New Fish

I ended up going on a mini adventure this morning.
As I received a text from one of my managers stating that one of my old coworkers was looking for someone to take in her betta fish and was wondering if I would be interested. in taking them in. Today. Basically right then.

The reason why my old coworker needed someone to take her fish ASAP.
Was that she was moving out of state with her family.
But as they were loading up their stuff....realized that the didn't have enough room to take their fish.

And they were literally leaving within the hour to drive to their new place. 

So I ended up rolling out of bed and quickly getting dressed so that I could drive out to my work and meet with my old coworker there to take her two bettas.
A female and a male.
Both in their own little tanks. 

And I have to say both fish are HUGE.
Like Mother Dearest could always get her bettas to grow giant.
Mine? Never got so big. 
Maybe I don't feed mine as much?

But yah even the female is as big as the males and I'm just like O_o because I've always seen the girl bettas be so tiny. 

Crazy.

In any case.
I managed to get both tanks of fish home.
Though since the tanks were still mostly filled with water there was a bit of sloshing and my seats got wet.

Note to self. 
If I move fish again.
Put them on the FLOOR of my car.

Thankfully it was sunny today so I just left my car out in the sun with the windows cracked to dry the seats after dabbing up as much of the water as I could.

And then spent a couple of hours cleaning out the tanks and giving everyone some fresh water and rearranging/taking down a couple of my other small tanks that were well...basically empty anyways. 
Plus I needed to fit the new tanks in with my other bettas and make it feel good and look good... 

But yah!
Yay new fish!!
Hopefully they enjoy their new home. ^^;; 

Until you next see these words;
I'll be watching the leaves.
Enjoy the day!

-Sarnic Dirchi

Further Updates

As an update from yesterday's post.
Apparently the reason why we're now possibly permanently needing to quarantine our hamsters for two weeks is because there have been complaints about hamsters getting sick with a respiratory illness around 6-7 days after coming into other stores, which has been causing issues with customers who purchase them and then have the hamster come down sick a few days after they bring their new pet home.

However....my work hasn't really seen like...any of this? Usually our major concern with hamsters is Wet Tail. It's rare that we see respiratory issues with them....

But it seems like some stores in other parts of the country have had this issue. Which points to one vendor (as corporate goes through multiple different vendors to get animals into their store depending on where in country the store is located) being the main culprit of this respiratory issue.

But instead of just like...investigating that one vendor and maybe only having stores getting animals from that vendor isolating animals for the two week period....

Corporate decided to make it a store wide thing.
So even though we aren't seeing any issues with respiratory issues here...because somewhere else someone is....we now have to isolate our hamsters for two weeks. Gah.

This...this is gonna get annoying. So annoying. 
I really hope it's a temporary change and it will go away...especially when the Christmas Season approaches because there's no way I'll be able to keep christmas stock in that backroom if I have to hold the hamsters for two weeks. It will be a nightmare.

In any case.
Change of subject.
We also have updated like...measures that are being taken to make sure that my coworkers and I can stay safe at work.

One was that work provided us our own masks. So woot! They're rather comfy too so that's nice though the masks still have their irritating moments. It's definitely not fun to wear it for 8 hours straight. It gets all hot. 

But we also installed...I think they're called 'sneeze guards' ??? on our registers. 
Basically clear plastic barriers with holes cut out of the bottom so that customers can place their stuff on the counter, but they can't breathe directly on the cashier because the clear plastic above prevents that from happening.

I have to say...that's rather weird the one time I jumped on register to back up. 
Though the cashiers did mention that they're less stressed having the barriers up which makes sense as it keeps customers from getting too close. So yah...health and safety all around.

But another change is one that I don't...quite get?
Apparently this weekend we have to start 'self checking' ourselves at home to see if we have any symptoms of the Virus.
Aka before we come to work we basically have to run down a check list of symptoms and see if we have any combination of them.
And if we don't. We can come to work.
If we do we need to contact a manager to let them know and then can't come into work until we see a doctor??? *shakes head*
And when we do come into work after doing this 'self check' the manager has to ask us "Are you okay?" and we basically have to say "Yes I'm healthy" or "Well I had a fever and chills today but I'm good otherwise." And like...if we show symptoms...we get sent back home.
And if we develop symptoms...we get sent back home.

...Honestly I think it may be a bit more...productive if work just provided us with thermometers so we can just take everyone's temperature when they come in and if they have a fever they go home. 

But yah....I'm told the next couple of weeks is gonna be the 'low point' for us. 
But after that point we should have things improve. We should be able to get more hours into the store.
Which will hopefully first allow us to be able to get back to full time hours.
But then will allow us to hire back more of my coworkers so that we can have more coverage on the floor because I am rather tired of working on a skeleton crew. 

Until you next read these words;
I'll be watching the leaves.
Enjoy the day!

-Sarnic Dirchi

The Waiting Game

Whelp.
Work has just...complicated things in a not nice way.

*exhales* I really hope this thing is just a precaution for the virus...though signs are pointing it to being permanent and I really really really don't like this particular change because it's going to be a nightmare to deal with during a time when we're selling animals like crazy because everyone suddenly decided they wanted a pet.

So.
Traditionally when we get animals in. Namely the Rodents and Birds. We don't put them on the floor right away.
No, we place them in a room away from people and other animals that have been in the store longer and monitor the New Arrivals for a set period of time to ensure that they came to us healthy before we put them on the floor to sell.
For the birds that's Five Days.
For the rodents -the hamsters, guinea pigs, and mice- it's Three Days that we wait before placing them on the floor to sell. (Chinchillas go straight to the floor when they come in.)

Well.
Today we got an email from...corporate? I guess.
Saying that there was a change in the isolating procedure for our rodents.
Namely the hamsters.

From my understanding, apparently they're discovering that hamsters to hide that they're sick a lot longer than originally thought. 
And so to ensure that we are selling healthy pets.
We're now required to keep the hamsters in the back for far longer than three days.

No. 
Now it's TWO. WEEKS.
We have to keep them in our New Arrivals Room.

TWO WEEKS.
14 FREAKING DAYS.

Like. Seriously?
I think in the long run this is gonna be more detrimental to us than helpful.
Namely because I don't think the hamsters will be happy being in such small spaces crowded together for two weeks.
As the cages they normally go in after three days are slightly more spacious and have like..a wheel to run on and such. 

But this has to drop at a time when we're selling out of animals.
Like literally we've been selling through hamsters and birds the past couple weeks to the point where half my cages were empty for a week because I didn't have any more animals to bring out onto the floor.

And now they're saying that the hamsters I'm expecting to get in in a couple of days....I won't be able to bring out for TWO more weeks instead of THREE days. 
Like WHYYYYYY. It's gonna be basically June before I can bring out any more hamsters. We're going to have two full weeks of no hamsters on the floor I can just see it now because of this.

And like...How am I ever gonna have room to hold all these animals in the back?
Because we get replenished for what we sell.
And if I have to hold like three weeks worth of animals in a room that only has TWELVE cages in it?
Ha.
It's not gonna work out.
Like It's utter madness.

Not to mention our ISO room has to under go the same requirements.
So if a customer returns a hamster to us. And he appears healthy....we can't put it back on the floor in three days times. No this hamster too has to wait TWO WEEKS in the back before we can put him back.

And oh.
If any of the hamsters in the New Arrivals get sick...we have to isolate that hamster...and then the hamsters that were with the sick hamster have to restart their two week quarantine period. 

And like. We can't put the sick hamster on the floor until TWO WEEKS after it gets healthy and a vet says it's healthy. 

do you know how quickly our sick room can fill up?
Really really quickly.
We can go from no animals to full capacity within a week. 

And again. I only have twelve cages back there.

So having to keep a hamster isolated back there for like three weeks minimum?

I honestly wonder what corporate is thinking.
Like if we have to isolate hamsters for so long...why not just get a different breeder?

Because I forsee this just being....bad.

Especially because I haven't noticed any issues with hamsters dying so quickly before.
Like we've been doing well hamster wise for a while now. 

At most we get a run on wet tail.

But like...I haven't seen anything to indicate that the hamsters have to be isolated for 2 weeks before we can sell them.
Like, yes, occasionally we get hamsters that die on pet parents within two weeks. 
But it's not a common occurence.

*exhales* 
I just...I really hope this is only Covid related and not permanent.
Because this is a nightmare.

I don't even know what we're supposed to do with hamsters that are returned by customers who want to buy them back.
Like...do we have to wait two weeks after the hamster is healthy before the pet parent can come get it?

Because I honestly doubt that a pet parent will be willing to wait three weeks to a month before they can see their pet again.

*exhales*
At least the D.M. is coming in tomorrow so I can ask that particular question.
Because keeping pet parents from their pets.....doesn't seem like a good idea in the long run. 

I just....
Gah.
I hope this isn't permanent.
Because I don't want to deal with the headache this is gonna induce. 

Until you next see these words;
I'll be watching the leaves.
Enjoy the day!

-Sarnic Dirchi

On the Ground

It's a well known problem at my work that people can't read and can't follow directions.

Like. It felt like my Saturday shift, most of my conversations with other people involved telling them to "Stand behind the blue line." or "stand outside of the blue box" followed by most people saying "Oh sorry, I didn't see that."

Which kinda boggles my mind really.
Like. 
I don't know...I tend to notice things around me?
Like random lines on the ground? I'd look down to check and make sure it wasn't 'anything' before crossing it and such.

But so many people. So. Many. People.
Are completely clueless.

Or I suppose, aren't as aware of their surroundings.
Because like...they see the cages. See the animals and BAM they're over the line and pressing their fingers against the glass trying to see the animals inside.

*exhales*

But it's good to know that this isn't an isolated problem.
That other stores also have this issue where people fail to follow directions. 

Like.
In my store I can kinda give them a pass for not following directions.
We just have blue tape on the ground, and at one point I wrote "Do not Cross. Stand behind Line" on the blue tape in black marker....
but like...the Blue tape does look a lot like it's just supposed to be there. A part of the floor.
So I can get why customers don't understand that they're not supposed to cross those lines.

But today I went into Walmart to grab some bread among other things as I was this week's guinea pig when it came to grabbing things for the roomies.

And since the last time I went in...my location has now implemented "One Way" aisles.

There are literally signs everywhere on the ground.
The most noticable ones are the "This is six feet. Stay this distance away." along with "Keep six feet away from others." that are stickered all over the floor.

But in the aisles themselves --at least at the beginning/end of each aisle are signs that either say "Enter Here" or "Do not Enter" Showing which way you can and can't go down the aisle.
Up one. Down another. Weaving back and forth.

And like the signs are bright red for "Do not Enter" (exactly like the street signs) and bright green for "Come this Way!"

....and people still can't follow directions.

Because apparently there are many many many individuals who never look down. 

 As I watched a ton of people go up and down the aisles the wrong ways.
They'd enter the exit and exit the enter and like....

Do you not see the stickers?
Do you not notice the large signs on every aisle?

Apparently not.

*shakes head*

I suppose it makes sense in a way.
If you've never needed to keep away from something (like touching the fish tanks) or only go down the aisle in one direction before....
It makes sense why you wouldn't realize right away that there are new rules you need to follow.
Because the rules weren't there before.

Like if I hadn't been distracted by all the "Six feet apart" stickers on the ground...I'm actually not sure how long it would have taken me to notice that the aisles of the store had switched to "one way" 

I'm pretty sure I nearly went down the out until I noticed the red sign on the floor.....

So yah.
I get why it's a thing for people to not pay attention to their surroundings.

At the same time.
It's still irritating. 

Until you next read these words;
I'll be watching the leaves.
Enjoy the day!

-Sarnic Dirchi

Some Space

I spent the day hermiting. 
Mostly because I was wanting to avoid some potential roomie drama.
But also because I just....kinda didn't want to do much today.
Like.

It's hard to want to celebrate Mother's Day....when your Mom isn't around. 

And I just wanted to focus on doing other things.
And kinda not think....in that direction.

Which is hard to do when all the social media sites I visit to distract myself are talking about mothers.

Still...it was nice in a way.
To see so many people getting celebrated. To see all the fun traditions, the memories, the pictures.

It was sweet.

And even though I couldn't find it in myself to fully participate this year.

I was glad to see others enjoying themselves. 

Until you next see these words;
I'll be watching the leaves.
Enjoy the day!

-Sarnic Dirchi

Casual Talk

I'm an introvert by nature.

I love my alone time.
Not having to interact with people.
Just being home, doing my own thing. 

It's amazing. And I love it when I can get it.

Though with the virus and the stay at home and work from home things....

Alone time is hard to get.

Which it hasn't grated on me much recently. 
The fact that my roomies are always home.
Probably because I've mentally come to accept that I have to get my alone time in other ways. Take the pieces of it that I can get.

But there's something else I've been missing.

And that's casual interaction with others.

Like talking to people to just...well shoot the breeze. Chat, Converse. Have fun.

I can do that a bit with the roomies, sure.

But it's not the same as chatting with your friends.
Or with your family.

And definitely not the same as having to talk to people at work.
Where you spend the entire time trying to figure out what people want from you and want you to do.

No just....casual interactions where you can talk about everything and nothing and there's like...no hidden agenda. 

It's nice when I can get that.

And I got that yesterday.
When me and a couple others met up to celebrate Kikay's birthday.

Where we met up at a fast food place, piled into one car, went through the drive thru and then went on a drive down to the nearby park to eat our lunch there. 

And chatted.
About everything and nothing.

Ah the conversation that was just...relaxing.
Conversation that didn't revolve around work or the virus or like the other topics that seem to make up 90% of my conversations on other days.

It was the best.

I can't wait to be able to do such casual conversations again. 

Until you next read these words;
I'll be watching the leaves.
Enjoy the day!

-Sarnic Dirchi

An Overreaction

It's frustrating really.
Because fourth roomie has been...less irritating than normal recently.
Probably due to being stuck at home constantly due to the virus and finally being free of homework due to graduating...she's been...basically tolerable for the past little bit. Not causing unnecessary drama or getting as deeply on our nerves. 

I suppose it was just a phase really.
As she's going back into irritating all of us. 
Because despite being the oldest of us, there are times where she acts worse than a cranky two-year-old.

Where she automatically just assumes the worst of us roommates.
Even though we haven't actively done anything...bad to her. 

Like, I'm pretty sure our worse crime (which is a high crime in her book apparently) has been not doing the dishes as quickly as she wants or keeping the kitchen crumb free.

But like. We're doing what we can.
It's not like we want to cause drama with her.

But I am getting seriously sick and tired of having to tip toe around her.
Because like...we never know what's going to set her off.

Like she throws a fit over the stupidest things.

And again, assumes that we're 'out to get her' and 'make her life miserable.'

Like Gurl. We've had to put up with your bologna for nearly two years.
If we were 'out to get you' then it would have been more obvious and probably would have happened sooner.

And like I said.
It's over the stupidest things.

Like.
A couple of nights ago, I came upstairs and noticed that the storm door was swinging in the slight wind storm we were having as whoever last opened it hadn't shut it properly.
So I opened the main door to shut the storm door so that it wouldn't bang against the house.
And then properly locked up the main door.
After all it was dark. It was late. And we like to keep our doors locked. Especially at night.

I had no idea roomie had gone outside for a walk.
She hadn't told any of the rest of us what she was doing.
And the note that I found by the door that was on the ground...that said to leave the door unlocked...I assumed was from the night before. As she had gone outside the night before at like midnight for a walk from what my other roomie told me.
So I figured the note was just from that.

Nope. Apparently it was for the night of the wind storm.
But instead of texting us roomies to tell us she was locked out of the house. (Which why she didn't try one of the other doors first, or you know...text us? Is beyond me.) 
She instead tried to open the keypad lock a thousand times and rang the doorbell.
And when the other two roomies finally reached the door to let her in.
She just stormed by them in an angry huff and slammed the door to her bedroom hard enough that one of my roomies was worried she could have cracked the door.
I certainly felt/heard the door slam from the basement.

Like temper much?
She just like assumed we'd locked her out on purpose.
Not true.
We had no idea she was out.
And like I'd mentioned earlier, the note on the door had fallen to the ground so I didn't think it was for that night.

I just...why assume that we're out to get her?
Like yes we are very much ready for her to be gone as soon as her contract is over.
But we're not mean like that. 

And then today.
Ash and I had been out with friends, celebrating Kikay's birthday in a social distancing way.
And had just gotten home.
And were distracted by some packages that we'd received in the mail.
When roomie comes out to talk to us and tell us how she went to get tested for the virus (as my area was doing free tests and were encouraging people to come get tested even if they don't have any symptoms which roomie does not have symptoms.) and how she was interviewed by the local news and such.

Which was very cool, and we were just getting to the point of getting our attention off the packages at the door and to her when she says something like "Or if you don't want to listen" and before we could look at her she vanishes back into her room and slams the door again.

Leaving Ash and I staring at each other in total confusion.
Because like. We were going to listen to her and interact. We just were slightly distracted.
And it's just irritating.
Like.
Why assume that we don't want to listen.
Why not read the room and realize. Oh hey they're distracted let me give them a second to finish their task and then continue to talk?
No she just assumed we didn't want to talk and vanished before we could tell her otherwise.

It's irritating.
I'm irritated at her.
Because again.
We'd been getting along much better recently. 
Like it wasn't perfect, but it was more tolerable.

And now it feels like we're backsliding again and it's all because roomie is just assuming that we're against her. 

It's.
So.
Irritating. 
So very irritating.
I don't need this stress in my life and don't want to have to worry about hurting her feelings over some imaginary slight. 

Honestly.
I will be happy when she's finally gone. 
Because I don't want to deal with this sort of drama. I don't have the energy for it. 

Until you next see these words;
I'll be watching the leaves.
Enjoy the day!

-Sarnic Dirchi