Subway Dinner Theatre Presents...
Dear Peoples:
My job is called "Office Manager" for a handful of Subway restaurants. This job entails making sure the office runs smoothly, answering phones, dealing with people that walk into the office, etc. etc. Since when did part of my job description entail Passing On Very Personal Messages To People Because They're Too Chicken To Do It Themselves?
My bosses are currently on vacation in Victoria for about a week. They left last Monday, will be back on Wednesday. Last Thursday, our field consultant calls. I guess he has been telling S and J about his woes of life (mainly that his car may get repossessed), and being the compassionate people that they are, had stated that they would help if the need arises. (Or rather, they would suck up, considering that the field consultant's job is to inspect Subway stores once a month to make sure everything is running up to "code".) Well, I guess his car got repossessed(sp? I feel like a snake), but instead of talking to them himself to deal with it, he phones me to try to get ME to.
Field Consultant: *explains briefly about his problem and that S and J had said earlier that they'd help* "I had just talked to them on the phone and forgot to talk to them about this, so can you call them and see if they can get a credit application from A Certain Car Dealership, fill it out, and have them fax it to me?"
Inner Me: Ok, you said that you JUST got off the phone with them!!! So why the fuck aren't YOU calling them back about this?!
Me: "Um, I'll see what I can do...?"
Field Consultant: "Can you make sure you get it done right away? I must receive that fax by this afternoon."
Inner Me: Then YOU call them!! Obviously you are having no troubles at all getting a hold of them, so why the fuck do I have to be responsible for YOUR personal crap which has NOTHING to do with Subway!!!! *fumes*
Me: "Um, I'll see what I can do, if I can get a hold of them. Can't make any promises."
Needless to say, I did not call. If this problem was so dire for him to fix, I'm sure he would call S and J himself. Harumph. Mind you, normally I would be the compassionate, push-over Alfbie and just do it, but the fact that he stated that he had JUST got off the phone with them and was too chicken to call back on this uber-important problem that he somehow forgot to mention so he tried to get ME to do it really ticked me off! (I know, shitty sentence) The next day he called back, apologizing because he didn't realize that S and J were still on vacation and that he'd take care of it himself. THANK YOU!!
Then this morning, the boyfriend of one of our more valued employees walks into the office. Note: the boyfriend himself does NOT work for Subway.
The Boyfriend: "Are S or J here?"
Me: "No, they're still on vacation. They'll be back on Wednesday."
The Boyfriend: *lets out a string of curses* "Oh, I really need someone to talk to."
Me: *questioning look. Being the only one in the office, I am now prime candidate for Someone To Talk To*
The Boyfriend: "L (the employee) just left me."
Me: "That's unfortunate." *continues a string of words of sympathy, while wondering why she left him*
The Boyfriend: *indulges me on his plans to move away and blah-blah-blah. "Well, I gotta run. Can you call L at the Northside store and get her to call me?"
Inner Me: So, in other words, you want to drag me into your personal shit, even though I barely know the two of you and am not your friend or L's. In other words, you want ME to disturb her at work to get her to call YOU when you know where she works and such. In other words, you think that because your efforts of talking to her have failed you have to see if I can somehow make it alright. I DON'T THINK SO!!!!
Me: "I'll see what I can do." *Like hell I'm calling!!!!*
I guess, according to T (the manager for the Northside store, and S's sister), The Boyfriend had hit L which was why she left him (weeks ago) and he has since then been stalking her at the store and at home and blah-blah. (I've learned to let such things go in one ear and out the other--better not to get involved in super-personal super-emo stuff that may or may not be entirely true to begin with), and that the Field Consultant had been calling S and J constantly all week about all sorts of different things, one being this car thing that they had never agreed to help him with.
I am SO GLAD I followed my instincts and refused to just "phone away" on other people's problems. You phone about an issue with one of the stores and I'll get a hold of the bosses in a heartbeat. Anything else and you can just forget it!
Then again, I am an Office Manger, aka Person That Picks Up Everyone Else's Flack. Bleh.
Annoyed,
Alfbie
My job is called "Office Manager" for a handful of Subway restaurants. This job entails making sure the office runs smoothly, answering phones, dealing with people that walk into the office, etc. etc. Since when did part of my job description entail Passing On Very Personal Messages To People Because They're Too Chicken To Do It Themselves?
My bosses are currently on vacation in Victoria for about a week. They left last Monday, will be back on Wednesday. Last Thursday, our field consultant calls. I guess he has been telling S and J about his woes of life (mainly that his car may get repossessed), and being the compassionate people that they are, had stated that they would help if the need arises. (Or rather, they would suck up, considering that the field consultant's job is to inspect Subway stores once a month to make sure everything is running up to "code".) Well, I guess his car got repossessed(sp? I feel like a snake), but instead of talking to them himself to deal with it, he phones me to try to get ME to.
Field Consultant: *explains briefly about his problem and that S and J had said earlier that they'd help* "I had just talked to them on the phone and forgot to talk to them about this, so can you call them and see if they can get a credit application from A Certain Car Dealership, fill it out, and have them fax it to me?"
Inner Me: Ok, you said that you JUST got off the phone with them!!! So why the fuck aren't YOU calling them back about this?!
Me: "Um, I'll see what I can do...?"
Field Consultant: "Can you make sure you get it done right away? I must receive that fax by this afternoon."
Inner Me: Then YOU call them!! Obviously you are having no troubles at all getting a hold of them, so why the fuck do I have to be responsible for YOUR personal crap which has NOTHING to do with Subway!!!! *fumes*
Me: "Um, I'll see what I can do, if I can get a hold of them. Can't make any promises."
Needless to say, I did not call. If this problem was so dire for him to fix, I'm sure he would call S and J himself. Harumph. Mind you, normally I would be the compassionate, push-over Alfbie and just do it, but the fact that he stated that he had JUST got off the phone with them and was too chicken to call back on this uber-important problem that he somehow forgot to mention so he tried to get ME to do it really ticked me off! (I know, shitty sentence) The next day he called back, apologizing because he didn't realize that S and J were still on vacation and that he'd take care of it himself. THANK YOU!!
Then this morning, the boyfriend of one of our more valued employees walks into the office. Note: the boyfriend himself does NOT work for Subway.
The Boyfriend: "Are S or J here?"
Me: "No, they're still on vacation. They'll be back on Wednesday."
The Boyfriend: *lets out a string of curses* "Oh, I really need someone to talk to."
Me: *questioning look. Being the only one in the office, I am now prime candidate for Someone To Talk To*
The Boyfriend: "L (the employee) just left me."
Me: "That's unfortunate." *continues a string of words of sympathy, while wondering why she left him*
The Boyfriend: *indulges me on his plans to move away and blah-blah-blah. "Well, I gotta run. Can you call L at the Northside store and get her to call me?"
Inner Me: So, in other words, you want to drag me into your personal shit, even though I barely know the two of you and am not your friend or L's. In other words, you want ME to disturb her at work to get her to call YOU when you know where she works and such. In other words, you think that because your efforts of talking to her have failed you have to see if I can somehow make it alright. I DON'T THINK SO!!!!
Me: "I'll see what I can do." *Like hell I'm calling!!!!*
I guess, according to T (the manager for the Northside store, and S's sister), The Boyfriend had hit L which was why she left him (weeks ago) and he has since then been stalking her at the store and at home and blah-blah. (I've learned to let such things go in one ear and out the other--better not to get involved in super-personal super-emo stuff that may or may not be entirely true to begin with), and that the Field Consultant had been calling S and J constantly all week about all sorts of different things, one being this car thing that they had never agreed to help him with.
I am SO GLAD I followed my instincts and refused to just "phone away" on other people's problems. You phone about an issue with one of the stores and I'll get a hold of the bosses in a heartbeat. Anything else and you can just forget it!
Then again, I am an Office Manger, aka Person That Picks Up Everyone Else's Flack. Bleh.
Annoyed,
Alfbie