Wal-Mart redux

So a few more days at Wal-Mart have gone by, and I've managed to get acquainted with a cash register. Actually, I'm on a first name basis with quite a few of them. The one in lawn and garden, the one in electronics with the wonky keyboard that won't stay put and is prone to sliding around and the ones at those crazed self-checkouts.

It is amazing how simple and how difficult running a cash register can be. Simple in that you just scan and bag. Difficult in that you have to worry about change and running out of ones, fives and quarters. Worry about things like odd transactions like people wanting to use money on a Wal-Mart gift card then pay the rest with a check. Or when the bar code is damaged and you have to try to either type it in go get another item. Or when the bar code simply won't run through at ALL.

I ran the register back in Lawn & Garden all day today. Que buena fun. Plants, plants and more plants. And potting soil. And mulch. And rocks. It was so dirty out there. And people kept coming through slapping groceries and merchandise up on the counter before I got the chance to even get it clean. You know, if you're not worried about it being clean, then I'm not either.

I ran the register in Electronics on Sunday night and it was an absolute madhouse back there. At one point we had to shut down because there was absolutely ZERO change in the register. No pennies, no quarters, no ones, no fives and no tens. I told customers that I could only take them if they could pay with a credit card. One man looked at me, nodded, then handed me a twenty. Didn't speak a word of English. **sigh** Such is life!