Working retail is really, really, hard. And not only that, it’s hard.
Did I mention it’s hard?
When I was in my 20s, I spent five years in the retail trenches. It aged my body at least 15 years. It gave me varicose veins and a permanent stoop. Toward the end, I wasn’t dead inside, but I was definitely semi-comatose.
You have to deal with every single soul that walks through the door. Every. Single. One.
In a clothing store, I had a woman bring back a dress that was dirty, smelly, and so old it was out of style. Then said she bought it, “last weekend, I swear!”
In the bookstore, we learned how to research old, obscure, and out-of-print titles; as long as we had a little bit to go on. I literally had someone come in and ask for “The yellow book.”
Parents and caregivers who somehow had the impression that we were free babysitters. People who walked through the door looking for a fight so they could relieve themselves of all of their anger and crazy.
And, nobody who works retail gets anything resembling a holiday season.
As a manager, on Black Friday I had to be at the store before daylight. Then 14 hours or so, after which stay a few more hours to clean up and restock. So, when Petey wanted to go home to Elizabeth City, I bowed out.
I felt pretty sorry for myself, so on Thanksgiving Day, I went to the only open supermarket, Kroger, and bought the ingredients for Knorr’s spinach dip. I think it’s fallen out of style, but so good it should have a comeback.
During that horrendous holiday season, there’s no time to run to the food court, stand in line, order, get your meal, eat and return in the thirty minutes allotted. So, most weekends we did a potluck thing. And my favorite dish ever was this Secret Tuna Mousse.
A little eating tip: you can use any kind of vessel; bread, pita, crackers, but both are really delicious on Fritos Scoops (and the dollar store version of the scoops is just as good).
Retail is hard. So if you have a store that you shop often, where you like the crew, bring them some homemade cookies, or a gift card for a restaurant that delivers, or just say thank you. I promise, you will make their day.
Thanks for your time.
Knorr’s Spinach Dip
1-10 oz. box frozen chopped spinach, cooked, cooled and squeezed dry
1-16 oz. container sour cream
1 cup Mayonnaise
1 package Knorr® Vegetable soup mix
1-8 oz. can water chestnuts, drained and chopped
3 green onions, chopped (optional)
Combine all ingredients and chill about 2 hours.
Secret Tuna Mousse
2-6.4 ounce albacore tuna pouches (I like Starkist)
2-2.6 ounce albacore tuna pouches
1 large and 1 small block cream cheese
1 can tomato soup
1 cup mayo
1/2 small white onion
2 envelopes unflavored gelatin
1/4 cup cold water
salt and pepper
Put drained tuna and onion into food processor. Run until tuna and onion are finely chopped and thoroughly mixed. Add mayo and pulse until combined.
Meanwhile, mix water with gelatin and allow to bloom, or gel a bit (it will get stiff, but that’s okay).
In a saucepan, warm soup, and melt cream cheese into it. Just warm it, don’t let it boil, or even simmer. When the cheese has all melted, add gelatin and allow to melt.
Mix tuna and soup mixtures together. Season with salt and pepper to taste. Pour into lightly greased mold, and refrigerate for at least four hours to set.
Unmold, and serve.