My Time at Mervyn's

For those that don't know Mervyn's is a department storehere in California with a few stores in other states.  It also happened to be my first job out of high school....so Im kind of saddened to see it close. Mervyn's has become another victim of the God awful economy.
June 1989 I had just graduated high school and my Step dad pretty much handed me the want ads and said it was time to get a job. I applied at some restaraunts and a few other stores without any luck and then I applied at Mervyn's and a few weeks later I got my call back...had my first job interview and I was hired.
Working retail however you really find out how stupid people really can be. Need proof?
How about the lady who came up to me and asked what size jeans her husband wears...I asked where her husband was and she said at home.  I asked how am I supposed to know? She replied dont all men wear the same size??
Or the lady who called and asked if our Nintendos were on sale...now Mervyns is a clothing store. I looked at the phone and told the lady with a straight face...they sure are.
Or the lady who asked me what she should get her husband for Christmas. Ok lady...you are married to him and you dont know his likes and dislikes.
Of course there were some good customers...one time I was working the fitting room and handing out numbers when this girl who I guess was a cheerleader walked in with some mens jockey underwear...I guess they wore them under their uniform and asked to try them on...who was I to say no?
I liked the Arabs who would come and buy 501s in bulk so they could sell them back home for some good cash. I would help them out to their car and would always get a good tip out of it. $50 one time...of course my boss would tell me I couldnt accept tips...hell I was making $4.35 an hour of course Im going to accept tips damnit!!
Then I got fired for going on my day off and getting a discount for my friend Jerry...so we would say how much did Jerrys pants cost? They cost Ron's job!!! As they said in the movie Friday...."How are you going to get fired on your day off??" Well I did.
There was the time another gorgeous woman had some questions that took all 3 males that were working at the time to answer it and then when a kind of large woman needed help we told her we would be with her in a minute.
Or the time I had just finished folding and straghtening the entire Levi wall and the Upland earthquake hit...knocking every jean out of the wall leaving me holding the last jean...so I just threw that one on the ground with the rest.