Are You Smarter Than A Fifth Grader?

The fast answer. No. For Christmas Vickie got me the Playstation 2 version of this game. I always had plans of watching it, but never got around to it. I am having fun playing it, but the questions are a lot harder than I thought they would be. Science questions are the hardest for me. I never liked science that much and my grades reflected it. Of course my grades were never anything to brag about. I should have done better than I did, and that is one of my biggest regrets. Vickie also gave me the daily Smarter calendar. Starting tomorrow I will post those questions daily. Even if I have nothing else to say the question will be here. I will give the answer the following day.

Last week in my blog I gave Governor Rod Blagojevich the excuse of being infected by Joker venom. Now the Springfield Journal-Register has compared him with the Joker. You can read it here.

Truck Tales

You see the most interesting things when you unload trucks. The other day we got in a pallet of compressed toilet paper. Never heard of compressed toilet paper? We don't actually sell it. When they loaded the truck at the warehouse they had a pallet of toilet paper, the 24 roll package. These do not come in cardboard boxes, but are put on a pallet and are shrink wrapped for shipping. On top of the toilet paper they placed a pallet of 12 pack soda. the result was compressed toilet paper. Had they reversed it there would have been no problem. The bad thing at Wal-Mart is the warehouse has no accountability. Damages can be charged off to them but it is very difficult to get the credit for it. The small grocery stores I worked at in Illinois were able to return any damages to the warehouse. At Wal-Mart, the store has to write it off. I have seen cases of broken glass bottles put in the middle of pallets. It was obvious they were damaged at the warehouse because the item hadn't leaked all over the pallet.

Wal-Mart isn't the only company this kind of thing happens at. When I was receiving manager at K Mart a driver told me about delivering a load and when he opened the door water came pouring out. The warehouse workers had placed a pallet of sand on top of a pallet of water.

Another fun thing unloading trucks is when the workers miss pick an item. We don't find that in grocery because the cases are not labeled, but general merchandise is. I have never worked that side at Wal-Mart, but my 2 favorite miss picks at K-Mart were:
instead of a case of Preen And Green, a lawn fertilizer, we received a case of 22 caliber bullets. It may not have helped the lawn grow, but mowing sure would have been interesting.
We were supposed to get a case of tampons. Instead they sent a case of Martha Stewart garden nozzles. I don't think they would have been very comfortable.
It would be a little more understandable if you were supposed to get black spray paint and received brown instead,(and that did happen) but those picks were ridiculous.

Taco Bell.

Last June I told them at Taco Bell that I would be quitting at the end of this year. I only work there about 6 hours a week, on their truck days. When I told them that the truck days were Wednesday and Saturday. Since my days off at Wal-Mart are Tuesday and Wednesday, it felt like I had no time off. Shortly after that the truck schedule was moved to Monday and Thursday. Since the truck arrives around 5:30 AM on Mondays I leave Wal-Mart at 7:00 and go straight there. That way I have most of it put away before the others come. On Thursday I meet the driver there and put away a lot of it as he unloads it. That makes it a lot easier, especially with the stuff that goes in the cooler.

Today would have been my last day, but I am staying longer. How long I am not sure. Why? There are several reasons. One is I really like the work. It is not hard and I have a system down where I get done quickly. Another is what I do is actually appreciated by the manager. There has recently been a change. The new manager was an assistant there, so he already knew me. It is nice to know that what you do is actually noticed. So for now I will keep working both jobs.

No Comprehension?

The image you see here did not scan quite right. The circle should be colored orange, but for some reason the orange became white. Any way, if you saw this sticker on a box, wouldn't you use it before any of the others? Obviously not everyone gets that meaning from this. I use that sticker at Taco Bell. I put it on every box that is leftover from the previous truck. On some items, like cheese, it doesn't make a difference because you have several months to use it before the cheese goes bad. On other items like lettuce and tomatoes you have a little more than a week. I believe that mostly the ones who ignore that sticker simply don't care. I have a hard time understanding that type of thinking, but that is what it appears to me. So far nothing has had to be thrown away, although we have come close a couple of times. The manager is going to keep after them, but it is a shame he has to.

On a more personal note, something weird happened to me on Christmas morning. Vickie called me about 2:00 AM. When I answered the phone I heard two women having a conversation. Vickie and I couldn't talk. The only thing I can figure out is I have a cordless phone that was picking up a cell phone call. That or my phone is possessed.

Disappointing But Still Enjoyable.

I am not a big sitcom fan. In fact I rarely watch network television anymore. My all time favorite sitcom is, in case you haven't guessed by now, WKRP In Cincinnati. A couple of days ago I picked up season one on DVD. I knew they had trouble getting the rights to the songs which is why it took so long to get this out. I was hoping that they at least had got the rights to some of the original songs but it appears that they didn't. My biggest disappointment was in the episode called A Date With Jennifer. The shows newsman, Les Nessman, played by Richard Saunders. Les is the shy type and Jennifer, the secretary played by Loni Anderson, agrees to go to a banquet with Les where he is to receive an award. Les gets dressed up and the original tune was the Foreigner song Hot Blooded. Considering Les' reputation and the way he had carried himself made that song extremely funny. It is still funny watching him get dressed but the song they use hjust doesn't have the same punch. I am glad this is available, and it is very good, but not as great as it was originally presented.

What Really Happened.

Governor Blagojevich, Do you promise to tell the truth, the whole truth, and nothing but the truth, so help you God.

I do.

Alright Governor. I understand you wish to make a statement against your lawyers wishes.

That is correct sir.

I guess that explains why he is sitting under the defense table muttering to himself.

That is correct your honor.

So governor, what do you have to say for yourself?

Your Honor, I stand before you today a victim. Yes a victim of a devious and dastardly plot plotted by that nefarious criminal mastermind, the Joker.

The Joker?

Yes, your Honor, you heard right. As you know a large portion of the film The Dark Knight was filmed in Chicago. One day while the filmmakers were in there I went to my office and found a playing card on my desk, a Joker to be specific. I picked the card up and immediately felt strange. I was infected by Joker venom. Now I realize that Joker venom usually kills whoever comes into contact with it, but I must have been given a new form of it where instead of dying I simply lost control of my actions. I have no memory of anything for over the past year. A short time ago I was given an antidote from someone who claimed to represent the Wayne Foundation.

The Wayne Foundation?

Yes, your honor. The one started by millionaire Bruce Wayne. Anyway, once I was given the antidote my mind cleared immediately. So you see, your honor, I am simply a victim of a plot to embarrass me and the citizens of the great state of Illinois. Now, Your Honor, if you can see fit to dismiss these charges and let me go I will make you my campaign chief for my Presidential bid in 2016.

OK Governor. Let me see if I have this straight. Your were a victim of the Joker and Bruce Wayne saved you. If I dismiss these charges than you will make me your campaign manager for your Presidential bid in 2016. Does that sum it up well?

Your Honor, I am pleased to say you have it.

Governor, if I were to run your campaign I would advise you to select Alicia Silverstone as your Vice President.

Alicia Silverstone? I don't understand, Your Honor.

Well Governor, if you thought I bought any of this story, you really are clueless.

Mugshots Of The Year.

I like it every Friday when Smokinggun.com posts their mugshots of the week. Of course, if you have been reading this blog and haven't figured that out you have not been paying attention. Here you will find their top 20 for the year. Again, if you have been reading this several of them will be familiar. The one you see now is my favorite of these 20. See what you think.