Today in the store not only did I see the guy who sent me flowers (see here and here for reference) but I also saw the Customer Who Made Me Cry (here, here). Good times, good times.

Ahem.

As we get closer to Christmas, people are more and more tense and short-tempered and irritable. One person (or as a bonus, a co-worker!) snapping at me during the course of a shift is one thing, but multiple people being snappish during a single shift seriously chips away at my desire for peace on earth and goodwill to men. And even though I know I shouldn’t (as a Christian and as an employee), the fact that I can’t (as a Christian and as an employee) somehow makes me feel even more defeated.

I read something recently that really resonated with me about my work called the Theory of Crap. This was written in response to a question about searching for a career on Ask Metafilter and it’s genius. The response, written by user DiscourseMarker, reads in part:

Every kind of job, every career, every work sector (even being self-employed) has some kind of associated crap. There is no such thing as a crap-free job. However, different jobs often come with different kinds of crap. The key to having a career that doesn’t make you want to kill yourself is to figure out what kind of crap you can deal with, and what kind of crap is going to make you insane, and look for jobs accordingly.

That’s it! That’s the thing. Things that I didn’t like about other jobs I’d gladly put up with now because the crap that I’m dealing with in my current position is sucking the life out of me. I guess it’s all about perspective, huh? Surely one of these days I’ll appreciate what I’ve got when I’ve still got it. My timing and sense of don’t-screw-this-up-because-this-situation-is-actually-pretty-sweet is terrible.

New perspectives for the new year. Bring it on, 2010.

I think the mulcer, Hal, is back.