And so a couple of weeks ago I found a job. The Pub, down at the Ferry landing, it's a start. A beautiful view, the locals, travelers, it's a good way to meet the neighbors.
I don't particularly want to be here, not here exactly, need to move closer to town, ideally in town, but jobs here are scarce, I know people who've been unemployed or underemployed for years, so I count my blessings. I've had - for a dozen jobs, only 3 interviews, they're cautious, you're not local, new to the area, one - remarkable, an Australian manager, she's interviewing me, telling me they'll call me to start, remarkable because her posture, her body language are at odds with everything she's saying, I'll be staying at the Ferry Landing for a while.
At first - well, seldom do I like a job at first. They grow on you like cancer. Working with an older lady, she summers here in the Kootenays, but she's got some issues, one evening announces she's going home after her shift, up and packs herself into her car and makes the drive back to Northern Saskatchewan.
Weird. But here, not so.
The job, run, run, run. It's the steady stream - growing daily - of tourists and bikers, the tourists, sometimes they tip, the bikers don't. People here don't spend money. Tables - a round of 3, 4 glasses of water, a plate of fries to share. It's good I'm earning a wage, never have I had a serving job where you were grateful for your wage, here - well, it's important. A customer offers me a tip: "...because you're not getting a cash one from me..." he jokes, he's not joking, locals are generally poor, tipping is not a recognized custom here, it's a bonus, from Calgary to here, it's more of a culture shock than Calgary to London or New York by a long shot. It's the worst of a pub and restaurant, in a pub people drink, most here don't. In a restaurant people eat, many here don't. Every day, 30, 40, 50 tables even to ring out $1,000. I won't mention percentage, it's bleak, but I laugh, you gotta laugh, I'm living in paradise, working in hell.
Here's a tip for you: If you're moving to the Koot's don't count on tips.
The kitchen, they all live in housing provided by the pub, a couple of suites out behind, below it, rent is a deduction on their paycheck. The lead chef, a functioning alcoholic, drinking at the bar after his shift, 2, 3, 4 beers, a 6 pack of offsales to go, these are all deducted off their cheques, a lot of staff, at the end of the season, they end up as broke as when they started, "owing their soul to the company store...". It's crazy, but that's how it goes here...
Orientation, 2 hours, WTF?: "stealing is grounds for dismissal...drinking on shift is grounds for dismissal, sexual harassment, bullying", the hyper attempt to make a rulebook out of all common sense, "You Were Warned", 2 hours and she's cutting it short, we gotta get to work, there are rules about how to address the kitchen, co-workers, always prefix your query with with "Kitchen, May I?" or "So-and-so...may I?" - ridiculous formalities, but as I get to know the people I'm working with I begin to understand why, some of them, well, they're pretty sketchy, and need to be told.
Punctuality, showing up for scheduled things, you gotta be told here in the Kootenays that's an expectation because otherwise people will misunderstand, think that it's a suggested thing, not an expectation, not uncommon for people to blow off their jobs so they can hit a music festival.
We don't have sections, we alternate tables, the pub, easily 5, 6,000 square feet, 150 Seats, you have to watch the whole dining room, tables flipping every hour, people arrive for the ferry, want their food/drinks in 15 minutes, wait in line to pay, go, it's a zoo. People escape without paying all the time. The last minute - the 20 minutes before the ferry - when the customers see it docking - are frantic with people trying to clear up their bills.
A line up at the till, people demanding their bill be split - into x different ways, 3, 4, 5, "I had the....." "...and I had three of his french fries and I dipped two of them into the mayonnaise..." It's unbelievable. One girl, debit declined on her beer, frantically on her phone trying to transfer money to her account...Bikers in for an Iced Tea trying to pay with American bills, wanting the best exchange. Bills for a party of 6 under $20.00, tip, a dollar, two if you're lucky. And running - cleaning, bussing, running food, drinks, side duties - until 2 hours after the last table leaves. My fitness app on my phone records 15,000 steps a day. 50 tables. $1,000 dollar ring out. 10 pounds of shrapnel weighing down your pocket, loonies, quarters, nickels and dimes. Fucking bloody hell.
And this:
marked on the other side:
Passed off as a loonie, people here pay with what they can...
It's a start, and it gives me the time to do my prospecting, work on developing a few other revenue streams because, in the end, this won't cut it, but I'm thinking positive, it's a start...