C-Store Logic

So as I stood there and collected money for the many gallons of gas sold, and countless beers, I suddenly realized why I was here at this place, at this time, working at this C-store. I had become a product of my environment, and a victim of the evil Bushwhacker himself! What a farce!! The American dream , more like the pseudo-American, quasi nightmare of sorts!

See, I am not one of those who was born to money, nor am I one who seemed to attract it later in life. I am your average Joe. A sailor, and a wanderer it seems, a man left to pick his way through it all. I am you, or your neighbor, your brother perhaps, at any rate I am a man with a new outlook on things for sure.

I left the credit world behind long ago, for the better. I quit trying to keep up with Jones and Smith in the 80's shortly after my bankruptcy. I quit tracking my success and failure through my wallet shortly after I lost my wallet, and when Hurricane Charlie came and took what was left, I quit caring for a while. I suppose more than a few of us did. There is a great part of this nation that has quit caring, and I suppose we all know.

The realities of finances are so ingrained upon us in these times that I suppose it is easy to forget that the bottom of our American society is still head and shoulders above the top of most 3rd World societies, so why am I pissed? Because I fail to see the justice in why the top of our social poles are filled with politicians and actors??!?

Where does it say in the annals of Justice that the rich are those who lie for a living? Think about it, the one common denominator between actors and politicians is that they both lie for a living. One lies to make you think they are someone they are not, and the other just lies because it is what is done, because it is what comes natural.

I read a quip today about the Lt. Governor of Arkansas losing another battle against his pre-lukemia status, a procedure to replace bone marrow failed, the man's name is Rockefeller. What the hell is this family doing in Arkansas?!?!?!! Isn't New York and West Virginia enough? Remember the term after the civil war? Carpetbaggers?

I am so getting tired of the rich getting richer and schmucks like me working two jobs for a loved one's medical needs! At any rate, my compassion goes out for the guy, and I hope he thanks God for the blessing of being able to afford such health care.

As I put the beer and Copenhagen in a bag and waited for the credit card authorization to go through, I thought of all the reasons I was working this damned second job, and of all the benefits, this snot nosed kid in front of me had no clue. He had pulled up in a new Benz, paid for by Daddy no doubt and really did not yet grasp life, I'm sure. Denied. The kid's black American Express had declined the sale. Sold out for $11.39. Wow, this kid had not a dime in his wallet, and really had no clue as to why the Amex had failed him!

I chuckled slightly to myself as I left the register and restocked the beer in the cooler when the kid left, and smiled a grateful smile knowing that all things do come equal at some point. Do not get me wrong, I get no joy in anyone's misfortune, be it a hurricane, or simply a lack of credit. I simply find life somewhat ironic lately. I am very close to finally processing Charlie and my take on homelessness and poverty, and it just seems important to me that you all remember the countless Katrina, Charlie etc. victims out there.

Looking at life from behind a C-store counter can definitely show you a few things. If nothing else, it can let you see that we are not all created equal, yet we can be humbly equalized at a moment's notice.