The Michael Swayne Story V: King of his Castle

This morning I rode my bike to work. And I got some of Dad's attitude for declining his offer to take me in to town. It was so nice outside, I just had to take advantage of the great weather we were having. That, and I didn't want to be rear him. But mainly because I wanted to ride my bike. I even left super early so I could enjoy the ride at a slow pace. I was still riding fast, because though I stopped at Grandma's to chat, I still arrived at work 30 minutes early. So, I took the trash to the dumpster. I was going to take the recycling to the bin, but there was only 9 minutes before opening time. I decided to wait until someone else arrived to do that.

But I didn't get the chance. It started raining shortly after Gabby showed up. And it was probably better that I didn't go after the news I got. Basically, Pam (the owner) thinks I am capable of building the paper in two days. I appreciated the confidence, but the two days given to me are Tuesday and Wednesday. The paper has to be sent to press on Wednesday by 3pm. I would have preferred to build the paper on Monday and Tueday, with Wednesday available just in case I don't get it finished on Tuesday. Not only that, I was denied the raise. But really, I am not bothered by it. I have nearly tripled my salary as it is, so I am not complaining about receiving an extra dollar on top of what I already earn. Believe me, when you go a year surviving on $50 each week, you feel like a millionaire when your salary is three times as much.

All of these changes start the next work week (Thursday), I think. If they had started now, I would have been told to go home today; or to not come in tomorrow or Wednesday, because today is actually my third day of working in the office this week. It's a little confusing, I know; but that's how newspaper companies work when the paper gets delivered on Thursdays (or Thanksgiving Wednesday; or Christmas Eve if the 25th is a Thursday).

I think Gabby was hit the hardest with all these changes. She was to only get a base pay 3 days each week, and the other two days she gets paid commission only. But she felt confident in her sales skills and said that she just wants commission every day. It could work out great for her that way. It just won't work well if she only sells $35 every day she works. That's what she sold, giving her a commission of $5. Luckily, the changes haven't started yet.

As for Iris, her time in the office was cut as well. With her in school, she only works three days each week. Now she only comes in on Mondays and Wednesdays. And Misty still sells when she can.

Now for some good news about work. I got a response on the full page ad I sent for approval. The person didn't like it. So, I reworked it, and it looks fantastic! I sent it for approval, and I nearly have the OK to run it. It turned out that I sent it to the wrong person for approval, and have to send it another person in the company. But I don't have the contact info for the other person.

But at least it's done. I still have 2.5 pages to fill. I am writing some articles to help fill the space, so I am hoping that with those I can cut it to just 1 page. It's either that, or cut a whole bunch out to make it an 8-page paper. That's another thing Pam was changing. She is hoping to have 20-page papers every week by Spring. I don't see how that will happen, especially when I am only given two days (ten hours) to do it. But Misty said that we have to take what Pam says with a grain of salt. Things will be back to normal soon.

After work, I rode home, stopping at Grandma's to rest and talk some more. Dad was still in an attitude when I had to tell him that one of Grandma's friends has a recliner they're giving away and wanted to know if Dad wanted it. He snapped and said he didn't. So I went to my room. Then, because Dad wanted spaghetti for dinner, and Dad doesn't know how to make spaghetti well, I had to do it. Both him and my brother loved the sauce I made. They said it was the best they had ever had. I don't know if they were just trying to make me feel good, so I just thanked them and continued eating (I eat slowly).

Today I watched an episode of the Chinese version of "Hole in the Wall". I think it was originally a Japanese show, which then came to America, and now in China. For those that don't know, players have a wall (with a hole in it) coming toward them, and they must contort their bodies to fit through the hole in the wall, or fall in pool of water behind them. The episode I watched this evening was of the guys from Lollipop F (Taiwanese Boy Band) going up against some of their "big" fans. The show was siding with the boy band, because the other team couldn't fit through the holes. I tried not to laugh, but it is a little funny when a heavier person gets stuck in the wall, just dangling over the pool of water. I am such a mean person, I know.

Well, it is almost 11pm here, and I have to be up in the morning. So, that's all for now. I hope to see you around the forums, and until I do...

Later!

Michael