memory

from Steinway Street: portraits from the past: my life in retail: Morning Raid

/ zdunno03 / 2 Comments

Morning Raid

they fan out through the store
as if on a search and destroy mission
these warriors of the retail war
feign and attack
knock off a pair of sneakers here
a pair of ladies heels there
or if the defenses are too good
a can of saddle soap and a pair of socks
something to take back behind their lines
a victory is after all a victory
and this is beyond hostility
now it’s down to economics
and that’s where they hurt you the most

from Steinway Street: portraits from the past: my life in retail: Vaudeville

/ zdunno03 / 10 Comments

Vaudeville

you say watch the floor
and they both look down and ask
why, is it moving
or they hold out a balloon for a kid
and when he reaches for it
they let it go to sputter through the air
and laugh as the kid’s smile melts away
or when Steve asks them to unload everything from his car trunk
they pack his spare and jack in shoe cases
and watch as he unpacks them in the store
they howl at each other’s antics
and you watch thinking
this is the Little Rascals grown-up
or perhaps the Little Rascals taller
would be better
and when Jack’s brother joins them
one does think of the Three Stooges
they will climb in a box and kick each other around
or move the safe on an unsuspecting manager
or clip off the tips of the paper cups by the water cooler
or tell as many bad jokes as you’ll stand for
before you walk away
then follow you to tell a few more
Zaida watches Ish’s attempt at Costello
and shakes her head thinking
such a waste
Ish continues though
with Jack as straight man
even sticking his face in an ice cream cake
for something resembling an effect
and even Gerry can feel superior to that
how can someone respect themself
Luz asks
and do that
you don’t know
Zaida doesn’t know
Stacey stopped asking the question
Julie just wants to know where the ham in her sandwich went
and Ish toys with a water gun
thinking dark thoughts concerning Jack
life is one secondhand routine after another
and maybe if one does enough
another movie will come on the screen
a second feature
so to speak
and what will his role be in that
one wonders
if there will be a role for him
at all

from Steinway Street: portraits from the past: my life in retail: Voids

/ zdunno03 / 4 Comments

Voids

Stacey says oh fuck
and writes in Zaida’s name as cashier
Julie explains how her last void wasn’t really a void
but a non-sale
there are times you think they’re competing
and other times when you wonder if all days will be like this
Stacey says it’s because people keep changing their minds
Julie explains it’s easier than doing refunds
but somehow
somehow you think there should be a Miss Void contest
and if there was
you’d put your money on Stacey
with a few bucks on Julie
to show

from Steinway Street: portraits from the past: my life in retail: The Window

/ zdunno03 / 5 Comments

The Window

holes keep popping up everywhere
they just won’t leave the shoes alone
if it’s in the window
it must be better than what’s on the shelves
and even size 10s try to cram into the 7s on display
Mike goes crazy
don’t sell out of the window
he says
don’t let the slobs near my window
but they descend anyway
where’s this
they ask
pointing to a shoe and knocking over what’s on the cubes
where’s that
what size is it anyway
you got it in 8 1/2
and Mike chews the carpet
the hours spent
the pride felt
the beauty of it all
gone
and he wonders if moving the counter would help
or perhaps barbed wire
or a mine field
maybe Ish could rig something up
maybe perhaps

from Steinway Street: portraits from the past: my life in retail: Stacy

/ zdunno03 / 4 Comments

Stacy

she’s seen Raiders of the Lost Ark
nine times
but that doesn’t stop her
from going again
it’s pure escapism she says
and you don’t ask from what
the men she deals with are boys
doing one sick routine
after another
and she indulges them
at the store
and at work on the EMS
handling stretchers and pints of blood
she knows they’re all crazy
and sometimes wonders if she is too
and though she tires of it occasionally
she does find it amusing often enough
to let it pass
like the jobs
that she doesn’t take seriously
yet she does so well
she surprises herself
even Mike
like Steve like Gerry
thinks her attitude is excellent
and Stacy lets it roll
she’s irreverent at best
at worst she’s telling dead baby jokes
she sees the humor in everything
so she can’t help smiling
as living goes on around her
she’ll survive the craziness
because she was born to rise above
and as she rises
she’ll shake her head
try to hold back the smirk
and watch it go
with an appreciative eye

from Steinway Street: portraits from the past: my life in retail: Julie

/ zdunno03 / 2 Comments

Julie

the questions
what does petulant mean
what’s a dow jones average
you feel like you’re on a tv game show
and know you’re going to blow your chance
for the grand prize
but watching her delight in words amazes you
there is enough curiosity there
to kill several thousand cats
you didn’t know about Julie
Luz says
she’s the intelligent one
and Julie sighs and says
I am pretty smart for a fourteen year old
Zaida worries about her
that she’s learning too much too soon
and tells you to watch what you fill her head with
and you have to look away
before you start babbling
the past the present the future
will all come streaming out
a leak in the dam
the volcano erupting
the madman on the loose
so you play with your tie
and think the boys her own age must be in total confusion
especially when she destroys them
with a word a look a smile
there are times even you wonder
if perhaps she isn’t really thirty
and you shake your head as she changes the radio station to XLO
and explains to Steve who objects
that it’s the balance of nature
yin and yang at work
and she dances in the aisles
while Steve looks at you and says
who’s yin and yang anyway
and what do they have to do with disco