freaky friday! bears, and dogs, and traylors, oh my!
This post is actually about one week ago, last Friday the 22nd. It had to be one of the most varied and interesting work days I've had in my entire life. We had random celebrities, pro athletes, drug sniffing dogs, and funny enough... a slow day as far as actual sales went. So here it goes, I'll try to keep the interesting bits in chronological order:
Early in the day... it was pretty slow. At one point this cool highschool kid came in, and we started talking about various stuff. I showed him the Sony PSP that we were using as a demo unit, to which he said, "Wow!" (as is the typical reaction to the screen/quality on the thing). He told me he was gonna go grab his mom, to bring her back and show her the PSP. This makes sense, cause any parent would wanna buy the thing after they saw how cool it was in person (it's happened before). At first, I didn't think he was coming back... as it had taken a few hours. But sure enough, he came back with mom in the afternoon.
They started looking at it, and then he went on to play the demo of Donkey Kong Jungle Beat. I was chit-chatting with them both, about various stuff. All of a sudden, his mom asks me, "Do you watch Malcolm In the Middle?" I replied, "Of course I do, great show." She then points to her son and says, "That's Stevie. You know, the kid in the wheelchair." I was of course in disbelief, at first. This kid who had been here all day, he definitely looked exactly like him. That part I wasn't doubting...
And of course, he's not actually in a wheelchair in real life, so he doesn't just blaringly stick out. So she tells him, "Do the voice." (something he must be sick of his mom saying, by this point). He says a few lines with the Stevie voice (the slow, athsmatic voice you will know if you've seen the show). But then I thought, "Well a lot of people can do a good Stevie voice." So I said, "Hey, do you have a photo I.D. on you or something?" So he busts out his school I.D., and sure enough... it says on it "Craig Lamar Traylor." (which yes, is infact the name of the actor who plays Stevie).
She explained that they live in California (which I knew), and that they were out here on a trip. I dunno if it was to visit family, or what. She also explained that there is an upcoming episode of Malcolm which Craig had written himself. She said it was a semi-spoof on Family Matters, where Stevie has a twin brother who is super cool and suave... the total opposite of geeky Stevie (think Steve/Stephan Urkel). So he has to play both characters in that episode, something we only see rarely in sitcoms. In the end, though, I was just thinking how funny it was that they'd come into the Vernon Hills GameStop, of all places.
They didn't stick around too long, but it was really cool to run into him. And the funny thing is, if not for his mom being so proud of him (or bragging about him, too)... I never woulda known. Funnier still because I actually ran across him before... at the NAACP Image Awards in 2001. But back then he was only twelve years old, so a lot has changed. And yes, I actually attended the NAACP Image Awards back in 2001... of all things. Back at the tail end of when I used to staff music/press events (and that show took place during a trip out there, I wasn't working at that show specifically). A story for another post, though.
Then we move on to the late afternoon. I had told a few people about Craig showing up earlier. Shawn had actually seen them, as they were leaving the store around the same time he came in to work. He didn't know until later who it actually was, though, so he was like, "No way!" Same response from Dave Briatta, our part-timer, who came to close later. And little did I know the drama that would captivate Dave later in the day...
There were a few customers in the store, and both Dave and I were helping them out. All of a sudden, these two guys (maybe in their early twenties) bust into the store and start yelling. They didn't know Dave, obviously, cause they kept asking him, "ARE YOU DAVE?! ARE YOU?! TELL ME!" He was smart, of course, and said, "No, man. Who wants to know." They were loud, violent, and actually threatening to KILL Dave. They said they were gonna come back after we closed at night (which dismayed me, too, as I was closing with him). When asked why they were so mad at Dave... they said that he had sold drugs to some little kid earlier in the day (and they were angry over this, I dunno if the kid was their sibling maybe). They said they were gonna call the cops, but of course WE had already called the cops by this point. They took off after realizing this, but thankfully a customer in the store was able to read their license plate number.
The police showed up a few minutes later, and took written statements from all of us. Funny enough, one of the customers there was Brett Groves (aka "Terminator," the person who TF's nickname comes from). He's a friend, and always around the store (since he lives nearby). So he said he's testify as to what happened, too. The cops left, but by that evening they were thankfully able to find the guys. They were charged with disorderly conduct or something, and told never to go near the store again. They also had told the cops about the drug thing, when confronted as to why they were so violent. So little did we know...
Later on in the day, the police came back. Shawn (our store manager) had also come back, after seeing a movie at Showplace8 (right down the street). He had come back to finish unpacking some shipments and etc that he'd left behind earlier (since he cut out early to see the movie). The police came into the store, and checked around for a while. They were looking to see if Dave was holding any drugs, basically, because the two guys from earlier had accused him of this. (not to mention that he had some priors, so they had reason to suspect it was true). Then, to our surprise, they have us all stand in a corner out front as they bring in the DRUG-SNIFFING DOG! They had him go around the entire front and back rooms of the store. Nothing was found, and so they headed out. Thankfully there were no customers here during this, cause they wouldn't have been allowed inside.
On their way out, one of our regular customers walks in at probably the exact moment the dog is walking out the door. He saw the dog, and said to him, "Not every day you see a big dog in GameStop, eh?" Funny enough, the customer was Ruben Brown (offensive guard from the Chicago Bears). There are a buncha players from The Bears who come into the store on a regular basis. The most frequent is prolly Joe Odom (linebacker) and his girlfriend (both of whom are really cool, and also big Zelda fans haha). But there's a few others who come in all the time. This was Ruben's first time here, though (and he's been back since a buncha times). He's a really cool guy, and he explained that he was living nearby in Mundelein during the season. He originally hails from New York, and left most of his games there. He wanted to pick up a copy of Madden to play with his buddies.
Back when I was working at Best Buy Deerfield, all the Chicago Bulls players used to stop by (especially Eddie Curry, etc). So now I guess it's The Bears players we'll get to know a little better haha. None of them are as big of spenders as Eddie used to be, though. ^^ Shawn also mentioned to me the next day, as we were discussing local celebs, that Richard Marx lives right nearby there! Yes, the singer/songwriter Richard Marx who was huge in the 80's and early 90's...
It's funny, too, because we have met his wife and kids on numerous occassions. They shop at the store on a regular basis, and they reserve games with us all the time. So I knew their last name was Marx. I had never made the connection, though. If I ever saw HIM in there, I'd definitely notice haha. Shawn explained that Richard never comes in himself... that only his family does. Maybe one day he'll decide to pop in. He's been an idol of mine forever (and I know Renee loves him, too).
So this ends the big events of the day. Better than the typical work day, I'd say. Ran into some athletes, some celebs, some intimidating dogs. It's cool too, cause it's been a while since fun stuff like that happened. Back when I was in highschool, and later when I was in the Journalism programs in college... I used to run into celebrities all the time. It got to the point where I took it for granted back then. (like my one friend used to crap herself that I knew Toni Braxton really well back in the day). But in the past four years or so, it's been pretty dead in that aspect. So if anything, it was a fun thrill and reminder of the good ol' days. Now back to the typical GameStop day... as I head off to close -_-
Early in the day... it was pretty slow. At one point this cool highschool kid came in, and we started talking about various stuff. I showed him the Sony PSP that we were using as a demo unit, to which he said, "Wow!" (as is the typical reaction to the screen/quality on the thing). He told me he was gonna go grab his mom, to bring her back and show her the PSP. This makes sense, cause any parent would wanna buy the thing after they saw how cool it was in person (it's happened before). At first, I didn't think he was coming back... as it had taken a few hours. But sure enough, he came back with mom in the afternoon.
They started looking at it, and then he went on to play the demo of Donkey Kong Jungle Beat. I was chit-chatting with them both, about various stuff. All of a sudden, his mom asks me, "Do you watch Malcolm In the Middle?" I replied, "Of course I do, great show." She then points to her son and says, "That's Stevie. You know, the kid in the wheelchair." I was of course in disbelief, at first. This kid who had been here all day, he definitely looked exactly like him. That part I wasn't doubting...
And of course, he's not actually in a wheelchair in real life, so he doesn't just blaringly stick out. So she tells him, "Do the voice." (something he must be sick of his mom saying, by this point). He says a few lines with the Stevie voice (the slow, athsmatic voice you will know if you've seen the show). But then I thought, "Well a lot of people can do a good Stevie voice." So I said, "Hey, do you have a photo I.D. on you or something?" So he busts out his school I.D., and sure enough... it says on it "Craig Lamar Traylor." (which yes, is infact the name of the actor who plays Stevie).
She explained that they live in California (which I knew), and that they were out here on a trip. I dunno if it was to visit family, or what. She also explained that there is an upcoming episode of Malcolm which Craig had written himself. She said it was a semi-spoof on Family Matters, where Stevie has a twin brother who is super cool and suave... the total opposite of geeky Stevie (think Steve/Stephan Urkel). So he has to play both characters in that episode, something we only see rarely in sitcoms. In the end, though, I was just thinking how funny it was that they'd come into the Vernon Hills GameStop, of all places.
They didn't stick around too long, but it was really cool to run into him. And the funny thing is, if not for his mom being so proud of him (or bragging about him, too)... I never woulda known. Funnier still because I actually ran across him before... at the NAACP Image Awards in 2001. But back then he was only twelve years old, so a lot has changed. And yes, I actually attended the NAACP Image Awards back in 2001... of all things. Back at the tail end of when I used to staff music/press events (and that show took place during a trip out there, I wasn't working at that show specifically). A story for another post, though.
Then we move on to the late afternoon. I had told a few people about Craig showing up earlier. Shawn had actually seen them, as they were leaving the store around the same time he came in to work. He didn't know until later who it actually was, though, so he was like, "No way!" Same response from Dave Briatta, our part-timer, who came to close later. And little did I know the drama that would captivate Dave later in the day...
There were a few customers in the store, and both Dave and I were helping them out. All of a sudden, these two guys (maybe in their early twenties) bust into the store and start yelling. They didn't know Dave, obviously, cause they kept asking him, "ARE YOU DAVE?! ARE YOU?! TELL ME!" He was smart, of course, and said, "No, man. Who wants to know." They were loud, violent, and actually threatening to KILL Dave. They said they were gonna come back after we closed at night (which dismayed me, too, as I was closing with him). When asked why they were so mad at Dave... they said that he had sold drugs to some little kid earlier in the day (and they were angry over this, I dunno if the kid was their sibling maybe). They said they were gonna call the cops, but of course WE had already called the cops by this point. They took off after realizing this, but thankfully a customer in the store was able to read their license plate number.
The police showed up a few minutes later, and took written statements from all of us. Funny enough, one of the customers there was Brett Groves (aka "Terminator," the person who TF's nickname comes from). He's a friend, and always around the store (since he lives nearby). So he said he's testify as to what happened, too. The cops left, but by that evening they were thankfully able to find the guys. They were charged with disorderly conduct or something, and told never to go near the store again. They also had told the cops about the drug thing, when confronted as to why they were so violent. So little did we know...
Later on in the day, the police came back. Shawn (our store manager) had also come back, after seeing a movie at Showplace8 (right down the street). He had come back to finish unpacking some shipments and etc that he'd left behind earlier (since he cut out early to see the movie). The police came into the store, and checked around for a while. They were looking to see if Dave was holding any drugs, basically, because the two guys from earlier had accused him of this. (not to mention that he had some priors, so they had reason to suspect it was true). Then, to our surprise, they have us all stand in a corner out front as they bring in the DRUG-SNIFFING DOG! They had him go around the entire front and back rooms of the store. Nothing was found, and so they headed out. Thankfully there were no customers here during this, cause they wouldn't have been allowed inside.
On their way out, one of our regular customers walks in at probably the exact moment the dog is walking out the door. He saw the dog, and said to him, "Not every day you see a big dog in GameStop, eh?" Funny enough, the customer was Ruben Brown (offensive guard from the Chicago Bears). There are a buncha players from The Bears who come into the store on a regular basis. The most frequent is prolly Joe Odom (linebacker) and his girlfriend (both of whom are really cool, and also big Zelda fans haha). But there's a few others who come in all the time. This was Ruben's first time here, though (and he's been back since a buncha times). He's a really cool guy, and he explained that he was living nearby in Mundelein during the season. He originally hails from New York, and left most of his games there. He wanted to pick up a copy of Madden to play with his buddies.
Back when I was working at Best Buy Deerfield, all the Chicago Bulls players used to stop by (especially Eddie Curry, etc). So now I guess it's The Bears players we'll get to know a little better haha. None of them are as big of spenders as Eddie used to be, though. ^^ Shawn also mentioned to me the next day, as we were discussing local celebs, that Richard Marx lives right nearby there! Yes, the singer/songwriter Richard Marx who was huge in the 80's and early 90's...
It's funny, too, because we have met his wife and kids on numerous occassions. They shop at the store on a regular basis, and they reserve games with us all the time. So I knew their last name was Marx. I had never made the connection, though. If I ever saw HIM in there, I'd definitely notice haha. Shawn explained that Richard never comes in himself... that only his family does. Maybe one day he'll decide to pop in. He's been an idol of mine forever (and I know Renee loves him, too).
So this ends the big events of the day. Better than the typical work day, I'd say. Ran into some athletes, some celebs, some intimidating dogs. It's cool too, cause it's been a while since fun stuff like that happened. Back when I was in highschool, and later when I was in the Journalism programs in college... I used to run into celebrities all the time. It got to the point where I took it for granted back then. (like my one friend used to crap herself that I knew Toni Braxton really well back in the day). But in the past four years or so, it's been pretty dead in that aspect. So if anything, it was a fun thrill and reminder of the good ol' days. Now back to the typical GameStop day... as I head off to close -_-