Getting to work is a whole story in itself) At first, Rich drove me. Then he wanted to show me where the bus stop was, but it turned out he didn't know where it was either. As a result, while we were looking for it, I was late for work. I called and warned them. Not good. I finally waited for my bus, got on, but got off much earlier than I was supposed to. As a result, I still had to walk about 30 minutes to work. It was useless to wait for the next bus - they run every half hour. I walked, and as a result, I was quite late for work - almost an hour. The boss was very unhappy, he was yelling, it's a good thing I barely understood him) But honestly, he scared me a lot. It was the first time I saw an angry American)
The next day I went to the bus stop on my own. But the problem was that the stop was somewhere near the mall, but the mall is just huge... and I couldn't remember which side the stop was on. I ran around the entire mall area - I never found it. And time was running out. I was panicking, thinking - what should I do, I can't be late, and the bus stop seemed to have vanished into thin air. I even asked people where the stop was, but few people use buses here, everyone has cars and nobody knows. Out of desperation, I called Richard at 8 a.m.... With tearful pleas for help, saying I didn't know where the stop was and I couldn't be late for work or my boss would fire me. Richard was clearly not happy to hear from me) But to my surprise and happiness, he said - okay, I'll come now. He arrived, picked me up, drove me to work, and I wasn't even late. It was so incredibly awkward in front of him, but the fear of losing my job was stronger) After this incident, I decided not to bother him anymore; if he wants to see me, such a problematic person, let him write to me himself) It gets funnier from here)
The next day I had a shift at 7 a.m. Like a decent person, I got up at 5 a.m. on Sunday, and by 6 o'clock I was already at the bus stop; my bus was supposed to be there at 6:15. I sat and waited. 15 minutes - nothing, 20 minutes - nothing, 30 minutes - nothing. I was already panicking. I couldn't afford to be late for work again today. It was extremely awkward to call Rich again, how much can you burden a person. I don't know any taxi numbers. I called work - and the manager told me that today is Sunday and buses don't run at all, it's their day off. She did say that I didn't have to come in, since it wasn't my fault. But I had already been late a couple of times, and if I didn't show up today, it meant I was most likely fired. I had already managed to run through plans for the near future in my head, how I would look for a new job, and if I didn't find one, I would go with the remaining money somewhere to a resort place where there are many students, I definitely wouldn't get lost there. Because here, no one has even heard of "Work & Travel", and I wouldn't be surprised if I'm the only Russian student for many kilometers. But the manager assured me that the boss wouldn't fire me, she would talk to him, since it wasn't my fault that I couldn't get to work. Calming down a bit and feeling relieved, I went to spend the day aimlessly)
But what turned out to be interesting was that for the next week, the boss gave me only one 7-hour shift... Only one! I need to work, damn it, pay my grandma a lot of money for housing, and he gave me only 7 hours next week! At first, I thought it was some kind of mistake, and tried to approach him to talk. But he said something like - you were late, you missed work last time, and that's why I gave you only one shift. (apparently as punishment, since I'm such a terrible worker). He also added that it's not my fault, of course, that buses don't run on Sundays, but it's not his either. And that I'm breaking his business, blah blah blah... And he also suggested that I call a taxi if the buses aren't running as they should)) Yeah, then let him raise my salary enough so that I can easily pay for a taxi) Instead, he pays me minimum wage and demands something. I listened to him and thought that I need to look for a 2nd job, or just a new one, and quit this one. No, my boss is basically a good person, but he's too obsessed with his business. What is so extremely terrible about an employee from another country who doesn't know the city yet and doesn't speak the language perfectly being late for work once (well, okay, twice). I even called and warned that I would be delayed... One thing I know for sure - in Russia, they would have taken it easier) But I'm in America. And I probably need to take it a bit calmer.
In general, my boss is just obsessed with his business) His whole family works in his cafe - his wife, daughter, son... and not as managers, but as regular employees. His daughter is at the register, his son too, sometimes makes sandwiches. His wife often washes dishes, carries plates, and doesn't shy away from cleaning the dining area. My boss himself works along with everyone else if there are many customers. He also stands at the register or makes milkshakes... This is actually a plus) I like this approach to work, but sometimes it turns into some excessive pedantry and intrusiveness)
