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9:37 p.m. - Sunday 4/29/01 Even bugging them for a set part-time schedule could backfire. It might be better to just go with whatever they want, then if and when some acting thing comes up, I can walk in and say "I have a gig. Till now, I've been very agreeable, so I think it's your turn to be agreeable with ME". And if they're not? Screw them--I'll take my limited skill-set ELSEWHERE! ( Brave talk for a guy who's been crying like a little girl over his scary money situation, but there it is. ) I worked this morning, and it was pretty frustrating. It's another reason it occurs to me, "Hey, I don't think I WANT to be here full-time!". So what was the problem? In a word--staffing. For the morning, there was basically one register person, one info counter person ( Yours Truly ), one cafe person, one music person, and the manager. For a two story, 28,000 sq ft store in Los Angeles. I didn't perceive it to be that busy, but it didn't HAVE to be; As info-counter guy, my job was to answer the phones and help any customers in the store with questions, taking them to the sections, or running around to find their books for them ( The store is in better shape than when I first saw it, but it's still a roll of the dice whether a book will be anywhere near where it's supposed to be on the shelf ). I'm actually MOTIVATED to be helpful. I kind of like people, by and large, and since this is supposed to be the thing I'm really good at, I think it would be nice if I were, well, really GOOD at it. But today, the phone would be ringing off the hook as I tried to find a book for someone else as a third person was waiting at the counter ( At Borders, unlike my old bookstore, you're only supposed to do THE thing you're assigned to do--You don't go to the register and jump in when you're supposed to be at "I-One", or help someone find a book when you're at the register. If you're shelving, and there's a phone page for "backup" at info or the registers, then you go, but otherwise you just do what you do no matter what else is going on in the store ). I didn't feel like circumstances ALLOWED me to be all that helpful today. Anyway, it was a very tiring three hours. At 1 pm, I was quite happy to go home ( I don't have any sense of whether this is the way things are or if they're bad now and due to improve--This is not the first time I've thought they were "understaffed" since I signed on--but as "the new guy", I think it would probably behoove me to keep my mouth shut. I don't want the main impression people form of me here to be "Complaining Guy" ). But one cool thing did happen today. I met Paul Giamatti (sp?). He's a character actor I've seen in any number of movies--"The Negotiator" and "Private Parts" come to mind--and an actor that has given me a lot of hope in the past ( Hope that you can be an odd-looking guy and be viable in Hollywood ). It wasn't any deeply meaningful thing. I just saw him, acknowledged him, and we both went on with our lives ( Actually, I was vaguely embarrassed by something I said; I made what I'd hoped would be a flattering/humorous reference to "wanting to be him" when I "grew up". I think he was a little confused by that--quite understandably--since for one thing, I hadn't introduced myself as an actor, and for another, appear to be OLDER than he is. But whatever; My HEART was in the right place, and he seemed pleased to be recognized ). But back to the staffing thing... If today was just circumstances, no big deal. But I found myself thinking if that's the way Borders is going to do business, I might not want to stay with this organization any longer than I have to. I guess the best thing would be for me to hurry up and get famous. That way, all this money/job stuff would be moot. That sure would be nice... 0 comments so far 
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