My job is to poison people. I don’t make a lot of money doing it, just over minimum wage, but I started at minimum wage. It took a while before I got the raise; I had to poison people for 90 days first. It isn’t hard, people line up for it. I don’t have to go to them, they come to me and most of them are people who come every single day. They often times have a pattern, they come in at the same time every morning and they know exactly what kind of poison they want. We put it on display; make it easy for them to see. The ones who make the poison make it in pretty colors and give it names to make it sound good for you but it never is. I don't understand why they keep coming, day in and day out. Perhaps they are just in denial. Perhaps they just don’t care. Perhaps they are looking for something else but the poison is easy to come by and hell, everyone else is doing it. Maybe there is something missing in their lives. Maybe they crave companionship and need that feeling of belonging and being with others at the store helps. Interactions may be brief in that line but at least they get to chill with folks who also want to poison themselves. I don't know...I just work here.
I don’t like doing it, fact is, I can’t stand my job. Still, in this economy and with so many out of work I suppose I am grateful to have a job. Not to mention, it isn’t as though I have to coerce them, they voluntarily choose their poison, I’m just there to sell it to them. I can’t stand it, but I have to do it. Some of the people who come in have a shorter life expectancy then others, it all depends on what poison they choose and how long they have been coming in for it. It’s sad to watch these people take one step closer to death every day. Some of them are really nice people, I’ll miss them when they’re gone. I don’t get too close to any of them, I’m friendly but it’s clear I have very little in common with them. I can’t imagine poisoning myself to the extent they are and they make up the vast majority of this society. I suppose I can’t stand by and pretend to be free of it, I have my poisons too, but I’m very aware of it. I practice moderation. I’m so very careful and while I know I have my own poison and I’d be a hypocrite to pretend otherwise, I can honestly say that in comparison, I’m doing pretty well.
I suppose at this point you may be wondering what my job is, where do I work that I have to drag myself in for just over minimum wage to poison one person after another. Well, here it is, I work at a convenience store. That’s right, and the poison I refer to is the crap I sell there from the Gatorade and RockStar to the hot dogs and other Frankenfoodies from the “roller-grill." There are these things called “Buffalo Chicken Roller Bites” that are bright orange in color to indicate that they are spicy. I suppose the word “buffalo” is also meant to imply that though when the word "buffalo" became synonymous with spicy is anyone’s guess. At any rate, there is a customer who comes in to buy these morsels with great frequency; he calls them “Instant Shit Sticks.” They are shaped like hot dogs and roll on that roller grill right next to them, there are three different kinds of dogs, beef, pepper jack and cheddarwurst. Of course there are chips of every flavor from regular to Wasabi and Ginger as well as a soda machine where people load up on giant Styrofoam cups full of Mountain Dew, Coke, Pepsi and a myriad of others. There is one that pretends to be tea but is more sugar than anything else and also one that pretends to be lemonade.
I have spent a good chunk of life learning about diet and reading ingredients and labels. I learned to look beyond words like “All Natural” and “Heart Healthy” since those claims are largely bullshit. I also reacted, putting what I learned into action, by changing my own eating habits and being more careful about what I put into my own body. One of the people who was fundamental in the process for me is someone whom many would consider sort of a health food Nazi for lack of a better way to term it. She imposed strict dietary habits upon herself and enforced them with an iron fist onto her family and anyone else nearby. I spent a good deal of time working for her, helping out with the kids. When I worked for her I ate very healthy and I am glad for what I learned, good habits to implement into my life as well as habits to avoid like sticking my nose into other peoples plates.
That background and some of my own habits from before I started working for my rather militant friend stuck with me. It is so odd to me what people put into their bodies every single day. I work the graveyard shift and my store is situated near an intersection that takes very different people to very different jobs every day. I get all the morning regulars who come in on their way to work. I also get other graveyard shift people who work at the nearby factories and come in on their breaks. They are my regulars, good and decent people to be sure but wow! The things they come in for and put into their bodies on a daily basis makes me wince. Perhaps I hung with the Hippies too long but I just can’t believe it sometimes. Even more shocking to me is how many people say they know how bad these things are for them and yet consume them anyway. Some will bitch about corporations and over-priced merchandise and then feed those same corporations by compulsively, habitually buying the over-priced poisons they peddle. Obsessive-compulsive hypocrisy is the nutshell version of what is going on. What people are doing could be compared to self-mutilation, perhaps the brain is the first organ affected.
I don’t mean to offend, I realize that when I say this I’m referring to the majority, not the minority of people. I don’t even believe that these words will have an effect on anyone in terms of any of them re-thinking the pollutants they pour into their bodies every day. I suppose that in all honesty, this is just another in a plethora of rants I post here. My motivation for posting it was originally shock. I am shocked at the consistency with which people voluntarily poison themselves and more-so with the way they justify it. It's also frustrating to me how much food is thrown away at that store and it makes me think about the fact that there are hundreds of other stores and restaurants all over the place that have the same practice of wasting food and product. Then there are the children; parents bribing their kids with poison, shoving it at them to get them to be quiet. It's no wonder that those new fangled diseases, the ones that are usually acronyms, are running rampant. But that is a whole different diatribe.
I suppose I just needed to get this off my chest. These are things I cannot say at work, cannot even bring up for that matter since even outside of the work place I’m generally surrounded by people who consume these products daily. Most people who consume garbage will vehemently defend their position and with the internet providing as much information as misinformation to support pretty much any point of view one might present, we are all right. Well, the reality is, we can’t all be right. Like I said, I'm not here to stick my nose into anyone else's plate or convince anyone of anything. If I was I'd be rattling off little factoids like what "all natural" can REALLY mean, for example, cat urine is all natural. I'd be feeding you statistics about profiteering corporate cohesion with one thing in mind, get you sick and keep you that way and everyone profits. Well, except for the folks ladling poison down their gullets. So many people are fed, literally, by a system that is killing them and they turn around and feed it right back.
Like I keep saying though, I am not here to stick my nose into other peoples plates, do what thou wilt. What I do suggest is to educate yourself. Don't just go to websites that support your own point of view, a real education about something involves looking at the issue from every angle and digging for the truth or untruth behind the claims made. Don't hide behind excuses disguised as reasons to continue consuming poison. As with most subjects there is too much information out there so check facts and maybe even use those strange things called books as well. At the end of the day you are what you eat, never before has that statement been more horrifying.
I suppose at this point you may be wondering what my job is, where do I work that I have to drag myself in for just over minimum wage to poison one person after another. Well, here it is, I work at a convenience store. That’s right, and the poison I refer to is the crap I sell there from the Gatorade and RockStar to the hot dogs and other Frankenfoodies from the “roller-grill." There are these things called “Buffalo Chicken Roller Bites” that are bright orange in color to indicate that they are spicy. I suppose the word “buffalo” is also meant to imply that though when the word "buffalo" became synonymous with spicy is anyone’s guess. At any rate, there is a customer who comes in to buy these morsels with great frequency; he calls them “Instant Shit Sticks.” They are shaped like hot dogs and roll on that roller grill right next to them, there are three different kinds of dogs, beef, pepper jack and cheddarwurst. Of course there are chips of every flavor from regular to Wasabi and Ginger as well as a soda machine where people load up on giant Styrofoam cups full of Mountain Dew, Coke, Pepsi and a myriad of others. There is one that pretends to be tea but is more sugar than anything else and also one that pretends to be lemonade.
I have spent a good chunk of life learning about diet and reading ingredients and labels. I learned to look beyond words like “All Natural” and “Heart Healthy” since those claims are largely bullshit. I also reacted, putting what I learned into action, by changing my own eating habits and being more careful about what I put into my own body. One of the people who was fundamental in the process for me is someone whom many would consider sort of a health food Nazi for lack of a better way to term it. She imposed strict dietary habits upon herself and enforced them with an iron fist onto her family and anyone else nearby. I spent a good deal of time working for her, helping out with the kids. When I worked for her I ate very healthy and I am glad for what I learned, good habits to implement into my life as well as habits to avoid like sticking my nose into other peoples plates.
That background and some of my own habits from before I started working for my rather militant friend stuck with me. It is so odd to me what people put into their bodies every single day. I work the graveyard shift and my store is situated near an intersection that takes very different people to very different jobs every day. I get all the morning regulars who come in on their way to work. I also get other graveyard shift people who work at the nearby factories and come in on their breaks. They are my regulars, good and decent people to be sure but wow! The things they come in for and put into their bodies on a daily basis makes me wince. Perhaps I hung with the Hippies too long but I just can’t believe it sometimes. Even more shocking to me is how many people say they know how bad these things are for them and yet consume them anyway. Some will bitch about corporations and over-priced merchandise and then feed those same corporations by compulsively, habitually buying the over-priced poisons they peddle. Obsessive-compulsive hypocrisy is the nutshell version of what is going on. What people are doing could be compared to self-mutilation, perhaps the brain is the first organ affected.
I don’t mean to offend, I realize that when I say this I’m referring to the majority, not the minority of people. I don’t even believe that these words will have an effect on anyone in terms of any of them re-thinking the pollutants they pour into their bodies every day. I suppose that in all honesty, this is just another in a plethora of rants I post here. My motivation for posting it was originally shock. I am shocked at the consistency with which people voluntarily poison themselves and more-so with the way they justify it. It's also frustrating to me how much food is thrown away at that store and it makes me think about the fact that there are hundreds of other stores and restaurants all over the place that have the same practice of wasting food and product. Then there are the children; parents bribing their kids with poison, shoving it at them to get them to be quiet. It's no wonder that those new fangled diseases, the ones that are usually acronyms, are running rampant. But that is a whole different diatribe.
I suppose I just needed to get this off my chest. These are things I cannot say at work, cannot even bring up for that matter since even outside of the work place I’m generally surrounded by people who consume these products daily. Most people who consume garbage will vehemently defend their position and with the internet providing as much information as misinformation to support pretty much any point of view one might present, we are all right. Well, the reality is, we can’t all be right. Like I said, I'm not here to stick my nose into anyone else's plate or convince anyone of anything. If I was I'd be rattling off little factoids like what "all natural" can REALLY mean, for example, cat urine is all natural. I'd be feeding you statistics about profiteering corporate cohesion with one thing in mind, get you sick and keep you that way and everyone profits. Well, except for the folks ladling poison down their gullets. So many people are fed, literally, by a system that is killing them and they turn around and feed it right back.
Like I keep saying though, I am not here to stick my nose into other peoples plates, do what thou wilt. What I do suggest is to educate yourself. Don't just go to websites that support your own point of view, a real education about something involves looking at the issue from every angle and digging for the truth or untruth behind the claims made. Don't hide behind excuses disguised as reasons to continue consuming poison. As with most subjects there is too much information out there so check facts and maybe even use those strange things called books as well. At the end of the day you are what you eat, never before has that statement been more horrifying.