Vent

2 Aug 2005
Time: 02:01


2 am, class at 8.30 am in the morning. 6 and a half hours. Be-yoo-ti-fool.

Been home for a couple of hours already, used it all up in front of the telly, venting to my mom.

And this happened after a couple of hours at Chandran's, venting to Amelia and Kenny over roti pisang, 2 maggi goreng, Indomee goreng and nasi goreng. Yeah, there's 3 of us and 6 plates of food.

They told me to just quit my job. I said nah, I've fired my boss. My last day is Thursday, not Sunday as said. I hope I receive my pay by then. No, I'd better.

You see, I've finally lost my patience and told my boss what I think of him, New Balance and the company who owns the local distribution rights in general.

My boss is so...ugh! The most precise description of him is that he holds contempt for people like me, yet he envy us. And by that I mean, in his words, educated people.

He always make snide remarks about how the nation needs educated people in order to progress, yet it's people like him, businessmen who thinks about earning big bucks who'll enjoy life while we use up our brains for small paltry sums. My answer for him is that, people have 2 choices - quality and quantity. It's pretty obvious, for journalism, I'm going for quality. Learning, filling myself with knowledge, informing others and bridging between people and the world around them. And yes. For paltry sums. He, with his zero knowledge and interest in books, news and general knowledge, only can talk about earning more! more! more!, he's the quantity type.

But for that, each to his own.

And he said I'm a fool for spending RM 99 on Harry Potter when I can pay Rm 9 for the movie soon or, better yet, RM 5 for a pirated VCD. It's not the same, I tried to say, in watching you brain's only receiving but when you read you think....but this is a guy who told me to stop reading so much, let my brain work a little by looking at people (and commenting non-stop, like him, no doubt) and that reading can lead to insanity. I shut up before I can finish. He just won't let me talk.

There's many petty things he said that make me really despise him as a person. I don't know where to start or how to end, but I've also finally told him, in a clear and justifiedly angry manner, that I have enough of his jibing about me and my weight. I am finally through tolerating his crude jokes and snide remarks about fat people, whether it's me or other customers. I don't get it. Its not that he's all thin and fit. He's FAT, too. Fat ass. Just because some women had to wear XL sports bra and pants don't mean they're ugly. And just because some of them tried on XL in vain hope doesn't mean they don't have a right to.

They don't owe it to you to buy just because they walked into your shop. You don't have to treat them like your personal water-fish. Like when a New Zealander came in and showed us his wife's email about buying a pair of walking shoes, you don't have to shout across the shop for me to recommend the most expensive pair in the entire shop. Its so embarassing because the New Zealander was with a Chinese companion and you don't realise it. Just because people of other races walk into the shop don't mean they might not know your language. I've been around these people enough to know they might just understand AND speak your language. And you don't have to insult them in your language just cos you thought they won't understand.

And you don't have to holler everytime a TV3 or 8TV newscaster or host come in or walk by, and then proceed to tell me how effeminine/ugly/old/short they are.

And damn it, everytime I'm happily serving a customer you don't have to butt in as though I am incompetant. I assure you I am, and I don't get why your face is so thick you don't see they're talking to ME and buying from ME, you don't think I'm stupid that I don't realise you think you can sell them more expensive shoes by sweet talking them. I don't earn your commission and I realise I should have. I've sold half of your shoes for you every day I am on the job.

And gee, thanks for teaching me all your business philosophy. Just because I kindly tell you your shop look stark and uninviting and frankly, unappealing to people my age, you don't have to think I have the same thinking like any other teenager. Actually, why the hell not. I AM a teenager, and most importantly, I am a consumer. Hello if I can work there and think how drab the place is, imagine people who walk past by. When I saw the vacancy sign back then, I hesitated to walk in. I was only motivated by the (small) size of your shop.

Why do you think is so wrong to put a men's shoes/women's shoes sign in your shop? What do you mean people know which rack is which and that people who don't aren't professional shoe buyers? Its tiring to have to tell everyone they're looking ar the wrong shoes. Fine if you want only "professional" buyers, be prepared to sell your distribution license soon. And crap about wanting to teach customers how to differentiate between male and female shoes. Not everybody have the time to learn from you. Even I didn't know in the beginning, and don't expect anyone else to be more savvy. Just pay a few bucks, dammit, to have the signs professionally printed, and you give me rubbish like "I don't waste money on these small stuff". Yeah. You don't even want to pay to print discount papers to paste on the shoes.

Yah, that's him. And I'm talking to him here because he's talking all the time about his business "tou lei" and ignore my childish suggestions because he's been in door-to-door sales, selling crockery (pots and pans) around Malaysia, Singapore and don't forget Brunei. It don't work, don't he see, the crockery tactic of intimidating customers into buying in a place like 1 Utama.

He even told me he think 1 Utama don't have class because even the "rich wives" and yuppies ask for discount or a freebie. Sungai Wang have better class, Sungai Wang have better management because they let you open and close as you like and you can even smoke in your shop bla bla bla. Come on. I told him. Your company is so stingy. No staff price, no discount, no advertising, not even uniforms! And you call that flexibility! So called advertising by distributing vouchers to selected gyms and clubs. How many people they can reach this way? You can't share vouchers! Just take some money, put ads into Cleo or Lime or some local sports magazine...your target buyers! Don't waste RM 20 000 distributing vouchers to only a selected group of people. You cannot stinge! It's a consumerism society in Malaysia! We're spoilt for choices! No matter how much he critisize (and this I also don't agree with) Nike and Adidas to his potential customers, the young ones are getting Nike and Adidas simply because of it's brand power! Don't blame my cohorts for not getting into New Balance. He forgot the fact that New Balance pulled out of Malaysian market in the late 80s and only came back via Singapore in 1998. Don't blame us for not knowing much of New Balance, we didn't grow up with it. That is why when there's more and more outlets in Klang Valley advertising should be utilised. Inform the masses! Argh!

And his cocky face when he announce to me he's been so successful he made RM 60 000 the first month he took over. RM 60 000. HAHAHA. He think I'm so dumb I don't realise that's only gross income? Deduct rents, utilities, transportation, and his merchandise cost, my mom and I calculate he made maybe RM 3 000. I tried telling him my parents are business people, too. But I just can't chip in. He talk too much.

Why am I wasting my breath?! My mom is so exasperated with me for making him more and more significant by thinking and berating and all emo at him. Our thinking just aren't on the same path. He is so Cheena! Can I hap you can I hav you (help, of course)! And I finally told him I don't think this line of service is difficult, 1 Utama isn't a difficult crowd to please, it's him that make me retch. In the beginning I let him talk, maybe I can learn something from him but as the days passes by, like Kenny said, it's like he's testing how far he can go with me. He made plenty crude jokes and questions me about sex and once, even went as far as saying "tiu lei bor"(go figure), which I retaliated "Don't you ever dare tiu tiu at me again". I was pissed no questions asked. He got the message though.

Seriously. I get the language. I get the crowd. I get the style. In fact I enjoy meeting many of these customers, people I can see are successful bosses, or high up in the corporate ladder, or yuppies with latest PDA and dispense witticisms like coffee, students like me and devoted dads and tongue-in-cheek sons, the odd foreigner or two, mothers and daughters, friends and OLs, the sports-fanatics, the family from Sarawak with 4 sons, all of whom bought a pair from me, even that weird fella who wanted dark sandals and was working in a outstation place where the food sucks and oh, I miss talking to him and it was only that 1 time...if there's anything that made me consider staying, it's the customers, sincere. But. I really can't stand him.

Oh thank God I'm done, I'm through I'm finished, I'm going back to university. He'd better pay me. And soon.

And if there's another fat remark...tiu.

Comments:
LPShean made this comment,
THAT's venting. He seems irritating from what i read. I would have tiu-ed him earlier on adey. Not literally tiu, but tiu as in scolded the hell out of him. :P You get my drift. Haha.
Now that you're out of that rat's ass of a place, good fer you! And from the sound of it, yea.. he seems uber Cheena. Cheena apek. Oh well. At least you're no longer working for em.