Rant: Unable To Spend Money and My Continuing Aura of Authority.

How f*cking hard should it be to spend your own money?!? Isn't the purpose of retail stores to exchange goods for currency? When a customer comes into your store and stands on the retail floor looking around for assistance, shouldn't your first instinct be to rush over and relieve this person of as much money as possible? You'd think this would be the case, but it appears you'd be wrong.

My old Nikes are starting to fall apart after 2-3 years of wear and I need some new ones so I went to the local Dunham's store last night to shop. I usually get the Air Monarch cross-trainers because they're comfortable and only cost $45-$60, depending on the sale. As it happened, they were on sale for $45, so yay for that. If only I could get someone, anyone, to wait on me.

There was an older couple who were trying on some shoes, but I have no idea where they got them from because not one sales person was in the area. I gazed blankly across the floor toward the nearby cash registers where three cashiers flitted about, blithely ignorant of or apathetic to my presence, unaided, in the shoe section. Now, granted, they probably couldn't come to my aid, but surely they could've paged some assistance my way. Here's where basic self-preservation instincts should kick in: if no one helps the customer, they won't have anything to purchase and thus there no need for cashiers; ergo, GET THE CUSTOMER SOME HELP!!!

I ended up walking out. There are other sporting goods places.

I've experienced similar treatment at Guitar Center where I've gone in with a figurative boner to spend a lot of money and left empty-handed and just as wealthy because the bozos there either ignore me or are so woefully clueless about there merchandise. I had a pro audio clerk who resorted to reading me the bullet points out of a magazine ad! I'm looking to spend 15-20 Benjis and this guy blew the sale because he didn't have a hint about his own department! I've been wanting to try guitars and amps that are over a grand on the tag, but the commissioned sales drone is fawning over some teenager painfully plucking out some popular mediocre tune because the kid's mother is about to drop $179 on a Fender Squire starter bundle. You'd think they'd rather have 10 times the commission, but then again you'd be wrong.

Now about the aura of authority thing in the title: For some reason, people come up to me in stores and start asking me questions as if I worked there. I am not dressed in any way like the staff, but for some reason I must give off an "I know all; ask me about it" vibe. While waiting in vain for someone to sell me shoes, some guy walked up to me and asked me where something was. I slowly turn toward him and looked into this Paleolithic mook mug and said, "I don't work here."

"You don't?"

What made you think I did?

"I saw your badge," indicating the electronic key card from my daytime employment at a Very Big Corporation. I point out that it says "Very Big Corporation" and not "Dunham's" and he says, I'm not kidding...

"I can't read. I'm stupid."

CHANGE! HOPE!!!