According to Toni this is how they're all run...
M******, last week, showing up to volunteer and he shoos me away. They're good. Lots of volunteers at the moment, they'll be fine, take the day off.
Now this, of course, is nonsense, the place is run on volunteers, only what is probably going on is M****** is going away for a couple of weeks, starting Saturday past, and he wants to hide away all his little treasures before I get in and bust up his nest.
So, running into the staff, they're telling me I'm missed, and, yes, but I showed up, was shooed away, and I'm not going to force my time, labor, services on anyone...
But this week, now, M****** is gone and I'm busting up his nest. I have 2 weeks, Substantial progress made after just one 7 hour day today.
There's 3 rows of boxes to the back wall. Figure 8 wide, 8 high, go through maybe 32 a day, not counting what's coming in...it can be done. It will be done.
Now M*******, he has some reasonable insecurities, he doesn't like my work ethic. Everyone else there, himself included, the paid employees, they're there as a social thing. I've seen him chat for an hour on end to one customer, about his art, theatre, and then, when finally he's done and "has to get back to work" not 2 minutes later he's off and talking to another. It's non-stop, decorating, rearranging, "Staging", no work done, workplace gossip, complain, hiding in back rooms "Looking things up on the computer", the collectables, an hour to research an item they'll end up selling for $5.00, all the while he's building his nest, adding to his heap of trash, garbage to be sorted.
I'm going to get through it. There's going to be Xmas stuff in those boxes, I don't want to hold on to it for another year.
He gets overwhelmed, you can see it, doesn't want to deal with it, although - it's easier to deal with if you just fucking do it and don't hide from it.
I figure, go through the boxes. Half is trash, easily.
Of the other half, maybe 10, 15% clothes. Not our department. Give to clothing. another 10-15% electronics, give to electronics, not our department.
And so on and so forth until you have it managed, in bins, put out on the floor or ready to be put out onto the floor.
Now is the time, while he's away, if not now it's never...