5:09 p.m. - 2017-08-01
CALCULATING
Wen to the tire store today, thinking I just had a slow leak in my left front tire; but the salesman showed me low, low tread and metal bands peaking through. I had probably been deceiving myself, but with my long commute, I decided I'd better just go ahead and replace all four tires.

In the waiting area I talked with a guy who had been forcefully downsized from his manufacturing job a few years ago. He said they didn't give him any warning: just his boss and someone from Human Resources who told him he had to turn off him computer, give them his password, and box up all his belongings within the next 20 minutes. He wasn't accused of anything; this was just how they terminated people.

He was getting a couple of new tires, but one of the sales people came over and showed him a faulty sensor that would have to be replaced. Sixty bucks. So he pulled out his credit card for the 2nd time; they have you pay for the tires before they go to work to install them. Fifteen minutes later the same guy comes back with another faulty sensor.

The customer was silent for a while. When the salesman asked him what he wanted to do, he replied, "I was just calculating how many meals I'm gonna have to skip to pay for all this."

previous - next