As I was perusing the top news headlines this morning, I realized that the most interesting and by far the most depressing news topics ranged from a US Government shutdown to Jesuit pedophiles to a young man overdosing on soy sauce. And as I prepare to sum up these news stories for you, I think to myself yet again, What is the world coming to?
First up: The United States Federal Government is at serious risk of having to shut down for a few days. Why? Because we as a country are broke and our brave leaders can't sit in a room together long enough to figure out where to cut $60 billion worth of spending in order to continue to pay the outrageous salaries that we are providing for many of our government workers. Unless they come up with something by April 5 (so that they can have the bill publicized 72 hours before their deadline, April 8th), our government will literally be shut down because we cannot afford to run it.
Maybe they should just raise gas prices to try and scrape a little extra money together.
Oh, wait...
Or maybe they could sue the Jesuits of the U.S. Northwest for sexual abuse. Which is what about 500 former students of boarding schools run by the Society of Jesus are doing in exchange for a $166 million settlement. It will come as no surprise to you that the Jesuit Order is also in the throes of bankruptcy, due mostly to the fact that they had to dole out another $55 million in sexual abuse "reparations" not too long ago. Why the Roman Catholic Church does not have a more thorough screening process for priestly candidates continues to elude me. Not only do these pedophiles stain the reputation of Catholicism, but it's obviously costing the Church a great deal of cash. At least they have a good insurance policy. Although frankly, if they keep getting sued for sexually victimizing children, somehow I think it's going to become increasingly difficult for them to find a company that is willing to insure them. And honestly, I don't think sexual abuse charges should be something for which you can appeal to your insurance policy anyway. Sexual abuse isn't an accident, like a fire or a flood (even one brought on by the Almighty)--it's a purposeful act that the Church is enabling by placing psychologically ill men in situations where they have the opportunity to take advantage of children who trust them.
Speaking of trust issues and--while we're at it--a desperate longing for acceptance and a sense of belonging, our final news story tells the fate of a young man who was dared to chug a bottle of soy sauce. A pledge at the University of Virginia Zeta Psi fraternity, he took the dare no doubt in order to gain the respect and admiration of his potential brothers. That, or people just like watching other people nearly kill themselves. Apparently there are a surprising amount of people on this earth who do not realize that too much of anything will kill you. Even water. According to this story, too much soy sauce will cause you to fall into a fit of seizures and begin foaming at the mouth.
While most of the spectators probably thought that the young pledge was in the process of turning into a zombie, at least one of the frat brothers had the presence of mind to drive him to the emergency room. He was placed in critical condition after they realized he had ingested a dangerous amount of sodium, but he survived. Now authorities are speculating as to whether this U-Va fraternity is committing the misdemeanor of hazing its pledges. Their main reason for speculation? Meals fed to pledges that consist of dog food, matzo balls, gefilte fish, and soy sauce. Let's see, Virginia Police, if a fraternity is making its pledges eat something that makes one gag merely at the thought of the ingredients, I'd say that's hazing.
As I sit here trying to get the thought of soy sauce out of my mental mouth, the only thing I can think of to sum up this post is to wish America the best of luck.
Looks like we're going to need it.
http://www.washingtonpost.com/politics/odds-of-government-shutdown-increase-as-breakdown-in-budget-talks-leads-to-public-sniping/2011/03/26/AFvb6ScB_story.html
http://www.upi.com/Top_News/US/2011/03/26/Jesuits-make-166M-sex-abuse-settlement/UPI-63381301158225/
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2011/03/12/AR2011031206201.html?tid=obinsite
Saturday, March 26, 2011
Saturday, March 12, 2011
People of Wal-mart: A Tale of Harrowingly Realistic Proportions
So usually I try to write about something relevant to current events, but I think it's about time I shared the following story with the world.
As some of you may know, I spent a brief time during my last semester of college working at Wal-mart. Yes, Wal-mart. I was going to school part-time, and I needed a job. Though I applied to a myriad of places around Ithaca, Wal-mart was the only establishment that was willing to employ me for just 3 months and then let me fly free. So, I donned my khaki pants, my navy blue shirt, and my little nametag, and I began my adventure at the Wal-mart in Ithaca, NY.
It was an experience. I was a cashier, so I got to deal with all of the customers first-hand. It was about a 50-50 split between college students and residents of Ithaca and the surrounding areas. Now, let's get this straight right now--Wal-mart definitely has a reputation for drawing customers from the more...interesting...scope of the population. If you've ever visited peopleofwalmart.com--or Wal-mart, for that matter--you know what I mean. Now, this being Ithaca, which is populated by mostly priveleged college students, I didn't have too many run-ins with really bizarre people. But I did meet some.
The story you are about to read is completely true. Any relation to persons living or dead is in fact purposeful.
It's 10 o'clock at night. I've just left my post at register 12, and I'm ready to end my shift. I'm shuffling to the back of the store toward the mysterious double doors labeled "Employees Only", my navy blue Keds scuffing along the dusty floor, hands in the pockets of my khaki pants. I bust through the swinging doors and am met by the smell of incomplete construction projects layered with a hint of dog food, or something like it. I go to my locker, twist the knob of my combination lock, and yank open the door to my life. I reach in, grab my crumpled-up sweatshirt and 80s leather purse, say good-bye to whoever is within sight, and head back through the swinging doors.
I always washed my hands before leaving work. It was both a symbolic washing my hands of Wal-mart and also a literal washing of all the dust and grime that had accumulated on my fingertips as I swiped barcodes across the scanner and jammed grimey dollar bills into my cash drawer. (Plus, this Wal-mart, which was already enormous, was in the process of becoming a Super Wal-mart, so there was a layer of sawdust covering just about every inch of the store.) Anyway, there's a public restroom right outside the employee doors, so I head toward the door, being careful to avoid the scooter precariously parked outside of the doorway by a customer who was presumably unable to walk independently around the vast enormity that is the Ithaca Wal-mart.
I enter the ladies' room, assuming (stupidly) that I will be able to wash and dry my hands in peace and then be on my merry way. Instead, I am almost immediately met with the sight of a rather large woman standing in front of the electric hand dryer, pantsless. And I do mean pantsless. Completely naked from the waist down.
Now at this point, I have no idea what to do. Knowing full well that I can't just scream and run out of there--at the risk of embarrassing this woman even further--I simply make my way to the sink and begin the handwashing process, hoping to complete it as quickly as possible and making a mental note to use paper towels to dry my hands.
But of course my hopes of avoiding all interaction with this woman are dashed. Having found herself standing half-naked in a public restroom, she feels the need to provide to me an explanation for her actions.
"I don't usually take my pants off in public restrooms," she says to me.
I glance at myself in the mirror. Reverse Courtney, what do I do? My reflection gives me no counsel and instead simply stares back at me, horrified. I respond with something senseless like, "Oh. Ok."
She then proceeds to relay to me the following story: while driving down the road, she spilled her hot coffee on her lap and was so uncomfortable that she decided to come into Wal-mart and dry her pants and undergarments.
Now, this sort of makes sense. However, I failed to see the logic in what I later gathered must have been the process of her actions. She, 1), spills coffee on her lap. Ow, she thinks, that hurt. And my pants are wet, but I would prefer them to be dry.
2) She sees a Wal-mart in the distance, shining like a beacon of redemption and dryness.
3) She pulls up to the Wal-mart, parks her car, and gets out with some difficulty.
Here's where things get confusing. At this point, the coffee has undoubtedly cooled, though her pants may still be uncomfortably damp.
Now, personally, if it were me, I would tough it out in my wet pants and just drive home, where I could take my clothes off in my privacy of my own room.
But no. She instead decides to walk into Wal-mart, commandeer a scooter, drive all the way to the back of the store, park her scooter, enter the bathroom, take off her pants and her underwear in the public area of the restroom, and begin to dry them under the electric hand dryer, knowing full well that anyone could walk in an any time and be met with a very surprising and very unpleasant sight.
And yet, it is the decision she chose to make. And so, I finished washing my hands, avoiding looking anywhere but straight ahead and praying that she would not ask for my assistance. I exited the restroom, power-walked to the front of the store, said good-bye to my fellow cashiers, and burst out into the night air, knowing that--if nothing else--this encounter provided me with some serious material for a story.
Now, before I wrap this up, I just want say a couple of quick things about working at Wal-mart. It may have been unpleasant at times, and maybe it wasn't a postgraduate career that I wanted to pursue, but I would never take back those three months that I spent working there. It was one of the most educational and humbling times of my life. My co-workers were some of the nicest and most down-to-earth people I've ever met. Sure, there were some strange folks, but mostly, just genuinely honest people. People who ask how you are and actually care about your answer. A manager who sincerely thanked me for my time there when I announced that I had to leave.
And then of course there were the humbling moments. Times when customers would ask me about myself and be genuinely surprised that I was in college. Times when I would see people from school come in and feel embarrassed that I was working at Wal-mart--not because I doing research for some liberal expose of corporate America, but because I needed the money. Times when my professors would tell me to quit, not realizing that I couldn't.
But like I said, I would never take those moments back. Not every part of life is sparkly and shiny. Sometimes life is difficult--a lot more difficult than working at Wal-mart for a semester--and not everyone gets to experience that. So many people have to fight every single day to keep going, and so many other people have no idea what that's like. It would be so much easier to live with each other and to create a better world for each other if only everyone knew what it was like to struggle, even just a little bit.
I don't think everyone should go out and work at Wal-mart for a week, but maybe just take a step back from your life and realize that the amount of what you have is the exact amount of what you have to lose.
As some of you may know, I spent a brief time during my last semester of college working at Wal-mart. Yes, Wal-mart. I was going to school part-time, and I needed a job. Though I applied to a myriad of places around Ithaca, Wal-mart was the only establishment that was willing to employ me for just 3 months and then let me fly free. So, I donned my khaki pants, my navy blue shirt, and my little nametag, and I began my adventure at the Wal-mart in Ithaca, NY.
It was an experience. I was a cashier, so I got to deal with all of the customers first-hand. It was about a 50-50 split between college students and residents of Ithaca and the surrounding areas. Now, let's get this straight right now--Wal-mart definitely has a reputation for drawing customers from the more...interesting...scope of the population. If you've ever visited peopleofwalmart.com--or Wal-mart, for that matter--you know what I mean. Now, this being Ithaca, which is populated by mostly priveleged college students, I didn't have too many run-ins with really bizarre people. But I did meet some.
The story you are about to read is completely true. Any relation to persons living or dead is in fact purposeful.
It's 10 o'clock at night. I've just left my post at register 12, and I'm ready to end my shift. I'm shuffling to the back of the store toward the mysterious double doors labeled "Employees Only", my navy blue Keds scuffing along the dusty floor, hands in the pockets of my khaki pants. I bust through the swinging doors and am met by the smell of incomplete construction projects layered with a hint of dog food, or something like it. I go to my locker, twist the knob of my combination lock, and yank open the door to my life. I reach in, grab my crumpled-up sweatshirt and 80s leather purse, say good-bye to whoever is within sight, and head back through the swinging doors.
I always washed my hands before leaving work. It was both a symbolic washing my hands of Wal-mart and also a literal washing of all the dust and grime that had accumulated on my fingertips as I swiped barcodes across the scanner and jammed grimey dollar bills into my cash drawer. (Plus, this Wal-mart, which was already enormous, was in the process of becoming a Super Wal-mart, so there was a layer of sawdust covering just about every inch of the store.) Anyway, there's a public restroom right outside the employee doors, so I head toward the door, being careful to avoid the scooter precariously parked outside of the doorway by a customer who was presumably unable to walk independently around the vast enormity that is the Ithaca Wal-mart.
I enter the ladies' room, assuming (stupidly) that I will be able to wash and dry my hands in peace and then be on my merry way. Instead, I am almost immediately met with the sight of a rather large woman standing in front of the electric hand dryer, pantsless. And I do mean pantsless. Completely naked from the waist down.
Now at this point, I have no idea what to do. Knowing full well that I can't just scream and run out of there--at the risk of embarrassing this woman even further--I simply make my way to the sink and begin the handwashing process, hoping to complete it as quickly as possible and making a mental note to use paper towels to dry my hands.
But of course my hopes of avoiding all interaction with this woman are dashed. Having found herself standing half-naked in a public restroom, she feels the need to provide to me an explanation for her actions.
"I don't usually take my pants off in public restrooms," she says to me.
I glance at myself in the mirror. Reverse Courtney, what do I do? My reflection gives me no counsel and instead simply stares back at me, horrified. I respond with something senseless like, "Oh. Ok."
She then proceeds to relay to me the following story: while driving down the road, she spilled her hot coffee on her lap and was so uncomfortable that she decided to come into Wal-mart and dry her pants and undergarments.
Now, this sort of makes sense. However, I failed to see the logic in what I later gathered must have been the process of her actions. She, 1), spills coffee on her lap. Ow, she thinks, that hurt. And my pants are wet, but I would prefer them to be dry.
2) She sees a Wal-mart in the distance, shining like a beacon of redemption and dryness.
3) She pulls up to the Wal-mart, parks her car, and gets out with some difficulty.
Here's where things get confusing. At this point, the coffee has undoubtedly cooled, though her pants may still be uncomfortably damp.
Now, personally, if it were me, I would tough it out in my wet pants and just drive home, where I could take my clothes off in my privacy of my own room.
But no. She instead decides to walk into Wal-mart, commandeer a scooter, drive all the way to the back of the store, park her scooter, enter the bathroom, take off her pants and her underwear in the public area of the restroom, and begin to dry them under the electric hand dryer, knowing full well that anyone could walk in an any time and be met with a very surprising and very unpleasant sight.
And yet, it is the decision she chose to make. And so, I finished washing my hands, avoiding looking anywhere but straight ahead and praying that she would not ask for my assistance. I exited the restroom, power-walked to the front of the store, said good-bye to my fellow cashiers, and burst out into the night air, knowing that--if nothing else--this encounter provided me with some serious material for a story.
Now, before I wrap this up, I just want say a couple of quick things about working at Wal-mart. It may have been unpleasant at times, and maybe it wasn't a postgraduate career that I wanted to pursue, but I would never take back those three months that I spent working there. It was one of the most educational and humbling times of my life. My co-workers were some of the nicest and most down-to-earth people I've ever met. Sure, there were some strange folks, but mostly, just genuinely honest people. People who ask how you are and actually care about your answer. A manager who sincerely thanked me for my time there when I announced that I had to leave.
And then of course there were the humbling moments. Times when customers would ask me about myself and be genuinely surprised that I was in college. Times when I would see people from school come in and feel embarrassed that I was working at Wal-mart--not because I doing research for some liberal expose of corporate America, but because I needed the money. Times when my professors would tell me to quit, not realizing that I couldn't.
But like I said, I would never take those moments back. Not every part of life is sparkly and shiny. Sometimes life is difficult--a lot more difficult than working at Wal-mart for a semester--and not everyone gets to experience that. So many people have to fight every single day to keep going, and so many other people have no idea what that's like. It would be so much easier to live with each other and to create a better world for each other if only everyone knew what it was like to struggle, even just a little bit.
I don't think everyone should go out and work at Wal-mart for a week, but maybe just take a step back from your life and realize that the amount of what you have is the exact amount of what you have to lose.
Thursday, March 3, 2011
Ch-ch-ch-changes...
One of my male co-workers forwarded me an article today from a feminist magazine that discussed the new generation of young adults and how glaringly different we are from our predecessors. We've created a new generation and with it, a new way of life--new expectations for ourselves, new motivations for accomplishing goals, new goals in general.
But one of the most interesting points made in the article was the theory that young men in their 20s are trying to extend their adolescence a little bit further than they have in the past. The author of the article, Kay Hymowitz, argues that young men who have graduated from college are still attempting to live a college-boy lifestyle. They aren't trying to get married, or become responsible father figures, or even necessarily live independently. They're trying to work full-time while still maintaining the care-free and sometimes drunken lifestyle that they maintained in college.
Now, granted, this is a generalization which of course I do not support--at least in full. But it is an interesting point. And the argument that the author made was that young men don't have to get into the responsible and stoic father/husband role just yet because young women are no longer heading toward the mother/wife role as quickly as they used to. Generations ago, women didn't even go to college. They moved through grade school and then prepared for life as a mother and wife. But now women are pursuing careers--not just jobs, but real careers. They don't have time to be pregnant, or engaged, or even in a relationship in their 20s.
As Hymowitz states, "Today, however, with women moving ahead in our advanced economy, husbands and fathers are now optional, and the qualities of character men once needed to play their roles—fortitude, stoicism, courage, fidelity—are obsolete, even a little embarrassing. "
But I must disagree. Just because women are starting to show more fortitude and courage doesn't mean men should give up on those things. While I do think that women have made great progess over the past few generations in terms of indpendence and gender equality, I certainly don't think that a young man who is responsible and faithful is something to be laughed about or to be embarrased by. To me, the most attractive men are the ones who take responsibility for their actions, who work hard, and who show respect for women, for their families, and for other people.
Does that mean I want to get married to a respectable young man tomorrow or even in the next few years? No. I am one of those girls who is trying to create a life for herself that consists of a career and complete financial independence. Because let's face it, you can't successfully be with someone else until you've learned how to be yourself. It sounds corny, but it's true. How can you share your life with someone else when you don't even know what life is?
Someone else I work with was talking about all of the uprisings that have been occurring in Africa and the Middle East and commented that the world was falling apart. But I had to argue. The world isn't falling apart, it's getting better. We're improving our own lives by rising up against oppressive leaders, stereotypes, and the expectations and boundaries set for us by past generations. Sure, we may have absolutely no clue what we're doing because we have no historical examples to follow, but the point is, we're doing something different. And despite its flaws, it seems to be working.
Here's the article (Thanks, Patty): http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424052748704409004576146321725889448.html?mod=WSJ_hp_mostpop_read
But one of the most interesting points made in the article was the theory that young men in their 20s are trying to extend their adolescence a little bit further than they have in the past. The author of the article, Kay Hymowitz, argues that young men who have graduated from college are still attempting to live a college-boy lifestyle. They aren't trying to get married, or become responsible father figures, or even necessarily live independently. They're trying to work full-time while still maintaining the care-free and sometimes drunken lifestyle that they maintained in college.
Now, granted, this is a generalization which of course I do not support--at least in full. But it is an interesting point. And the argument that the author made was that young men don't have to get into the responsible and stoic father/husband role just yet because young women are no longer heading toward the mother/wife role as quickly as they used to. Generations ago, women didn't even go to college. They moved through grade school and then prepared for life as a mother and wife. But now women are pursuing careers--not just jobs, but real careers. They don't have time to be pregnant, or engaged, or even in a relationship in their 20s.
As Hymowitz states, "Today, however, with women moving ahead in our advanced economy, husbands and fathers are now optional, and the qualities of character men once needed to play their roles—fortitude, stoicism, courage, fidelity—are obsolete, even a little embarrassing. "
But I must disagree. Just because women are starting to show more fortitude and courage doesn't mean men should give up on those things. While I do think that women have made great progess over the past few generations in terms of indpendence and gender equality, I certainly don't think that a young man who is responsible and faithful is something to be laughed about or to be embarrased by. To me, the most attractive men are the ones who take responsibility for their actions, who work hard, and who show respect for women, for their families, and for other people.
Does that mean I want to get married to a respectable young man tomorrow or even in the next few years? No. I am one of those girls who is trying to create a life for herself that consists of a career and complete financial independence. Because let's face it, you can't successfully be with someone else until you've learned how to be yourself. It sounds corny, but it's true. How can you share your life with someone else when you don't even know what life is?
Someone else I work with was talking about all of the uprisings that have been occurring in Africa and the Middle East and commented that the world was falling apart. But I had to argue. The world isn't falling apart, it's getting better. We're improving our own lives by rising up against oppressive leaders, stereotypes, and the expectations and boundaries set for us by past generations. Sure, we may have absolutely no clue what we're doing because we have no historical examples to follow, but the point is, we're doing something different. And despite its flaws, it seems to be working.
Here's the article (Thanks, Patty): http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424052748704409004576146321725889448.html?mod=WSJ_hp_mostpop_read
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