Today was a SUPER busy today, starting right from the morning! At 9:00 am, the people from the Mystery Shopper ad I signed up for called me. The lady was really nice and explained to me the procedures which was what I read on their website. Everything seemed really good until she told me how much I would get paid to be a mystery shopper..I had to call back just to make sure of this because even I was sort of surprised. The job is very part time with working 0-10 hours a week (interesting about the 0 part!) which is ok-I had set up a full interview for next month because these people fly in to different areas for the interview and then train you that same day.

I asked what the pay was..and this is always the funny thing..the lady said that training would consist of my being at the hotel they set up for 8 hours, plus a half day at home using the computer and then 3-5 practise shopping sessions..the pay for this training is minimum wage…so I was like, oh yeah, 7.00 bucks ish? Nope-apparently minimum wage is $5.90 in Calgary..THAT was already a problem for me. Not to sound too high and mighty, but I used to make $4.50 an hour 9 years ago working for Pizza Hut-chances are, I wouldn’t be that thrilled to drop $25.00 less than I normally make. At any rate, it was for training which was fine..but then I found out that you only make $9.60…PER SHIFT-and these shifts consist of anywhere from 2-4 hours…your mileage gets reimbursed to you only if you drive over 20 kms…big deal.

I was pretty surprised at the whole payment thing though…$9.00 a shift? For the 4 hour shifts, that would be like $1.75 an hour! That is incredibly insane..and what the heck would you do wandering around a store for 4 hours? Not to mention that you have to go back home and submit a report immediately! I didn’t say No to the lady so my name is still on the checklist for the seminar next month. I am going to call her and cancel it because the money is pure peanuts and ridiculous.

Before I was back to sleeping I got another call from the kennel that I had sent in my resume to. The lady seemed really nice and she told me that she was willing to work around my schedule for now which was really helpful. She told me about the kennel and I found out it is about 10 minutes away from my house which is perfect for me! Not much driving and barely any traffic! I set up an appointment with her today and drove down there. Right away I got wierd vibes, I knew that something wasn’t going to work out. The two ladies looked very run down and cringy…but the looks don’t matter-they looked at me like I was an alien..maybe because I was clad in my outfit to go teaching which was bubble gum pink capris, Gap flip flops, a black tank with a big rose pin with pearls and feathers, and my favorite black beret.

They must have thought I was completely nuts already to go dressed like that, but I had told them I had to work. When I walked in to the kennel area I was sickened by the stench-not because they don’t keep it clean but because of the animals. It smelled the same as it does when you visit the agricultural centre at the Stampede. The lady showed me around the kennel and I was really impressed with how huge the kennels are! Bigger than those at the Calgary Humane Society. The dogs have the front where they sit and then a little cubby hole which takes them to a back extension of their room. It is really quite neat and was very clean! There were tons of dogs and this HUGE 46 inch Greyhound dog..the biggest dog I have ever seen! All the dogs were excited and barking loud, but I just couldn’t get over that smell…it was gross.

The lady told me that part of my duties would be to clean out the cages, meaning scoop their poop and then take them out to the play area so I could clean out their cages with a power washer. That really didn’t bother me, but as the talk went by, I started getting the impression that they didn’t think I was right for the job. They were eyeballing me like nobodies business and I knew right away that this wasn’t the place for me. What I think they need is someone to clean out the cages and keep a maintenance for the animals. When the dogs are outside playing, you don’t get to play WITH them, you gotta bleach down their cages and then put them in and start on the other dog. So really, it is all about cleaning out the crap and earning from $8-10 bucks an hour.

I was actually quite intimidated by some of the dogs though and it surprised me. I have been used to dogs my whole life, even at the Humane society but I have always been scared to be alone with a dog that I don’t know. The ladies took me over to where there was a pitbull..I jumped back..even though he was said to be very sweet, I knew I would run for the hills if I had to be alone with ANY dog. Right then and there the lady said, “Honey you are not right for this job” and I told her, “No kidding!”. She told me that I would have to learn ways of being on good terms with the dog and handling them if they become aggressive.

Here is the kicker..I asked her how aggressive the dogs she get can be and she said she had no idea. That is something they don’t know when they take the dogs in their kennel. So basically, I could walk in to a cage to get a dog out and make one wrong move and get attacked easily-and whose fault would it be? Mine..they would blame me for not knowing how to take care of the dog or read its mind. That was it right there..that sealed the deal. Some dogs there were not so nice looking and I knew that I didn’t want to put myself in danger. Plus I took in to consideration that if a dog would run or pull the leash, that would throw off my back.

The ladies both said I wasn’t right for the job and I said that was ok. One lady then proceeded to give me a lecture about how I shouldn’t be so weak because it will affect me in life. I was kinda surprised about her being so forward but she was sitting there flat out saying that I would never be anything in life if I had the mentality of being afraid of things. I was insulted and just told her that is why I have spent my life in school and University to become a musician and teacher. She had some spunk though and was rather blunt-but before the stench could kill me, I walked out of there happy as hell that I didn’t sign my life away.

If I knew that I would be needed to take care of dogs and walk them, that would be a different story. I don’t mind cleaning up after them, but to work in that stink of food and waste (which I might add is very well taken care of, this kennel is a very decent place) for 8 hours a day? I don’t find that all appealing. I think another thing that threw me off was just the overall structure. The kennels are in a barn of sorts..different areas and I watched so many movies at the Humane Society of those puppy mills that were stocked up in areas of the city that are out of town. With dogs in cages and bad smells..maybe it brought back wierd feelings for me even though at this place the dogs seem to be taken care of extra well. I just felt like I was going to a place with dogs that are locked up and not with their owners.

I always thought kennels would be in nice facilities much like the Humane Society-with toys and warm padding on the ground and lots of sunlight..but this one wasn’t. Even though these dogs have a home and will eventually end up going back (some stay over night), the whole idea of it to me sounded better than it looked.

So I guess it is another case of the right location, ok pay but the wrong job…damn! Now I gotta keep hunting for something else..I guess I will just stick with looking for office work or something..ANYTHING, but I want to get rocking here so that I have something lined up for the summer.

I just said to myself that the reason the two jobs I could have gotten today didn’t work is because something else is better out there waiting for me. I know I am right, but as usual and VERY typical, I gotta go out there and search for it cause it sure ain’t coming to me!

So much for doggie day care!