With Gusto

The Folks At Work

For the past week, I've been working in an appliance warehouse. We're behind a large showroom. The showroom being pristine and full of appearance, like the front end of a restaurant, and the warehouse being sort of sketchy and upfront, like a restaurant's kitchen.
There are many types of folks who swing by the garage doors of the warehouse. Here's a list of the types.

SALESMEN
There are no women.
There is
- A Mormon, who disapproves of the porn in the warehouse washroom. He's prone to preaching, though he hasn't hit me yet.
- "Sport," a young guy with a faux-hawk. Talks a lot about the people in Vegas he knows, the large-scale concerts he puts on. Drives his mom's car. Talks like he owns the place. "Hey Matt, could you set aside boxes for me. I'm moving. If you could get on that it'd be great."
Sure thing, Sport.
- A nice, normal guy, who everyone likes.
- A bearded dude who comes up to the warehouse, asks questions like, "Do you have an ERM89XFQ? It was supposed to come off the truck. . ."
- The assistant manager. A guy I quite like actually. He's had a rough path -- doctor's ruined an organ during routine procedure, he flipped out, lived in the woods for the months eating local flora and drinking river mater. Parasites built up and he had a stroke. Walks with canes.
- The manager, always busy. I'll be doing some casual work -- splitting cardboard, hauling refrigderators -- and he'll burst out from around a corner muttering to himself what's on his mind, tell me to do something, and disappear.

30-40 foot trucks come and go. They pick up deliveries. With the trucks, come the drivers.

DRIVERS
Twitch -- a hard guy to like. Notorious for dropping and breaking expensive appliances. He has a massive red goatee that runs from half-way down each side of his jaw-line. It hangs about three or four inches off his face. Always complaining. Rumour has it he has two problems: drugs, and alcohol. Everywhere I go, I hear people going on about him.
Loads of other drivers, most of whom are chipper enough. They come and go.

In the warehouse there are the shipping/receivers, but also glass installers. Not much to mention about them. Though one is a talented musician. This be-quirks me. I take cardboard from them and slice it up.

SHIPPING/RECEIVING

The boss of the warehouse is likable -- always laughing at himself and others. Usually on it. Been there almost a decade. Also a rough path -- lost it all to meth, lost a child to the highway. Short, stocky, shaved head. Let's me do my own thing, he does his.

The other guy besides me reminds me of my younger brother -- tall, muscular, upfront, but friendly. Talks a lot about Mexico, studying foreign literature at UVic, a doctor's son. He and the warehouse boss eat a lot of fast food, which tempts me -- especially when there's KFC filling the air. Oh -- a big crunch! Don't lead me astray, keep my dietary sins at bay, and don't let me fall.

Posted by matty-b at July 20, 2005 6:42 PM