As The Station Turns 8/19

 Remember when I said there was a strange tuna smell in the building and I couldn't find the source? It turns out the Boss put up a bag full of fly bait and that's where it was coming from. It got so strong that something had to be done, even the customers were complaining. So the bag is gone and the stink is gone. Those things are meant to be hung up inside barns or garages, not businesses. 

The only time I like being in a soap opera is when I'm just in the background. Today is one of those days. When I walked in the Manager was on the phone with the Boss because nobody could get hold of the Late Guy. After she hung up I got the full story, she dropped a glass bottle in the walk in cooler and was trying to clean up when she heard someone shouting her name. When she went out Frankie the Cop was there, and he had questions. It seems that when the Boss was checking out the security cameras he spotted an RV parked behind the Haunted Station, and they were plugged into the building. He called the Dyslexic Woman, who was working the morning shift but she didn't know anything. He tried to call the Late Guy but couldn't get hold of him so the Boss called the cops to have the person removed from the property. When Frankie the Cop showed up the guy in the RV (he use to run the Pot Shop down the street but went out of business) said the Late Guy told him it was OK, but the Boss wanted him to leave. The guy pulled down to the lower lot and since nobody had answers Frankie decided to come talk to the Truck Stop Manager, and she didn't have any answers either. Finally someone got hold of the Late Guy, who denied ever giving the guy permission to park there, and he went over to talk to the guy. He told the Pot Shop guy he couldn't park on the lot, so the guy pulled over to the vacant lot next to the Truck Stop, it's owned by a holding company somewhere back east and they don't check up on it. The Late Guy claimed the Weekend Guy had given the Pot Shop guy permission to park but the Weekend Guy is a bit of an A-hole and would have told the guy to Flip Off, it was probably the Late Guy since he use to be a customer of the "Dispensary" before the place closed down. He also claimed he was plugged into a generator, not the building, despite being on video. Later when I looked out the Pot Shop guy was gone, I guess he found somewhere else to park. And the Manager got the walk in cooler cleaned up.

And the handyman spent the majority of the day at the Haunted Station. Things are really moving along over there. They are going to get everything ready to go just in time for the fall slowdown.

Speaking of which Sturgis ended on Sunday and, zero bikers passing through. Just another bad sign of the current economic situation. People aren't spending money on luxuries like travel. 

The Professional Mooch is really pushing his luck. I guess he came in during the morning and tried to exchange a pack of cigarettes. He got someone to buy him some but they got the unfiltered kind. The thing is we don't sell that kind so he was out of luck. I guess he got grouchy with the Manager which is a bad thing to do. She called the other stations and told them to be careful around him. I think his days of hanging out are numbered. When I looked out I saw him and the Old Guitar Guy were hanging out under his begging tree. I bet they both hate me these days.

A truck driver called. He was trying to find the station but he was lost. He was across the street. Sold him $200 in diesel.

The Tire Guy came in and was telling me all about how he had to do a roadside repair on a semi while the state cops kept the lane closed. Now he was on his way to a nearby rock quarry to fix a tire on one of their trucks. As he was standing there someone came in and asked who they could talk to about repairing a tire and I pointed to him, he wasn't happy about that but what the heck, it's business. He told them to go to his shop and he'd be back in an hour. Later in the day he came back and told me that he had the gravel pit tire but on the way back his warning light came on and the battery gauge was dropping fast, so he exceeded the speed limit by a bit. When he got back to town he had 5% battery left so he sped down the street and as he was turning into his shop the truck went dead, and the guy waiting for him was standing in the middle of the road. He had no steering or breaks and couldn't even honk the horn to get the guy out of the way. He managed to coast to a stop before crashing through the bay door. He sold and mounted a new tire for the guy and then came by to drop off some cards, even though I have his number on the emergency contact list. He's going to spend tomorrow working on the alternator.

Business dropped off so I figured I would bag some ice and fill up the soda hoppers. I washed my hands and here came the rush. It lasted about an hour.

The Stuffed Dog Guy came in, he's looking rough. He didn't have his stuffed dog, was limping and had a big red line down his face that ran from his forehead, across his eye and down to his cheek. I didn't ask but I'm willing to bet he got sideways with his dealer and they beat him up. I hope he gets a new dog.

I mopped the mens restroom floor and a woman came running into the building. Ha ha, she was attracted by the clean floor smell but I hadn't done the ladies room so she didn't track anything up. 

A guy came in and asked what happened to the Old Guitar Player. I said he had left but I didn't tell him that the guy had gotten into a fight with the Boss and was banned from the lot.

There wasn't much trash in the restrooms but I figured I would dump them anyhow, and you know what happened next. I was busy enough that I never got the chance. Later a couple of guys came in and got sandwiches out of the coolers but when they opened them up they were really moldy. I gave them a couple of new ones out of the freezer. They tossed the old ones in the trash under the counter so I had to dump that one. When people put the sandwiches out they don't put dates on them so I have no idea how long they've been there. I'll brag, when I ran the Haunted Station I would mark them and never had that problem.

The Storyteller came in and told me about his dog getting old. I'm not looking forward to when it passes away, it's really going to break his heart. 

A guy came in and had a chemical symbol tattooed on his neck. I hope he never goes into crime because it's very identifiable. 

The Tow Truck Driver came in and said he's closing up his shop. This sucks, the guy has been in business for decades, however insurance costs on his trucks, shop and liability are killing him. And, for some reason "wink wink" business is way down. Normally during the summer he's non stop busy but this year nobody is traveling and he just didn't make enough. He said he's looking for a new job so I said there's always openings on the Graveyard Shift. Considering his background in auto mechanics I don't think he'll have trouble.

The Crazy Lady showed up late so Bigfoot ended up getting on the drawer first. I figured she does it on purpose so she can screw around all night while he waits on all the customers. Considering the day I was just glad to leave before I got caught up in any of the drama.