The Little Things... They Count
When I woke up this morning at 7 to the glorious cacophony of Dillinger Escape Plan's When Good Dogs Do Bad Things, I had no idea how accurately it would represent what I was about to go through a short hour and a half later.
I was full of joy and a bit of anxiety, for today would be the first day at my new job working at the Target distribution center in Stuarts Draft. It was a job that seemed perfect for me and my schedule. Physically demanding overnight work with excellent pay. I would make a great deal of money and get into better shape, all while causing no conflict with my class schedules as a result. It seemed almost too good to be true.
So I made the trip, checked in at the desk, sat down and waited for what would happen next. In short order, I had my picture taken for my ID, and was approached by a large woman who appeared to be in her mid-40s, who asked me if I had brought my two forms of ID. Instantly my mind jumped back to the letter that I had received nearly a month before this day, which had explained that I would need a driver's license and either my birth certificate or social security card.
Realizing I had neither of the latter, I remembered the reaction to the same predicament at the last job I had applied for. Cooper & Secrest had just asked me to bring them the next time I worked, and I never had. This brought me comfort, and I hoped Target would have the same reaction, but this was not the case.
This woman, a PR professional for sure, told me in no uncertain terms that unless I could get one of these to them by fax, they could not allow me to attend the orientation session. Even after this sudden turn for the worse, I was still hopeful. I'm sure I can call my mom and get her to fax them what they need at my Dad's office, I thought. So I was taken to a phone, and listened to the sound of our answering with a growing sense of terror.
Oh well, I guess I'll just have to come back some other day to take care of this stuff, if my dad's not in his office yet. I then had the woman dial that number. Again, there was no answer. I was beginning to get a bit nervous. I sat in their waiting area staring vacantly at the commercials on the television, until finally, after 10 or 15 minutes, the woman approached me again, saying I would have to leave. I asked if I could try calling my house one more time, and did so.
Since I am back at home now, the result should be fairly obvious. However, after this episode, there was a further subtle and sadistic twist. Surely I could just come back tomorrow or the next day for my orientation, right? No. Because the supervisors take time out of their days to teach these classes on safety to the new hires, and because this was the last orientation session that would be held until next fall, a seemingly miniscule oversight on my part resulted in my complete lack of eligibility for a position that I had for several months hoped for and looked forward to filling.
If there is a lesson to be taken from all of this, aside from the obvious one that large corporations and their regulations are often frustratingly inflexible (I was obviously trying to steal the information from the classes using an assumed name and then spread it on the internet...), it would have to be that even though something may seem small and insignificant to you, forgetting it can very easily ruin everything.
I was full of joy and a bit of anxiety, for today would be the first day at my new job working at the Target distribution center in Stuarts Draft. It was a job that seemed perfect for me and my schedule. Physically demanding overnight work with excellent pay. I would make a great deal of money and get into better shape, all while causing no conflict with my class schedules as a result. It seemed almost too good to be true.
So I made the trip, checked in at the desk, sat down and waited for what would happen next. In short order, I had my picture taken for my ID, and was approached by a large woman who appeared to be in her mid-40s, who asked me if I had brought my two forms of ID. Instantly my mind jumped back to the letter that I had received nearly a month before this day, which had explained that I would need a driver's license and either my birth certificate or social security card.
Realizing I had neither of the latter, I remembered the reaction to the same predicament at the last job I had applied for. Cooper & Secrest had just asked me to bring them the next time I worked, and I never had. This brought me comfort, and I hoped Target would have the same reaction, but this was not the case.
This woman, a PR professional for sure, told me in no uncertain terms that unless I could get one of these to them by fax, they could not allow me to attend the orientation session. Even after this sudden turn for the worse, I was still hopeful. I'm sure I can call my mom and get her to fax them what they need at my Dad's office, I thought. So I was taken to a phone, and listened to the sound of our answering with a growing sense of terror.
Oh well, I guess I'll just have to come back some other day to take care of this stuff, if my dad's not in his office yet. I then had the woman dial that number. Again, there was no answer. I was beginning to get a bit nervous. I sat in their waiting area staring vacantly at the commercials on the television, until finally, after 10 or 15 minutes, the woman approached me again, saying I would have to leave. I asked if I could try calling my house one more time, and did so.
Since I am back at home now, the result should be fairly obvious. However, after this episode, there was a further subtle and sadistic twist. Surely I could just come back tomorrow or the next day for my orientation, right? No. Because the supervisors take time out of their days to teach these classes on safety to the new hires, and because this was the last orientation session that would be held until next fall, a seemingly miniscule oversight on my part resulted in my complete lack of eligibility for a position that I had for several months hoped for and looked forward to filling.
If there is a lesson to be taken from all of this, aside from the obvious one that large corporations and their regulations are often frustratingly inflexible (I was obviously trying to steal the information from the classes using an assumed name and then spread it on the internet...), it would have to be that even though something may seem small and insignificant to you, forgetting it can very easily ruin everything.