Sales Great, Traffic Low

I'm not sure who paid the price for a slumping economy and high gas prices, but it sure as heck wasn't convenience stores. Both Friday and Saturday were steady and sales were similar to last years sales, so I'm thinking maybe higher end eating places took the hit and fast food did a little better business over the weekend?

The strange thing is that traffic was LOW this year, but sales were the same as last year, which I have a theory that maybe people bought more snacks to take to hotels instead of eating out or ordering room service. It's one way that could explain less tourists/same sales.

Traffic is usually the thing people talk about most, but only one customer mentioned traffic and he was talking about the lack of it. I went to the bridge cams yesterday afternoon and sure enough there weren't any of the usual gridlock traffic shots around the rotary. Here's a link to the live webcams:

http://www.capecodlivecam.com/


Traffic leaving the cape right now is pretty steady, but nothing like years gone by.

It was a great weekend, although weather was a bit on the early spring-cooler temps side. Not exactly beach weather, but a lot of boaters were out anyways.

The great thing about the store is that everyone from every financial status comes to the store... the crack addicted 'rose in a glass tube' junkies, the wealthy business owners, the average working man and woman. And all of 'em got a story to tell and only a few moments to do it in... and I'm listening. :O)

The landscaper had done a little work to each house on his list... everyone wanted work done for the holiday weekend and he finally finished on Saturday and was ready to get a little rest and relaxation for himself on Sunday and Monday. The knees of his jeans were dark with soil and his tanned face and bright eyes filled the store with the energy of being human, and getting something done.

The fisherman was refilling his thermos with coffee, black. He smelled of the ocean and booze. A carton of smokes and some lottery tickets and off he went, I'm not sure he knew it was a holiday weekend.

The three older women on a Cape Cod adventure without any kids or men were laughing loudly as they walked in and it was a contagious good feeling that swept through the store as they gossipped through bullhorn voices about finally getting away from the house, the kids, the men, the work, the sister in laws, the fumes, the nagging, the men, the men, the men. Then they asked me if Cape Cod had any strip clubs where men danced for tips... hahaha. They want to be away from the men and, yet, with the men. :D

Lots of drunk college kids buying condoms and gum and mints. And disposable cameras... I'd love to see the CVS worker's face that develops the shots that come from hotel rooms full of 20 year olds on weekend breaks. Can you imagine the fun? Life's so short, it's a good thing pictures are taken.

I work this coming Memorial Day weekend, which should be interestin', as it always is during any holiday at the store.

The things being talked about most at the store the past 2 weeks are these:

1. Gas prices; over $2.00 a gallon. A customer is getting one of those electric/gas cars (it's on order) and I'm curious to see the car and maybe even go for a ride around the block in it. Real estate workers claim they don't go around showing houses as much as they used to... not sure why they wouldn't, because housing prices have gone up more than gas, so they must be making more money per house sold.

2. Prisoner of War torture pictures... some customer said "Well, we demonized the Iraqi people to such a high level, it's no shock our army guys did that to them..." I think he was refering to the burnt body being slung over the bridge photo from weeks earlier. The more photos that come out of Iraq, on both sides, the more disturbing conversations get at the store. I saw one guy wiping tears out of his eyes while reading some piece about the beheading of Nicholas Berg. Two other customers were talking loudly in disgust about the American soldiers who posed nude prisoners in the human pyramid. When customers respond to newspapers this openly, the impact is strong. Other customers eagerly pipe in. The store becomes a debate center.

Introduction to we need ones...

An idea hit me the other day, during a funny night at the store. From behind the counter, I often feel like I have the best seat in the arena to watch life from. Working as a convenience store clerk gives you a chance to take the pulse of the community... when things are busy, you know why. Holidays, summer time, first day of spring, winter storm warning, hurricane off the coast. Everyone ends up here, in front of the counter. Telling me stories with the things they buy, and the words they say, and the looks upon their faces.

I'm going to start keeping a weekly journal about the things that happen at the store. I'll start this journal off with something I wrote about a few nights ago:

Slow night at work last night, but some guy got pulled over in the store parking lot by two cops, then two more showed up, then another, and another and another. And another! Heard it might be a stolen vehicle, but it didn't matter. What did matter is that every 10 minutes or so a customer walked in and asked "wow, what happened?"

So, at first I was all "possible stolen vehicle."

But then my brain went "have fun with this..."

After all, it's not often 8 cop cars with lights flashing are in the parking lot surrounding a station wagon.

So, giving the guy at the sandwich counter a 'follow my lead' glance, the next customer that walked in got this:

Customer: Wow, what happened?

Me: Pretty odd night here, had to call the cops. Guy runs into the store naked, grabs about 4 packages of those Twinkies, starts juggling them. :follow my lead glance to sandwich counter guy:

Sandwich counter guy: Yeh, I did my best to stop the guy from opening those packages of nylons, but he got one open and put it on his head.

Me: Then the guy starts demanding we turn all the magazines with faces on the covers around, because he can't answer everyone at once.

Sandwich counter guy: You don't even want to know what he did with a stem of bananas...

Me: It was an odd, odd night, alright.

Customer: ::::::: stunned expression ::::::

Me: Just kidding, possible stolen vehicle.

Customer: hahaha!



So we do this to every customer for the next half hour, until the cops left. The story got more elaborate each time, and ended like this:

Customer: Wow, 8 cop cars out there, what did that guy do?

Me: weird night here... guy runs into the store completely naked. Grabs a few fist fulls of Ring Dings and Twinkies, starts juggling and humming the theme song from The Brady Bunch. We had no choice, had to call the cops.

Sandwichguy: I think once he ripped open that package of nylons and threw them on his head was when it was pretty clear the guy might be dangerous.

Me: Yeh. That definitely made me nervous. Good thing I keep a pair of spare clean pants behind the counter here.

Customer: Holy shit, you two get any of this on the security cameras?

Me: yep. Cops already took the footage, though.

Customer: What's up with the tow truck? Why is the car on it? Is that the guy's car?

Me: That's the weirdest part of all this!

Sandwich guy: You ain't kidding! The whole night was weird, but that was the weirdest!

Customer: What? What? What?

Me: Dude, the car, when it pulled up, it was hovering.

Customer: WHAT?!

Me: Don't know what the naked juggling guy did to the vehicle, but it was about 2 inches off the ground, wheels weren't on the parking lot, it was like a hovercraft. (sandwich guy ducks behind counter to conceal laughing.)

Customer: Holy shit.

Me: Yeh. Pretty crazy night, alright.

Customer: How in the world, what in the...

Me: just kidding... no nakedness, no juggling, no hovercraft, just a possible stolen vehicle.

Customer: what?

Me: just kidding, we made that all up.

Customer: Oh man. You had me, you two got me good. No hovercraft?

Me: nah...

Customer: No juggling?

Me: nah...

Customer: oh man... too funny, you two are nuts!

Sandwich guy: YEP!