'Sure.' Sam said but Kevin could sense the hostility there. He had checked the time it was 10:55 but the store in town was only about a minute away and he knew he could make it if he left now. Kevin took off his apron and walked through the office to the back door. As he walked over to his car he thought about the whole night. It had been one of hostility and mistrust, Kevin had thought. First of all when they had been introduced, Sam had been seemed hostile towards his very presence there, he just didn't seem to like him for some reason. When it had gotten busy he had gone outside not telling him he was leaving, and had been out there for a while.
Kevin drove past the graveyard towards town, finally pass the Chinese restaurant and then the liquor store. His girlfriend works here, he remembered vaguely. They had met before in the meeting before the Diner was going to open but Sam acted like he hadn't remembered that when they met at work. Could just be an anti-social person, Kevin thought. 10:57, the time read on his dashboard, perfect, Kevin thought. He strode into the store, going straight to what he was looking for 3 22 once twisted teas, he walked over to the singles cooler and grabbed them. As he walked to the cooler, he recognized her, it was Andrea. She was on the short side, blond, with a few tatoo's, Kevin walked up to the counter and put his merchandise down. 'Hey, II know you.' He said. 'Oh yeah,' Andrea replied. 'You're Kevin who works with Sam.'
'Yeah,' Kevin replied. Feeling the urge to elaborate, 'I don't think he really likes me.' She laughed a soft lilting sound which sounded good to his ears, 'I don't think he really likes anyone.' She replied. She's feisty this one, he thought. She rang up his order and bagged it. 'I'll see you around.' He said mainly just as a simple pleasantry. 'Yes, you will.' She replied, in a tone which suggested something more. He walked outside feeling the cold air on his face, it was late December and although no snow had fallen the cold had set in. He checked his phone. It was only 10:59, if he was quick he could still grab a quick beer at Afterwork's across the street and make it back without taking too long. Kevin got into his car and parked across the street. Just one beer, he thought, I go in, have a quick one, no big deal.
Sam looked over at the clock above the cash register, 11:45, at first he had thought it was some kind of typo there's no way this guy has actually been gone for that long of an amount of time, he had thought to himself, but not impossibly, it was true. A little past 11:00 the orders had started coming in, small things at first. A large fry here, and burger and fry there, an omelette, then a little while later it had gotten worse. Table's of 5 or six had started to arrive, large groups. Almost an entire hour, this fucking guy. Although to be honest it was really hard to tell if he would even come back at all. Sam flipped a couple burgers and pulled up a basket of fries, as he poured them into a hat he saw a familiar figure, 'Hey sorry I'm late.' Sam said nothing, and they worked in silence for a long time, finally the ticket's were clear.
Sam walked over to the time clock and punched out. As he walked outside he wondered, not too much has changed has it, he thought as he walked over to his van. Still the same idiots being hired, the same attitude being accepted. Sometimes he thought he brought it on himself, that he let these things happen because he refused to better himself, to remain where he was in his station.
He dialed her number, the only person lately would bring him out of states like this. 'Hey,' She responded sounding tired, weak. 'You up?, I want to stop by.' 'Sure, of course.' She said, thank god.
Monday, July 28, 2014
Friday, July 25, 2014
Take back your cents, your dime and your dollar.
'And where they got Green from? Who the fuck knows. All I know is Green was an Arizona real estate hustler who barely had enough gas money to pick up his own fucking check.'
Headquarters
'I trust that Dave gave you the broad strokes of what were looking for in a candidate?' Steve Rogers asked. Alex Milton nodded, 'Yes, he did.' I thought I had this already, the job. This feels like another interview. He had already had two and on the second one Dave had assured him that the job was his, but this one felt like another grilling session. 'The culture,' Alex said. 'You need someone to change the culture of laziness and apathy that led to the fire.' 'Exactly,' Steve said, although his expression noticeably changed when Alex mentioned the fire. 'You see Frank was a good guy and a loyal employee of the company for many years, but Frank wouldn't stand up for himself. He had a hard time taking charge, telling people what to do. Actual managing. We tried to work with him over the years but obviously made little progress. The smoke breaks, employee's going outside for a half-hour 45 minutes at a time. These are the kinds of behavior we are looking to change over there. We think this Diner has the potential to make real money again and we need someone who feels as strongly about that as we do.' 'Absolutely,' Alex replied. 'What about this Gary person I've been hearing about?
Steve grinned, 'Alex, as far as Gary in concerned, all you need to know about him is that he's out. You're in. He just doesn't know it yet.' Nice, Alex thought. 'What we basically need is for you to come in, and take charge, change the paradigm.' 'So do you know when you're going to reopen?' Alex asked. 'We've almost completed the repairs, but we need to get the ok from the health inspector before we can resume operations. Tentatively we are thinking about a week or so, but we'll probably have you started about a week after opening. Do you have any other questions regarding the position?' Alex pondered for a moment. He wasn't sure if he should bring it up, but part of him felt it would be worth it to at least try. 'About the pay.. 'I know it's not what you're expecting.' Steve interrupted him. 'But I think based on Dave's endorsement and what I've observed interviewing you I think we can give you an extra dollar an hour.' 'Excellent.' Alex said. Steve stood up, 'Welcome aboard.' He said shaking Alex's hand. Going to have free reign, Alex thought to himself.
It was strange seeing all of them in the same room. All three shifts, some old, some young, quite a varying cast, Sam thought as he looked around. They were all gathered in the stools and booths of the restaurant, and it was interesting to see how the groups gathered together. Nick and Shelby from second shift sat with Zach, and also Kevin who had just started. Ed, from the overnight, who always seemed to look like he just woke up, with Jim and Judy. And John, the overnight waiter, who stood alone. Sam had seldom seen him sit down and had heard that he never slept, not in the sense that most people did. In long eight hour period. He would get off work at 8am and go run errands do things around the house, and then only sleep for one or two hour periods. He had gotten used to sleeping that way, Sam heard. It was hard to imagine. Sam had covered a few overnight's in the past, and when he had gotten out at 8 he had always been wiped. He had even gotten a six pack once after a shift, and had only drank two before passing out from sheer exhaustion.
Sam was sitting with Andrea in a booth by themselves. He was still somewhat possessive of her, as if he was afraid someone would come and take her away at any moment. They had smoked a joint on the way over, and we're feeling giggly. 'I wish we could have a burger, or some onion rings.' She said. 'Yeah, definitely.' 'Don't you want to introduce me to some of you're co-workers?' She asked. Sam nodded. He wasn't really sure why he brought he here, mainly so he wouldn't be alone here. But in the back of his mind he knew part of it was showing off. They had been sitting in a booth in the corner at first, still waiting for everyone to arrive. 'You know you don't have to be anti-social all the time.' She commented. 'Yeah I know.' Sam said and got up to rise. She seemed to have a lot of commentary like that. What he should do, pointing out little things and little nitpicks. She usually did it with a playful smile, but sometimes it wore on him.
Sam saw that Zach and Kevin were outside smoking cigarettes at the picnic table. 'Hey, Zach.' He began. 'What's going on?' Zach said. 'This is my girlfriend Andrea.' Zach smiled and shook her hand, 'I work at the liquor store, that's how we met.' She said giggling. 'That, figures.' Zach replied. They all laughed, Sam pretended do, but deep down it hurt. Did she have to mention that. Kevin got up, 'I'm Kevin.' He said to her. 'Nice to meet you.' She said shaking his hand. 'We've been closed for a long time now.' Sam said. 'Yeah,' Zach remarked. 'It sucks were starting back up now, I've been getting pretty nice checks.' Zach explained that the checks were based on the hours you worked right before the fire and he had been doing 50 plus hours up to that point. 'Yeah but I'm glad were going to be back up and running again.' Sam replied. He could see how Zach would enjoy it, as a person with an active social life. Getting paid, and not working, hanging out doing things, it must have felt like a long vacation for him.
Sam looked inside and saw that Gary was started to speak, with everyone gathered around. 'It looks like they're starting,' Sam said, and they headed inside. 'Everyone who is still here,' Gary began. 'Is here, you had a few weeks you could have gotten other jobs. So listen up, the company has now put a lot of money into repairing this place and getting new equipment. So it's not going to be like before. And if you wanted something else you would have got it.' Sam looked around at everyone's expressions. 'Safety is going to be number one, and were going to have real camera's this time. It's not going to be the same.' Sam held back a chuckle, Yeah right, he thought. Nothings going to change around here.
Headquarters
'I trust that Dave gave you the broad strokes of what were looking for in a candidate?' Steve Rogers asked. Alex Milton nodded, 'Yes, he did.' I thought I had this already, the job. This feels like another interview. He had already had two and on the second one Dave had assured him that the job was his, but this one felt like another grilling session. 'The culture,' Alex said. 'You need someone to change the culture of laziness and apathy that led to the fire.' 'Exactly,' Steve said, although his expression noticeably changed when Alex mentioned the fire. 'You see Frank was a good guy and a loyal employee of the company for many years, but Frank wouldn't stand up for himself. He had a hard time taking charge, telling people what to do. Actual managing. We tried to work with him over the years but obviously made little progress. The smoke breaks, employee's going outside for a half-hour 45 minutes at a time. These are the kinds of behavior we are looking to change over there. We think this Diner has the potential to make real money again and we need someone who feels as strongly about that as we do.' 'Absolutely,' Alex replied. 'What about this Gary person I've been hearing about?
Steve grinned, 'Alex, as far as Gary in concerned, all you need to know about him is that he's out. You're in. He just doesn't know it yet.' Nice, Alex thought. 'What we basically need is for you to come in, and take charge, change the paradigm.' 'So do you know when you're going to reopen?' Alex asked. 'We've almost completed the repairs, but we need to get the ok from the health inspector before we can resume operations. Tentatively we are thinking about a week or so, but we'll probably have you started about a week after opening. Do you have any other questions regarding the position?' Alex pondered for a moment. He wasn't sure if he should bring it up, but part of him felt it would be worth it to at least try. 'About the pay.. 'I know it's not what you're expecting.' Steve interrupted him. 'But I think based on Dave's endorsement and what I've observed interviewing you I think we can give you an extra dollar an hour.' 'Excellent.' Alex said. Steve stood up, 'Welcome aboard.' He said shaking Alex's hand. Going to have free reign, Alex thought to himself.
It was strange seeing all of them in the same room. All three shifts, some old, some young, quite a varying cast, Sam thought as he looked around. They were all gathered in the stools and booths of the restaurant, and it was interesting to see how the groups gathered together. Nick and Shelby from second shift sat with Zach, and also Kevin who had just started. Ed, from the overnight, who always seemed to look like he just woke up, with Jim and Judy. And John, the overnight waiter, who stood alone. Sam had seldom seen him sit down and had heard that he never slept, not in the sense that most people did. In long eight hour period. He would get off work at 8am and go run errands do things around the house, and then only sleep for one or two hour periods. He had gotten used to sleeping that way, Sam heard. It was hard to imagine. Sam had covered a few overnight's in the past, and when he had gotten out at 8 he had always been wiped. He had even gotten a six pack once after a shift, and had only drank two before passing out from sheer exhaustion.
Sam was sitting with Andrea in a booth by themselves. He was still somewhat possessive of her, as if he was afraid someone would come and take her away at any moment. They had smoked a joint on the way over, and we're feeling giggly. 'I wish we could have a burger, or some onion rings.' She said. 'Yeah, definitely.' 'Don't you want to introduce me to some of you're co-workers?' She asked. Sam nodded. He wasn't really sure why he brought he here, mainly so he wouldn't be alone here. But in the back of his mind he knew part of it was showing off. They had been sitting in a booth in the corner at first, still waiting for everyone to arrive. 'You know you don't have to be anti-social all the time.' She commented. 'Yeah I know.' Sam said and got up to rise. She seemed to have a lot of commentary like that. What he should do, pointing out little things and little nitpicks. She usually did it with a playful smile, but sometimes it wore on him.
Sam saw that Zach and Kevin were outside smoking cigarettes at the picnic table. 'Hey, Zach.' He began. 'What's going on?' Zach said. 'This is my girlfriend Andrea.' Zach smiled and shook her hand, 'I work at the liquor store, that's how we met.' She said giggling. 'That, figures.' Zach replied. They all laughed, Sam pretended do, but deep down it hurt. Did she have to mention that. Kevin got up, 'I'm Kevin.' He said to her. 'Nice to meet you.' She said shaking his hand. 'We've been closed for a long time now.' Sam said. 'Yeah,' Zach remarked. 'It sucks were starting back up now, I've been getting pretty nice checks.' Zach explained that the checks were based on the hours you worked right before the fire and he had been doing 50 plus hours up to that point. 'Yeah but I'm glad were going to be back up and running again.' Sam replied. He could see how Zach would enjoy it, as a person with an active social life. Getting paid, and not working, hanging out doing things, it must have felt like a long vacation for him.
Sam looked inside and saw that Gary was started to speak, with everyone gathered around. 'It looks like they're starting,' Sam said, and they headed inside. 'Everyone who is still here,' Gary began. 'Is here, you had a few weeks you could have gotten other jobs. So listen up, the company has now put a lot of money into repairing this place and getting new equipment. So it's not going to be like before. And if you wanted something else you would have got it.' Sam looked around at everyone's expressions. 'Safety is going to be number one, and were going to have real camera's this time. It's not going to be the same.' Sam held back a chuckle, Yeah right, he thought. Nothings going to change around here.
Thursday, July 24, 2014
Babylon is falling, it was foolish to build it on the sand
Zach racked the billiard balls in the center of the table and positioned them. He placed the white ball at the center of the table as he always did, 'Do you think you could get me in there?' Kevin asked, wiping the tip of his poolsitck with the chalk waiting his answer. Zach hesitated for a second, feigning that he was positioning his shot before answering. Kevin had asked the same question of him several times before, over the years and he had provided him with the same stock, ambiguous answer. They were hiring usually it was true. But what Zach feared the most was that they would be hiring, and Zach would give his ok and Kevin would get hired, and he would proceed to call out, no call no-show, or do something else preposterous and he would get blamed.
Kevin was a nice guy to associate with outside of work. He was pleasant somewhat normal, was easy to deal with, all around good guy. 'I'm not even sure when they're opening anyway. They haven't even started construction.' Zach began breaking the rack. Kevin watched as the balls dispersed, 'Yeah but wasn't that over a month ago?' He asked. 'Yeah but you know every time I ask Gary he give me a different answer.' Zach replied. He had told Kevin all about Gary, his wild stories, his claims of his vast wealth, his strange personality. But Kevin had also visited Zach at work before, smoked bowls in the shed, and in general had a pretty good idea how things were run over there. He knows, Zach thought, that is he get's in there he can pretty much get away with anything. Kevin took his shot and sank a solid in the corner pocket, 'I don't mean to bother you to much man, but I've been out of work for the past few months and my parents are starting to get on my ass. There's nothing out there, either.' He took another shot and got it in again.
Zach looked at the table to assess his next shot. He Kevin's parents getting 'On his ass.' was basically shorthand for they were going to kick him out of the house soon if he didn't get a job or do something with his life. Of course Kevin would never admit anything like that, but Zach had known him long enough to read between the lines, to read the subtext. Oftentimes it revealed far more then someone's actual speech. 'Well they got us watching the Diner now for six hours shifts or so, letting customers use the bathroom. I'm doing to tomorrow 12-6 if you want to come with, Gary will probably stop by at some point. We could definitely make a few trips out to the shed.' Zach lined up a shot and sunk a stripe. 'Yeah, sound good to me.' Kevin replied. I'm going to regret this, Zach thought. Oftentimes being a nice guy, didn't always pan out so well. There was always the off chance that Gary wouldn't hire him, wouldn't like him for some reason. However that seemed unlikely, as he seemed to hire just about anyone who applied. I suppose he couldn't be any worse then some of the people they hired..
'Do you have a passion for cooking?' Karl asked. 'Yeah, definitely.' Sam replied but with far less confident then he would have liked. It was a strange question to him and something he certainly had never asked himself before. When he had started at the diner he had little formal training, and the diner had taught him everything he knew. In truth he had applied for the job because the diner had been closed for over a month and it seemed as if little progress had been made in restoring the kitchen. They had started some of the work but it still was unclear when, if ever it would be done. Karl was the manager of the Inn a big man with a large head and a crushing handshake. He was seated in the lobby of the Inn, with two of the other Chef's Sara and Erik, all of whom asked him questions. Do you know how to make Hollandaise sauce? Can you work on your own with minimal supervision? Sam had managed to answer the question to the best of his abilities but he could sense he was falling short. Essentially what he conveyed to them was that although he may lack all the technical skills, he was adaptable and willing to learn. 'We like to think of ourselves as a learning kitchen so we can definitely show you some things if we think you're the right candidate for the position.' Chef Sara the head Chef said finally. 'So what we'd like to do is have you come in and do a bench test to see if you're a good fit. Can you come in tomorrow at 10?' 'Sure.' Sam replied.
'Ok, we'll see you then.' Sara answered. He shook hands with Karl and Erik and walked out of the lobby outside, it was warm but with a nice breeze. She was waiting outside, by his van looking at her phone. 'How did it go?' She asked as she saw him emerge. 'Ok I think,' Sam replied getting into driver's seat. 'Do I have a passion for cooking?' He asked her. Her name was Andrea and he still couldn't believe he'd actually hooked up with her. Mere weeks ago she had been merely a girl he had interacted with at the liquor store and sometimes talked to. 'I don't know, do you?' She asked innocently. 'I guess, I mean I like it sure. But why do I have to be so invested in it? Why do I have to have such specific reasons for wanted to work at a particular place? Maybe I just want the money. I mean if they get me in and I show up on time, work hard and get things done isn't it a win-win?' Sam answered.
He started the car and they pulled out. 'I think you overthink these things too much, Sam.' She remarked as they pulled out the parking lot down the main drive of the old historic village. 'Yeah maybe I do, it's just this is the first interview I've had for a new job in a while. I'm thinking I want to get out of there before they open back up.' 'You've been saying this since I met you, why don't you take action? Get out there?' She asked him as he turned on the main road. 'You're a tough audience aren't you?' Sam said jokingly. 'Well, its true. Nothing is ever going to change if you don't take the first steps.' She replied. 'Hey reach into the center console I got a half a joint in there. Light that up.' Andrea reached in and sparked it up. 'You certainly got a passion for smoking.' She said as she passed the joint over to him.
'Hey that's not fair,' Sam answered. 'I got a passion for banging. A passion for you.' She smiled and blushed a little. I certainly have that.
Kevin was a nice guy to associate with outside of work. He was pleasant somewhat normal, was easy to deal with, all around good guy. 'I'm not even sure when they're opening anyway. They haven't even started construction.' Zach began breaking the rack. Kevin watched as the balls dispersed, 'Yeah but wasn't that over a month ago?' He asked. 'Yeah but you know every time I ask Gary he give me a different answer.' Zach replied. He had told Kevin all about Gary, his wild stories, his claims of his vast wealth, his strange personality. But Kevin had also visited Zach at work before, smoked bowls in the shed, and in general had a pretty good idea how things were run over there. He knows, Zach thought, that is he get's in there he can pretty much get away with anything. Kevin took his shot and sank a solid in the corner pocket, 'I don't mean to bother you to much man, but I've been out of work for the past few months and my parents are starting to get on my ass. There's nothing out there, either.' He took another shot and got it in again.
Zach looked at the table to assess his next shot. He Kevin's parents getting 'On his ass.' was basically shorthand for they were going to kick him out of the house soon if he didn't get a job or do something with his life. Of course Kevin would never admit anything like that, but Zach had known him long enough to read between the lines, to read the subtext. Oftentimes it revealed far more then someone's actual speech. 'Well they got us watching the Diner now for six hours shifts or so, letting customers use the bathroom. I'm doing to tomorrow 12-6 if you want to come with, Gary will probably stop by at some point. We could definitely make a few trips out to the shed.' Zach lined up a shot and sunk a stripe. 'Yeah, sound good to me.' Kevin replied. I'm going to regret this, Zach thought. Oftentimes being a nice guy, didn't always pan out so well. There was always the off chance that Gary wouldn't hire him, wouldn't like him for some reason. However that seemed unlikely, as he seemed to hire just about anyone who applied. I suppose he couldn't be any worse then some of the people they hired..
'Do you have a passion for cooking?' Karl asked. 'Yeah, definitely.' Sam replied but with far less confident then he would have liked. It was a strange question to him and something he certainly had never asked himself before. When he had started at the diner he had little formal training, and the diner had taught him everything he knew. In truth he had applied for the job because the diner had been closed for over a month and it seemed as if little progress had been made in restoring the kitchen. They had started some of the work but it still was unclear when, if ever it would be done. Karl was the manager of the Inn a big man with a large head and a crushing handshake. He was seated in the lobby of the Inn, with two of the other Chef's Sara and Erik, all of whom asked him questions. Do you know how to make Hollandaise sauce? Can you work on your own with minimal supervision? Sam had managed to answer the question to the best of his abilities but he could sense he was falling short. Essentially what he conveyed to them was that although he may lack all the technical skills, he was adaptable and willing to learn. 'We like to think of ourselves as a learning kitchen so we can definitely show you some things if we think you're the right candidate for the position.' Chef Sara the head Chef said finally. 'So what we'd like to do is have you come in and do a bench test to see if you're a good fit. Can you come in tomorrow at 10?' 'Sure.' Sam replied.
'Ok, we'll see you then.' Sara answered. He shook hands with Karl and Erik and walked out of the lobby outside, it was warm but with a nice breeze. She was waiting outside, by his van looking at her phone. 'How did it go?' She asked as she saw him emerge. 'Ok I think,' Sam replied getting into driver's seat. 'Do I have a passion for cooking?' He asked her. Her name was Andrea and he still couldn't believe he'd actually hooked up with her. Mere weeks ago she had been merely a girl he had interacted with at the liquor store and sometimes talked to. 'I don't know, do you?' She asked innocently. 'I guess, I mean I like it sure. But why do I have to be so invested in it? Why do I have to have such specific reasons for wanted to work at a particular place? Maybe I just want the money. I mean if they get me in and I show up on time, work hard and get things done isn't it a win-win?' Sam answered.
He started the car and they pulled out. 'I think you overthink these things too much, Sam.' She remarked as they pulled out the parking lot down the main drive of the old historic village. 'Yeah maybe I do, it's just this is the first interview I've had for a new job in a while. I'm thinking I want to get out of there before they open back up.' 'You've been saying this since I met you, why don't you take action? Get out there?' She asked him as he turned on the main road. 'You're a tough audience aren't you?' Sam said jokingly. 'Well, its true. Nothing is ever going to change if you don't take the first steps.' She replied. 'Hey reach into the center console I got a half a joint in there. Light that up.' Andrea reached in and sparked it up. 'You certainly got a passion for smoking.' She said as she passed the joint over to him.
'Hey that's not fair,' Sam answered. 'I got a passion for banging. A passion for you.' She smiled and blushed a little. I certainly have that.
Sunday, July 13, 2014
The charlatan
This will be the one, Alex Milton thought as he drove down the the highway. This will be the one that I'll get that will take me out of this slump. He said that word to himself as he drove, like a mantra. The same mantra he had been repeating to himself for the past eight months. Of course it had seemed true for the last few places, he had gotten a second interview and things seemed to be going well, but then it had fallen through. Collapsed. Usually shortly after they had checked his references, either they didn't respond of they told him they weren't interested. It was hard to tell which was worse, a non-response was obviously bad, they didn't even take the time to tell him they didn't want him for the job, but telling him in some ways was just as bad. Sure they would usually say they would take him into consideration for future openings but that did him little good. For him the future was now, and as it stood right now the future looked bleak, desolate. In fact, as far
as he knew if this interview didn't go as he hoped it would he was through. Finished. His wife would leave him, she had all but said it before, and in the long run his unemployment would run out. He had heard horror stories on the new's about the long term unemployed, how the government had cut off their benefits, how they had struggled to find work. That's not going to be me, Alex thought as he looked at the highway sign reading '91' in large dark letters. This has to work, he saw 'F.R. Rogers' printed in large letters on the side of their headquarters and knew he was close. Here we go, he thought.
Dave sat at his desk looking at the resume thinking he might have struck gold. That perhaps, despite all of his thoughts to the contrary that he might have found what he was looking for. A spotty resume, sketchy reasons for leaving his previous positions, and just enough management experience to sell it to upper management. The day before had been all headaches, interviews, looking at resume's, having to evaluate every little detail, Having to tell qualified applicant's that they would let them know. A few were bad, maybe what he was looking for but not quite bad enough, not enough to bring the thing down. They had just started rebuilding the kitchen in the diner and daily and they had kept pestering him, 'When will you find a new manager?' 'What's going on with the job search?' He had been able to stall them for a bit, explaining that he had a lot of people to go over, interviews to conduct, but still they had persisted.
Dave took a percocet from his pocket and popped it in his mouth. He chased it down with coffee from his desk. He had had to pull some strings to get the prescription, claiming back pain, but it had been worth it. He still had a prescription for the Xanax but at this point it hadn't really done much good, he had developed a tolerance to it, he had 3 before coming into the office, so he needed something to combine it with. So far it seemed to work, although he caught himself nodding off a few times. The phone rang, 'Hello, Dave.' He answered. 'An Alex Milton to see you for an interview.' his secretary replied on the line. 'Send him in.' Dave responded. Fuck, he thought, I got to do another interview. He had done a few before and they had all been nauseating, all these damn over achievers talking about how great they were.
Alex had been different. He was confident, but it was obvious that it was misplaced. The door opened, and Alex walked in, Dave rose. 'Thanks for coming back for a second interview.' Dave said shaking his hand. 'Have a seat.' Dave gestured toward the seat in front of his desk. 'Now that you are here, I'm interested why do you want to work for F.R. Rogers company?' Because it's a job with a paycheck, Alex thought but he restrained himself. 'Well I am interested in the opportunity to improve you're business, improve revenue.' 'Improve how?' Dave asked, enjoying the exchange. 'Well I heard the diner burned down, and that the former manager might have been the one responsible.' Dave paused for a moment, to suppress a laugh. If only they had finished the job, he thought. 'Well that's true Alex, and I think that also the problem that we at the diner was something like a culture. A sort of acceptance of mediocrity of thing being, 'Just the way they are,' and not attempting to aim higher.' 'Absolutely,' Alex said. 'And I think as you're new manager I can bring all of that to the table. I can change the culture.'
Dave smiled, 'Alex I think you're going to have a bright future with F.R. Rogers.' He rose and shook his hand. This is the one, he thought, this is the one who can bring it all down.
as he knew if this interview didn't go as he hoped it would he was through. Finished. His wife would leave him, she had all but said it before, and in the long run his unemployment would run out. He had heard horror stories on the new's about the long term unemployed, how the government had cut off their benefits, how they had struggled to find work. That's not going to be me, Alex thought as he looked at the highway sign reading '91' in large dark letters. This has to work, he saw 'F.R. Rogers' printed in large letters on the side of their headquarters and knew he was close. Here we go, he thought.
Dave sat at his desk looking at the resume thinking he might have struck gold. That perhaps, despite all of his thoughts to the contrary that he might have found what he was looking for. A spotty resume, sketchy reasons for leaving his previous positions, and just enough management experience to sell it to upper management. The day before had been all headaches, interviews, looking at resume's, having to evaluate every little detail, Having to tell qualified applicant's that they would let them know. A few were bad, maybe what he was looking for but not quite bad enough, not enough to bring the thing down. They had just started rebuilding the kitchen in the diner and daily and they had kept pestering him, 'When will you find a new manager?' 'What's going on with the job search?' He had been able to stall them for a bit, explaining that he had a lot of people to go over, interviews to conduct, but still they had persisted.
Dave took a percocet from his pocket and popped it in his mouth. He chased it down with coffee from his desk. He had had to pull some strings to get the prescription, claiming back pain, but it had been worth it. He still had a prescription for the Xanax but at this point it hadn't really done much good, he had developed a tolerance to it, he had 3 before coming into the office, so he needed something to combine it with. So far it seemed to work, although he caught himself nodding off a few times. The phone rang, 'Hello, Dave.' He answered. 'An Alex Milton to see you for an interview.' his secretary replied on the line. 'Send him in.' Dave responded. Fuck, he thought, I got to do another interview. He had done a few before and they had all been nauseating, all these damn over achievers talking about how great they were.
Alex had been different. He was confident, but it was obvious that it was misplaced. The door opened, and Alex walked in, Dave rose. 'Thanks for coming back for a second interview.' Dave said shaking his hand. 'Have a seat.' Dave gestured toward the seat in front of his desk. 'Now that you are here, I'm interested why do you want to work for F.R. Rogers company?' Because it's a job with a paycheck, Alex thought but he restrained himself. 'Well I am interested in the opportunity to improve you're business, improve revenue.' 'Improve how?' Dave asked, enjoying the exchange. 'Well I heard the diner burned down, and that the former manager might have been the one responsible.' Dave paused for a moment, to suppress a laugh. If only they had finished the job, he thought. 'Well that's true Alex, and I think that also the problem that we at the diner was something like a culture. A sort of acceptance of mediocrity of thing being, 'Just the way they are,' and not attempting to aim higher.' 'Absolutely,' Alex said. 'And I think as you're new manager I can bring all of that to the table. I can change the culture.'
Dave smiled, 'Alex I think you're going to have a bright future with F.R. Rogers.' He rose and shook his hand. This is the one, he thought, this is the one who can bring it all down.
Thursday, July 10, 2014
'
`They got new camera's now,' Jim said as he took a sip of beers. They're going to be able to watch you know from headquarters, and if they look at the feed and see that you aren't doing any work they're going to call the restaurant and send you home.' 'Shit.' Sam said without much emphasis, it seemed unlikely unless something about the diner fundamentally changed. It had been over two weeks since the fire and there was still no sign that work on rebuilding the kitchen was being done, or when it would even begin. The first couple weeks had been ok, not having to work and getting paid, but after a little while it was dull. He missed the structure the orders of the day, he missed cooking. 'It's been hard the past few weeks,' Sam began, 'I sounds strange but I kind of miss the place.' 'Yup.' Jim nodded.
Jim had hardly exchanged more than a word or two to Sam when they were at work. Usually a, 'Hi,' or sometimes a non-verbal nod, but when he had run into him at the bar it seemed like you couldn't shut him up. They had talked for a while. Sam had run into Jim and Judy at the Afterworks shortly after he had shown up. He had gone down to the bar only after he had a 22 and a couple of shots, mainly on a whimsy. The sheer novelty of it, heading out into the world of people, had appealed to him. The bar, it was probably the single most inefficient and expensive method of getting drunk but he had gone. Mainly because he already had a 22 and a shot at home right before. It was the only way of making it work, making it worth extra expense.
Sam had hardly been in there five minutes before Jim and Judy had shown up, and they had exchanged greetings. 'I was over there watching the place and it looked like they hadn't even started.' Sam remarked.
'Yeah,' Jim said. 'Gary said we should open up again by Thanksgiving, but who knows with him?' Sam laughed. 'It's ok, he doesn't really need to work, he's a millionaire!' Jim laughed. They regaled each other with Gary stories, how he had a house on Cape Cod worth 90 million dollars, all the tales. Jim had been buying him beers through it all, further fueling the conversation.
Sam was starting to feel the effects. 'I'm gonna head back.' He said. 'Watch out,' Judy warned. 'The Deerfield Police hang out waiting for people coming out.' Sam nodded and got out. He had the feeling that people were watching him. He always had that feeling, that when he walked into a room or a situation, he was the odd man out, somehow unwelcome. Estranged, the air was cold on his face. He looked at his
phone, she still had not called. They had a somewhat strange date a few days before and she hadn't called,
since. It wasn't horrible but it wasn't great either, Sam thought as he walked over to his van. In the back of
his mine he wondered openly if he didn't want her to call back, to respond. If it was something like a dog
chasing a squirrel or a rat and, on the rare instance in which he caught it, wasn't really sure what to do with it.
there was a lot of pressure involved, to perform, to be the man.
Amazing, Sam thought as he walked to his van and opened the door. This simple thing this
liquid, something so simple, can take us somewhere else. Can have such an impact, that we spend so much
just so that we can be taken, however briefly, to somewhere else. It was hard to tell if he had made a good
impression, a bad impression, or any impression at all for that matter. He never knew
how to gauge females, or if what he was doing was working. He had been 'out of work',
so to speak for quite some time, and had gotten used to it. Before, he hadn't thought of it
as something anyone could get used to but slowly he had adapted.
Being single was like being marooned on a deserted isle. The first step was denial,
'It's ok, a ship will come soon, help is on the way.' Then of course, after a few weeks,
when it becomes painfully obvious that help is not coming, and that, in fact, no is even
searching for you, comes a grudging acceptance. A certain frame of mind that no help
is actually forthcoming, but maybe actually, if you can stay together and get through it
you might realize that, your alright by yourself.
Sam as he saw it, was far beyond all of these stages. He was Colonel Kurtz at the end
of 'Apocolypse Now' being worshipped by thousands of natives. He pulled out a nip
from the dashboard and finished it, as he did he noticed a text come up on his phone.
He threw the nip in the center console and picked up his phone. 'Hey, wanna hang out?'
it read, a way out, to civilization, he thought.
`They got new camera's now,' Jim said as he took a sip of beers. They're going to be able to watch you know from headquarters, and if they look at the feed and see that you aren't doing any work they're going to call the restaurant and send you home.' 'Shit.' Sam said without much emphasis, it seemed unlikely unless something about the diner fundamentally changed. It had been over two weeks since the fire and there was still no sign that work on rebuilding the kitchen was being done, or when it would even begin. The first couple weeks had been ok, not having to work and getting paid, but after a little while it was dull. He missed the structure the orders of the day, he missed cooking. 'It's been hard the past few weeks,' Sam began, 'I sounds strange but I kind of miss the place.' 'Yup.' Jim nodded.
Jim had hardly exchanged more than a word or two to Sam when they were at work. Usually a, 'Hi,' or sometimes a non-verbal nod, but when he had run into him at the bar it seemed like you couldn't shut him up. They had talked for a while. Sam had run into Jim and Judy at the Afterworks shortly after he had shown up. He had gone down to the bar only after he had a 22 and a couple of shots, mainly on a whimsy. The sheer novelty of it, heading out into the world of people, had appealed to him. The bar, it was probably the single most inefficient and expensive method of getting drunk but he had gone. Mainly because he already had a 22 and a shot at home right before. It was the only way of making it work, making it worth extra expense.
Sam had hardly been in there five minutes before Jim and Judy had shown up, and they had exchanged greetings. 'I was over there watching the place and it looked like they hadn't even started.' Sam remarked.
'Yeah,' Jim said. 'Gary said we should open up again by Thanksgiving, but who knows with him?' Sam laughed. 'It's ok, he doesn't really need to work, he's a millionaire!' Jim laughed. They regaled each other with Gary stories, how he had a house on Cape Cod worth 90 million dollars, all the tales. Jim had been buying him beers through it all, further fueling the conversation.
Sam was starting to feel the effects. 'I'm gonna head back.' He said. 'Watch out,' Judy warned. 'The Deerfield Police hang out waiting for people coming out.' Sam nodded and got out. He had the feeling that people were watching him. He always had that feeling, that when he walked into a room or a situation, he was the odd man out, somehow unwelcome. Estranged, the air was cold on his face. He looked at his
phone, she still had not called. They had a somewhat strange date a few days before and she hadn't called,
since. It wasn't horrible but it wasn't great either, Sam thought as he walked over to his van. In the back of
his mine he wondered openly if he didn't want her to call back, to respond. If it was something like a dog
chasing a squirrel or a rat and, on the rare instance in which he caught it, wasn't really sure what to do with it.
there was a lot of pressure involved, to perform, to be the man.
Amazing, Sam thought as he walked to his van and opened the door. This simple thing this
liquid, something so simple, can take us somewhere else. Can have such an impact, that we spend so much
just so that we can be taken, however briefly, to somewhere else. It was hard to tell if he had made a good
impression, a bad impression, or any impression at all for that matter. He never knew
how to gauge females, or if what he was doing was working. He had been 'out of work',
so to speak for quite some time, and had gotten used to it. Before, he hadn't thought of it
as something anyone could get used to but slowly he had adapted.
Being single was like being marooned on a deserted isle. The first step was denial,
'It's ok, a ship will come soon, help is on the way.' Then of course, after a few weeks,
when it becomes painfully obvious that help is not coming, and that, in fact, no is even
searching for you, comes a grudging acceptance. A certain frame of mind that no help
is actually forthcoming, but maybe actually, if you can stay together and get through it
you might realize that, your alright by yourself.
Sam as he saw it, was far beyond all of these stages. He was Colonel Kurtz at the end
of 'Apocolypse Now' being worshipped by thousands of natives. He pulled out a nip
from the dashboard and finished it, as he did he noticed a text come up on his phone.
He threw the nip in the center console and picked up his phone. 'Hey, wanna hang out?'
it read, a way out, to civilization, he thought.
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