Day 2

I tried to tell myself that this job wasn't as physical as working as a teacher, or in a winery. The teaching was definitely not easier. It was a marathon compared to this. It was like doing this job and wrangling 18 third graders for 6.5 hours a day.

As demanding on my body as this is, and I know (I just know) that I am going to get stronger every day. it is so worth it. All day long, there is so much going on. It is amazing that these people can keep their shit together when a line is backing out the front door.

Not only do they keep their shit together, but they are sincere. Imagine looking into the faces of people who are filled with anxiety, or whose depression makes it nearly impossible to get here. These young people are so empathetic. And if I repeat myself, from post to post, too bad.

My job is monotonous, but very necessary. Accuracy and focus are the most important qualifications for this job. That's hard to find in many cannabis workers, for obvious reasons. Today, a customer referred to us as Costco, but for cannabis. I am going to recommend we get scanners and computerize the inventory system. I can't believe they haven't done it already.

People who visited the winery were so happy to be there that there were rarely unpleasant encounters between guests and winery employees. The same is true at the dispensary. Most people are fun and polite. The first timers are bashful about the whole thing, and in total disbelief that this is actually legal.

The seasoned patients come in, knowing THC/CBD ratios, the percentage of THC in product, and that they have a high threshold, so please take that into consideration. I thought I was the only one.

Last night, I went to bed early, and in painful exhaustion. This morning, I woke up, ready to go back. Don't get me wrong. I am definitely ready for bed at 5:00, when work is over. I've been up since 6, on my own volition. I don't get into the shower until 8:55, and I was still early, not like when I was teaching (a whole other blog yet to be published).

After work, I stopped at the cash machine and then the grocery store. Gregory invited me over to watch Bohemian Rhapsody. I came home inspired, and so happy I didn't say no. As hard as this job is, it is still easier than teaching. If I was teaching, I'd be expected to do the job I am doing, which is hard enough, but to also actually teach.

I counted some more and entered numbers into the computer. My butt wiped up the entire floor under the cash registers. This is yoga, and I am better for it.  I am also better for having given up Rachel and half of Lawrence tonight, although I do feel happier. Sometimes (most times) I kill my own buzz. When I am trying to kill a buzz, all I have to do, like Uncle Albert in Mary Poppins, is think dark thoughts, like how certain family members have screwed me over. That's how I know I am in a dark, dangerous neighborhood, and I have to back that car right out of that cul-de-sac right now.

Back to counting. My goodness, but there are so many strain names. They make me laugh. There must be thousands, and the names tell you the cloning history. OG TITS; Birthday Cake; Sour Diesel; Jack Herer; Black Jack; Banana Jack; Mint Chip; Just put words together and there's your fourth generation strain. You can name a strain after yourself. It's like naming an undiscovered planet after yourself. Or name it anything you want. You've made up a new strain.

At the end of the day, I tried to explain to Yelli what I did all day, but I was in a daze, and she had a lot on her mind. Greg, the owner, tried explain about the inventory process, and i tried to absorb it, but we're going to have to talk about that again. or maybe not. he said that one employee stole $2000 in merchandise and was caught on camera, but there wasn't enough proof even though his count was always screwed up. Greg said I should think about all the different ways people could steal. I laughed and said I couldn't wrap my head around that. He told me that was because I am honest. I am. But I think he might have inferred this from my resume.

When I got my job at the winery, I thought that my alcohol consumption would go up. But the opposite happened. We couldn't drink during working hours, and I learned to appreciate the vocabulary and the ritual. The same is true at the dispensary, although you would never know it by the vibe of the place. My cannabis has definitely decreased in the past two days. As Martha would say, "That's a good thing."