SoapZone Community Message Board

I got singled out. First SM thanked all of us. Then she said thank you to "S" (who started a month before me) and me for joining the team. And then she said "and especially Vicky...you've been our savior this year!" Which...ugh. She probably meant it in the sense that at least a half dozen times already, I've covered shifts for co-workers who were sick or on vacation, and I'll stay later when someone's running late for whatever reason, but I don't do that because of some sense of duty or loyalty to the store. I do it because I get paid so little, I need all the hours they'll give me. Also, SM very much plays favorites and I've been aware for some while that right now, I'm her "golden girl". Forgive me for sounding boastful but...yes, I pick up on things quickly and don't often have to be shown how to do something more than once or twice. And yes, I learned early on that disagreeing with SM in any way was pretty much fruitless and would only make SM angry and (even more) unpleasant to work with, so I just keep my mouth shut. And yes, I'm the one who's there for every scheduled work shift (because that's how I was raised) and then some. So yes, I'm a valued employee and I'm happy (and a little embarrassed) to be pulled aside and praised by SM. But I didn't enjoy hearing I was a "savior" (really, that's too much), and I felt bad for S who, despite being a good worker herself and also someone who can fill in at the last minute due to living within walking distance of the store, tends to be the recipient of a lot of SM's displeasure even though she doesn't deserve it.

It all reminded me of a discussion here on SZ a while back when the NYC dockworkers went on strike and received a significant pay raise. I made a comment that led to a few posters talking about employers pitting employees against one another. I truly never experienced that at the bindery or my previous workplace but man, SM is all about that and can be vicious in how she speaks well of one employee while putting down another.

That stinks that the model was damaged during shipping (and that it cost so much to ship) but LOL at "the shipwreck"! Did your sister display it somewhere anyways?

This is what the Danmark looks like:

That's a beautiful ship!