As summer 2008 slowly draws to a conclusion, I am taking inventory of the pros and cons of yet another summer in Wildwood. My loyal blog readers and subscribers are by now well versed with my present conundrum and situation. But for those who aren't, a brief breakdown:
After much deliberation and upon returning from yet another sojourn out in the glorious bounty of Lake Tahoe (my other residence), I decided to "feel out" my options for making a meaningful summer in Wildwood. To my chagrin, things turned out quite differently than I expected. Most notably, my previous employer "The Admiral" decided to "cut corners", owing to an anticipated poor season. Not to mention some overhead expenses - with me as one of the "corners" being cut.
Desperately seeking similar employment prospects, I found nil to zil, ultimately settling for a middling position as a parking lot jockey. The parking lot position is one I am more than intimately familiar with, having worked it in summers past from time to time. I first started it in 1991 and also worked it during the summers of 1996 and 1998. A primary job for me in 1991 as a 20 year old, I fell back on the "old standby" during a dearth of more conventional job prospects as well as using it as a means of supplemental income. Originally, the parking lot was exclusively owned and operated by a friend of mine, of which I became acquainted through via Bart. As of late, the lot operation (like most things) has expanded its scope. It now entails 4 different lots in addition to a bike rental business.
Back in the 90s, my work experiences at the lot were largely a casual affair. It was not unusual for me to be able to relax a bit between lulls, catching up on reading, and getting a mean tan in the process. That situation still holds true to some extent as of present - barring the times of when I am assigned work at the dreaded "odd lot".
This particular lot is the "ugly red headed stepchild" of the whole collective. Assimilated during the expansion of operations a number of years ago, the odd lot is unique in contrast to the others as it is a loosely grouped amalgam of three lots, topped off by a bike, stroller, and wheelchair rental business that resides in the front.
As opposed to the other parking lot properties which are generally much more easier and seamless to manage, the odd lot requires a constant vigil of engagement and divided attention, to the point of heavy distraction. There is no clear vantage point as one is required to constantly circulate around the premises owing to multiple entry points.
In addition to the aforementioned, the bike biz is kept open long after its competitors have closed. Usually, there is always a customer waiting for assistance. Such a patron tends to be oblivious to the on duty attendant who is "M.I.A.", often running ragged around to collect the payment. Then, throw in a vain attempt to shoehorn some errant, ungodly vehicle into a parking spot. This scenario often unfolds while the would-be patron waits for said attendant to show up and lend some assist, baffled by the apparent empty staffed shop.
Anyone with any semblance of deductive reasoning will likely conclude the true underlying basis behind this chaotic mayhem - this is really a position for more than one person to undertake. To be frank, the particular owner of this "odd lot" is a cheapskate. For a very meager $7.50 an hour (good thing I have other more viable sources of revenue to subsist on), one is "expected" to run these three disparate lots AND a rental operation simultaneously.
This particular manager I contend with on this property is not the "friend" I have known for almost 20 years - but a loosely designated "business partner" who has his own firm ideas of how to run "things" to the point of severe micro-management. And friends, I do not respond to micro management well at all, especially when being heaped with erratic duties and very substandard pay.
If this "occupation" was the sole means of my income at present, I suspect that many of you would be reading my obituary as opposed to this blog post. But the gods it seems are not so callow for such a fate to befall me. I remind myself that I could have very easily sat on my ass all summer and live off of my computer repair earnings as well as whatever savings I have managed to accrue. But I didn't - in spite of a clear and present economic downturn. I decided to work as a peon for a spell, if only to maintain the illusion of working (heh heh).
Don't get me wrong, a good amount of the times I have spent working this "job" over the summer have been okay, even daresay, enjoyable. At times I have been the recipient of a good deal of very positive energy from customers, wishing me (a humble peasant) everything from having a very beautiful day to blessings and compliments for courteous and diligent service. In addition, the "competitor" to this odd lot across the street is friendly towards me as well, offering to buy me a soda or free food from his pizza shop. I freely admit that I do like interacting with the public overall.
But again, whenever I am assigned to work the infamous "odd lot", one can usually anticipate some form of unevenness. Seldom am I able to take matters casually and smoothly as this particular lot manager insists on making my responsibilities as laborious as possible. All of this is extremely counterproductive as I only perform to what I am being compensated for. Don't get me wrong, I'll do what is needed and within reasonable means. However, to exploit my services into tending to three lots and a bike rental business for a wage that makes McDonald's look flattering is a pipedream, suckah.
As an aside, here's a "note" to this cheapskate "manager": you need to hire someone else to share in the workload. At the "salary" you're offering, I am certain you will manage to find some hapless foreign summer worker eager to make a buckeroo - before said "wage slave" shoves off back to Maldovia. Of course, you'll be peering and spying on this poor fool from your "crow's nest" to ensure maximum "productivity". The "crow's nest" I allude to is the summer residence of this manager. Of which resides in the center of the lot property, affording him the means to easily survey and commandeer the business operation. The whole thing is a joke.
My point of contention is that my "assignments" to this particular lot have proved to be the fly in the ointment to what would have been (for once) a breezy and unhurried summer. And I have noticed that I have been disproportionately assigned this lot more than anyone else, always entailing a full work day. Ironically, "Oscar" and Sean (who complains and gripes about everything under the sun and his "lot" at working the lots) have only worked this "odd lot" but once, during last summer.
For the record, "Oscar" bungled the operations there so badly, he was permanently reassigned the easiest lot to manage. Sean also receives the benefit of this same lot assignment. He usually arrives almost a half hour late, ultimately hiding out inside a shed of which affords him a place for his laptop, radio, and some shading. Sean is also free of the chore of racing around his lot as there is a singular point of entry and departure. Add to this equation a lack of supervision and it's virtually parking lot nirvana. And yet, he complains.
I had rationalized that I "deserved" the luck of the draw regarding my disproportionate assignments to this "odd lot" as I was the last in line for working there. A lot more "work" is involved but that has never deterred me previously. But dealing with someone who is regarded privately (and not so privately) by many as something of a "kook" does not make my workday any easier. In spite of my diatribe, I personally find that this manager is actually a relatively decent guy with some merits. But be assured, he has more than a few eccentricities and peccadilloes. I don't really dislike him - only how he attempts to run his "ship" when I am on it. Ugh. Time for a mutiny.
But avast ye mateys! I see through my telescope from atop the crow's nest (the manager in question is monetarily getting grub in the galley) the approach of autumn! Right over the horizon no less! Land ahoy!
Yes, soon this too will be but a memory. One I swear I will never repeat. I've had enough with these lots...if I ever work in such a capacity again, it will be as a manager and owner. THAT'S where the money is!
In closing, I managed to read a copy of The Tahoe Tribune today. The Tahoe Tribube is the daily free paper of my "other" town, South Lake Tahoe, California. Pal Brian recently subscribed to having it home delivered, affording me a tangible read reminiscent of my routine back in...Lake Tahoe of course. If only two weeks late.
After scouring the pages of the paper, I realize that I am missing out on more than just the beauty and "heavenly" weather there. South Lake Tahoe is host to a positively huge series of outdoor concerts that carry on for weeks. These concerts feature a very nice cross section of performers and artists of all stripes, all in the pristine sheen of the great outdoors that only Tahoe can offer. To my delight, one of my favorite artists Steely Dan had recently performed there - of which I would have LOVED to have seen in that setting. Damn.
Drawing a parallel to Wildwood in this regard, the only "notable" act to grace our shores this summer was Raven Symone. Hmmmm. Guess where I would prefer to be? Also, I must state some of the other (to date) "disappointments of this summer. My two special ladies, my prized "chicas", have yet to visit me here. Mary, I fully understand the reasons behind not being able to get together last month - so PLEASE don't interpret this as a "dis".
All I am saying is it would have been genuinely nice to have had the opportunity to "hang" out with you and yours. Carol, no "dissin'" to you either but again, it would have been the "beez kneez" to have seen you "down the shore" also - and even better in conjunction with Mary! (I know I am sounding a bit overstated here but I'm not editing myself like Beavis once said). I ask and beg of you...please don't compel me to leave the paradise of my beloved Tahoe with the tempestuous fruits of Wildwood's wonders ever again! It was a poorer and shallower summer without ye. The allure of Tahoe has intensified even further.
Ah, all I can do is lament on what might have been. So ladies, don't sweat it. It ain't sour grapes or gripes...just an uncensored expression of my feelings. Yeah, I would have loved for all of us to have some shindig down here. But reality still bites.
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