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11:28 pm - Weds 7/20/05
Dancing On The Edge

Dancing On The Edge

A short time ago, I was writing offline about So You Think You Can Dance? (I enjoyed it tonite, though not without some reservations), Dancing With The Stars (John O'Hurley got ripped off, in my opinion, but I enjoyed the show nevertheless), and Fred Astaire movies (A Fred and Ginger box set--Vol 1--is due out next month, and I think I have to have it).

It was kind of turning into a "dance" entry, but I realized I was starting to bore myself--and if I'm bored writing something, how much more bored are you going to be reading it?--so anyway, I'm going to move on now...

Sad news on the bookstore front--Joe R. is no longer with the operation.

Joe--who along with Tim G., was one of the last people my age working at the store--was fired Monday morning.

The ostensible "reason", the justification David could "hang his hat on", so to speak, were the RPLs (The list of books to be returned to the publisher)--Joe was the Inventory Manager, and the RPLs, which are due by a certain date, were not getting done on time.

Never mind that, thanks to David's "management style", there's been such a high rate of employee attrition at the store that Joe has been required to do more and more to take up the slack (We have probably lost more people in a shorter period of time than in any time since I started, back in April '01)

Never mind that Joe is not the one who does the scheduling (David is).

Never mind that if you lined up all the employees in the store and asked them who the best worker in the store was, everyone but Craig (Who's "Smithers" to David's "Mr Burns") would say Joe.

The whole thing is so much bullshit, basically, and people (Including this "people") are pissed.

I think what happened is that David heard Joe was looking for another job, and knew that, like Brad W., Joe would likely forward his resignation to David's higher-ups, with a detailed criticism of David's stint as GM.
And the RPL thing was a smokescreen for David basically trying to cut Joe off at the knees before he got in more trouble with his bosses (After Brad's letter, they came in--on a day I was off--and interviewed the staff. Nothing really came of it, but I imagine David's had better days).

Previously, David fired John C. two days before he was leaving anyway (Because John called out one day during his last week there, and that was his "final occurrence"), so there's a precedent for David firing people when he knows they're about to quit (Or in John C's case, firing them after they've actually given notice).

People think that Tim G. is probably next on the chopping block.

Happily, Joe already has another job, and if David goes after Tim next, Tim has a brother and sister-and-law here he can probably stay with till he finds something else.

I don't know if I'm on the "hit list" or not--I'm sure David knows I don't like him, but I'm not "management", so I may not be worth the bother--but I think, for safety's sake, I have to start acting as if my days are numbered.

(Joe suggested to me at one point that the cut in hours I've experienced--Since before this past Xmas, I've worked 20 less hours a month--was in retaliation for telling David the truth about how I thought things were going in the store. Live and learn--I used to think that when someone asked for your opinion, they actually wanted to hear it.)

So, in the interest of shoring up my "exit strategy", I'm going to Central Casting tomorrow, and applying to be in their stable of union extras.

And now that I almost-successfully faxed Jane--I sent her a cover page and a blank page (Ooops...!)--I think I'm ready to start applying to loan signing agencies.

I tell you, this would be a really good time for me to book that big national I've been hoping for...

____________________

The time's kind of gotten away from me (It takes a really long time for me to write these things. Hard to believe, I imagine, but true nevertheless).

Lest you think that I'm all about the negative, a couple really good things have happened to me lately...

1. A friend and well-wisher sent me a lovely card and a generous check, saying "I believe in you".

2. Two Actors Co-op "workshops" I was on the waiting list for this month have opened up, and I got all five "workshops" I wanted to attend next month.

3. Yesterday I was able to check out a copy of the new "Harry Potter".

4. Nikki loaned me her copy of Mulholland Drive.

5. A production company sent me a copy of the "Canadian Bank" spec commercial I did without my having to harangue them about it.

Well, I've got more written down in my "pocket journal", but I'm feeling too lazy to go look.

Besides, I've gotta download directions to Central Casting off Mapquest, then hit the hay.

I'm ready for another really big, positive thing to break for me. It very much feels like change is in the wind, and though I'm not really a religious man, I wouldn't mind getting a sign from God/The Universe/Whatever, telling me that I'm headed in the right direction, and things are going to be A-Ok.

Good nite, one and all...


 

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