Memoirs of a Gas Boy

Anyone who has ever worked in some degree of customer service will tell you, that the people are some of the best part of the job, and also some of the worst. I too can attest to that as I have worked  at a gas station for several years. The amount of stories and funny occurrences that have come up is endless, but I will try and remember a few for the purpose of this blog post.

- A older gentleman once came in and handed me a five dollar bill, he said " this is for the washroom". To which I replied "Oh sir the washroom doesn't cost anything to use". His response was "Just take it, my wife couldn't hold it." Conveniently the new guy had just arrived for his shift...

- A young girl once came in and asked to have her oil checked. I went out checked her oil, and topped it off as it was getting a bit low. I told her how much it was going to be, much to her surprise it was only $5. She anticipated it being quite a bit higher. When I brought her the change, she mentioned that she usually got a sticker to put on her windshield telling her the next time she needed oil was. You could imagine her devastation when I informed her that she needed an 'oil CHANGE' not just oil.

-  After a few times of people saying, "Oh i forgot my wallet at home, I'll be right back", you learn that you can't trust everybody. One time a middle aged man popped in filled up and low and behold forgot his wallet. I kindly explained to this man that unless he could get someone to bring his wallet in that I need to hang onto something of value. He said "Oh that's fair I've got just the thing." He came back in with his six year old child, and before I had the chance to say anything he shouted  "be right back!", and left. So here was this six year old, well behaved boy, just sitting on the chair waiting for his father to return. Luckily his dad came back and I supplied him with unlimited hot chocolate in order to avoid a future lawsuit.

This is just a taste of some of the bizarre tales that have occurred at the old fueling station. Never a dull moment. I hope you enjoyed!

Josh

Juhlke Family Christmas

Ahhh Christmas time is once again upon us bringing cheer, kindness and gifts with it. I am a pretty big Christmas fan, but don't let that confuse you into thinking I plan ahead for it. I do however enjoy the family time, eggnog, and the holiday spirit.

I usually attend two Christmas functions, two veeeeery different Christmas functions. One is on Christmas day with my mom's side, which is very personable and fun. The other is the Juhlke family Christmas which is usually slightly less so. Let me paint a picture for you of how the event usually plays out.

First of all the Juhlke's have one get together a year, Christmas. Second of all there is a ton of people, i want to say, ten thousand. There is no alcohol, it usually lasts about a total of three hours, and it takes place at an optimist club.

Fun usually finds any way to escape the Juhlke family Christmas. During my younger years we used to bring a ball to play with after dinner, until the powers that be installed the "No ball rule" Christmas of '03. Just to fully understand the lack of fun, last year the family game was a word search...

Even the gift exchange game struggles to produce enjoyment. There are two rounds, female and male, everyone buys a gift five dollars or under and places it on the table. The rules of the game are simple,  everyone gets a number. Number one starts by taking gift off the table, number two can either take from the table or take from number one.. this process continues. Several years back  i went to the dollar store and bought five dart guns that me and my cousins could play with after. Our logic was flawless on how we could guarantee one of us got the guns. Person A takes guns, if anyone steals them, Person A would take Person B's gift and Person B takes back the guns. This plan worked to perfection until my sixty year old uncle made up some lame rule that the last person could take any gift no questions asked. He took the guns. You can imagine the devastation he felt when he realized he just won himself five poorly constructed dart guns made in China. Since then my gift has been whatever I got in the gift game the previous year. Some examples are; drill bits, a mug, flashlights, picture frames, a Swiss army knife... did I mention flashlights?

I guess now that I think about it though the party being 'unfun' actually kind of makes it fun. It's a running joke with my cousins, i strategically have to avoid certain conversations, the gift game is a debacle and the food is average, but with all that in mind its unique and different. Sometimes I think we can take for granted what we do have. So this year I will do my best to enjoy this annual event, and maybe actually purchase a gift as opposed to re-gifting last years.. although I'm sure anyone would kill for a new glasses case...

Merry Christmas!!!

I've seen the world...and it's AWESOME

Well thats a lie actually.

Don't get me wrong I've done my fair share of travelling (mainly North/Central America), but I have not seen the world, and probably never will.

However, I did recently order a giant size National Geographic map of the world, which I've been anxiously awaiting for several weeks. It just arrived! Is it sad that I called the company twice to inquire where my earth poster was? Probably. Is it sad that I've been staring at this magnificent wonder for half an hour? Maybe. I just love geography, culture and knowing where things are located.

I've accepted the fact that i probably won't be getting around to visiting every country on our great big planet, but I would like to see a few. Here are my top five 'to visit list'.

1. Brazil
2. Germany
3. South Korea
4. New Zealand
5. Hawaii

Any ideas/comments/recommendations more then appreciated! Well I'm sorry, but this poster isn't going to stare at itself, gotta run...

When in Rome...

Friends with Benefits

Its hard to say no to a friend isn't it?

No matter how uncomfortable, inconvenient, or frustrating it may be, it is clearly states in the Friend Code, section 4, subsection d, " Thou shalt help their friends when they are in need." So when my pal recently purchased his first home, a fixer upper i may add, I knew I would be in for a treat. He could at least sent me a text message asking for help, so that way I could have had ample time to think of an excuse to not attend his Saturday work event. But noooo he had to ask me face to face... he knows me too well.

In all seriousness it wasn't too bad, in fact it was actually kind of fun. However, after hours of tearing down porches, pressure washing his house, sanding, cleaning...the list goes on, I thought to myself what makes us do this kind of stuff for friends.

I think some people are just good people. Some people feel guilty not helping. Some people do in hope of getting the favour returned down the road, and some people help for a feeling of self worth. I will say this, I do have a great memory, and lets just say I plan on building my first home from scratch, and I'm confident I won't have to lift a finger... if you catch my drift. (and in case you don't, I plan on calling in several hundred favours, therefore resulting in the home being built without me doing anything)



"Thats what friends are for"     - Anomymous

Life as a Raider Fan

What do you call a man who's fallen off a building, been run over by a car, had dirt kicked in his face, all while a crowd of people stood by and laughed at his misfortune?

You call that man an Oakland Raiders fan.

It all started when I was just a young lad, watching the 2001-02 AFC divisional playoff game between the Oakland Raiders and the New England Patriots. It was an infamous game forever being known for the "tuck rule". I was sitting between my two uncles who were screaming "It was a fumble!!", the refs ruled it wasn't and Oakland would go on to lose the game. It was at that precise moment that I decided I would dedicate my fanship to the silver and black. The next year was fantastic, Oakland would go to the Super Bowl, Rich Gannon won MVP, it was truly a great time to be cheering for the Raiders.

Unfortunately all good things must come to an end. Oakland would lose that Super Bowl, 48-21 at the hands of the Tampa Bay Bucs, with MVP Rich Gannon throwing five interceptions. "They'll be back boys, right....right??"

They wouldn't be back. During the next seven years Oakland would be the laughing stalk of the league, in turn making me the laughing stalk of my friends, co-workers, family, and the list goes on. The Raiders had a 29-83 record during that span. This wasn't for lack of trying, names such as Randy Moss, Lamont Jordan, Richard Seymour, Warren Sapp and Javon Walker all had stops on the Raiders with little to no success. The once acclaimed powerhouse franchise was in desperate times.

When this season started as per usual I had high hopes. A new quarterback, healthy running backs and one of the most talented secondaries in the league. But part of me knew, that I had experienced this feeling before and it usually is very quickly replaced with heartache and despair. However this season is different, at 5-4 fresh off an overtime win against division leading Kansas City, the Oakland Raiders have a winning record going into the bye week.

Could this be the year the Raiders find their way back into the playoffs. Only time will tell. A road game coming off the bye against a 6-2 Pittsburgh Steeler squad should be a pretty good indicator of where we stand. Wish us luck.

Sincerely,

A Desperate, Beaten, Passionate Fan