confessions of a Gas Station Worker

Well I've been at my job now for about a month and a half.. and though it hasn't been long, I have learned many things thus far. I'm now the full time baker instead of just doing it once a week or so, because of.. well, we'll say financial problems! Hmm..

Ok so I'll post a list of probably unknown facts to the general public, some may apply to you.. but these must be said. All in good fun, of course!

#1 - Despite the fact that I work at a gas station, this does not make me God's gift to the highways and other such related side roads. In addition, when I say "I'm not sure I'm not from around here, sorry." I'd appreciate you not act totally astonished.. I know amazing they hired me, right? Haha..
#2 - A coffee card will not kill you, contrary to a rising belief. It's simple, you buy a coffee, you get a stamp.. after six stamps, you get a free coffee! Shocking! We're trying to give you free coffee..
#3 - The aisles in the store are labeled, for a reason. So if you're looking for gas line antifreeze (a popular item lately).. chances are, it's in the aisle with the sign "automotive", just a hunch.
#4 - When we tell you about a special it's because it's a deal, so when (for example) we say "you can get the second for (insert price)" or "those are two for (insert dollar amount here)" it's because it's less than the usual price.. the latter is especially annoying when you ask "well, how much is one?" you can guarantee it's lower to buy two at the same time.
#5 - The term "fresh" is probably not the definition you'd think. It more so means that we baked it, probably rather recently (maybe even that day) but it's origin prior to baking may not be what you would call fresh. The likely scenario is that it was taken out of a box in the freezer at some point. It's still delicious, don't confuse the two terms :)
#6 - Much like point #1, I also know nothing about cars, trucks, snowmobiles, or any type of engine for that matter. Therefore, asking me questions like "what oil would you put in a ski-doo?" will get you no where. Again, I know, amazing they hired me!
#7 - Don't complain about the price of our groceries. If you want them cheaper, go to a grocery store. Of course it's going to be more expensive at a gas station, you are not only paying for the item but the convenience of being able to purchase it much later (or earlier) hour than at a grocery store.
#8 - I understand you want to get rid of your change, but be reasonable about it. Counting out two dollars in nickels is ridiculous just to keep from parting with your five dollar bill, take it home & roll it.. and then we'll talk. If it's rolled up all ready, best kind! But standing there counting nickels, dimes, pennies or whatever.. is especially annoying to those behind you, more so when there's a big line and you take up five minutes trying to count out exact change in very small coins.
#9 - There's a sign next to where the bananas are stacked up and in some cases, hung up.. guess what it says? How much they are a pound! :) And really, the price is at least twenty cents cheaper a pound than the grocery store, so although the price of bananas has gone up over the years, you are still getting them cheap in comparison!
#10 - You'd be surprised by the items that we carry.. so just ask, because really, you never know. And chances are we have it. But you won't know unless you ask, mostly because a lot of the items you'd never think to find at a gas station (toothbrushes, razors, various chapsticks, batteries, etc...) are behind the counter.

Ok so that's my list of things you probably didn't know (unless you work at a gas station yourself) until this evening!

This list is simply meant to help us all, haha.. :)

Other than work, I haven't been doing much. Being the full time baker requires me to work at 5am pretty much every day, well.. except on the weekends, so I'm left tired when I'm not working, and usually end up napping when I get home in the afternoon. Exciting life I lead, I know.

Oh, and I still haven't invested in a scale, so I have no idea what my weight is so I can't keep track on this like I thought I would.. well not yet, anyways!

What to do instead of sleep.. :)

Well I realized, via Colleen.. that I hadn't posted on here in a while, oops! It may be in part due to my move.. and then subsequent new job that although I tend to enjoy it, doesn't pay nearly what I need it to to cover my bills and such living expenses. Ahh well.. I should really be sleeping considering 5am comes early and starting at 6am I have to work a 9-hour shift that involves no sitting whatsoever. Anyways, enough about my job and my lack of money, one can only dwell on that so much in one day, and even though it's just past midnight, I've had my fill!

Aside from financial woes, I can honestly say I greatly enjoy being back in Fredericton with everyone. I actually leave my apartment unlike in St. John's, which is a nice change. At the same time, I wonder.. should I have left St. John's? I had a job that paid me almost double what I get paid now. But alas, I said that was enough of that subject! Money isn't everything, and it certainly doesn't buy happiness! Plus, I'm going to St. John's for a 9-day visit starting February 26th, so that will be nice to see my sister & her boyfriend, and then my friends from work. I'm not sure I can get that much time off work, but if I have to choose..

So I'm partially wondering how much snow we're going to actually get, they always seem to be way off in the predictions for Fredericton, way under, in fact. We'll see how much I have to dig out my car at 5:30am, that's always a fun way to start your day! Haha seriously, mother earth.. Fredericton has enough snow! It has to be some sort of record.. I can only imagine how high the river will get this year! Should be interesting, for sure!

Well because I have nothing really to report nor have the energy to truly rant about anything at the moment, I suppose I will leave it at this. As well, I'll leave a note for myself to actually start keeping up on this blog. I'll likely use it to keep track of my weight loss challenge with a few girl friends, so if you see a random number at the bottom of a post, it's my weight. I always lose that kind of paper work somehow, so perhaps putting it on a blog will keep track of it all better!