weekend warrior

I work all day Friday, walking 19,046 steps.

In the Via coming home, I start to feel nauseous. Was it the flu shot I had on Wednesday? Was it eating only a muffin and a banana all day? Am I getting sick? Not sure what the cause is, but I feel lousy and immediately fall onto the top of my bed and just lie there when I get home.

None of the food I have in the house is appealing. I call the local bagel shop for a bowl of chicken soup. I eat it in three sittings, in between bed rest. I feel like such a wimp, but don't really care.

Around 9:30 I hear a loud banging on my door. None of my neighbors would come by this late. And none would knock loudly. Turns out it's Alexander. Nice surprise, though I barely see him in the 24 hours he's home.

Saturday I feel a lot better. Go to work and check my sales. My overnight returns have eaten up all my sales from the day before. I mean, all of them. I'm depressed before the day even starts.

But Sunday is the worst. Twelve of us are working in our one area, making it really difficult to sell anything. And like most of my colleagues, I have an awful day.  I stay late (the store is open an extra hour).  And walk another 18,155 steps. 

By the time my three-day work week ends, I feel physically battered. I've  walked 55,474 steps, about the equivalent of a marathon. My back and feet are killing me (maybe I really am too old to do this). And I have little to show for it, as my returns have eaten up 37% of my sales. Just imagine working all week and when you get your paycheck, you see almost 40% is deducted (and that's before taxes).

The indignities of this job keep me up at night. Last night I awoke at 2, and couldn't go back to sleep. I hate the feeling of being taken advantage of.

I know this is not the first time I've written about this. Probably won't be the last. And I know what my choices are: stay or leave. I should probably just shut up, but I do feel just a small bit better writing it down and getting it out. 

And the good news is that today is Monday.

I have four long days ahead of me to rest, read, relax, and see some screenings and friends. I really do appreciate my days off.