Coming Out Of Retirement

Even though I have been very happy with not being a manager the last 7 months, the truth is, work has been a little boring since I am working part time again, and while I get to enjoy more time off and not be tied down to any kind of 40 hour week.  It’s just not realistic to survive financially without working.  So, last week my boss asked if I was interested in being an acting manager and “help out” up at a store that is closing down, in Nashville, because the Opry Mills Mall is re-opening.  (Giant mall by the Grand Ole Opry House, that flooded two years ago during the great Nashville Flood)  It was a bump in pay and more hours for only two weeks so I was happy to jump at the opportunity. 

            When I got to the store, I soon realized that “help out” really ment running the whole damn show.  I realized, although a lot of managers were working out of that building, they were all concerned about the new store opening just ten minutes away in a few weeks, so this store, which was still open for business, was just limping along till the end.  Closing down a store is about an eight week process, when I got there, we were about two weeks out from absolutely having to be cleared out, and nothing was done yet.  So, I looked at what needed to be done, made some phone calls to get the logistics of everything set up that needed to happen, let the whole store know who was in charge going forward, and took the helm of this store to ride it out to the end.  Last week was the hardest I have worked for Old Navy in years, both physically and mentally, I had to throw out all kinds of fixtures and metal hard wear, all heavy stuff.  The first day, I put it all in the dumpster and made sure it fit, and was going to call for it to be emptied, however the next day all the metal was magically gone!  Now, I just set any metal trash outside and the next day its all gone, crazy how that works.  I was given the keys to a very, very large U-Haul, to drive back and forth between stores, picking stuff up and dropping stuff off, I think I might have a future as a truck driver, I tell you what.

            The whole closing the store down has been an extremely un-organized process, I’m not blaming anyone really, the store just kind of got dropped by everyone and I had to come in to pick it up and finish it out.  Now, before I’m finished making it sound like I am the Peyton Manning of Old Navy, I still have a week left to get the store cleared out, Friday the 31^st the store has to be empty and I am not at all close to that being done, so this week will be the true MVP test for me.  I did talk to the store manager from the new store as well as the District Manager, about moving up to management again, they said they’d love that and sounded excited.  The only catch is I really want to go to the new store.  It is a long drive from The Boro, but its Nashville, and not just Nashville, the store is literally the same parking lot as the Grand Ole Opry!  I can see the Opry house from the back of the store.  I would be getting paid more, to do something I am good at, and I do like to do it, and I could hang out at the Opry house all the time!  Who cares that it’s Old Navy again, I like Old Navy, and I’m good at it. 

            With that, I hope to be working the Opry Old Navy as a manager within the next month, there is a chance I would be stuck in Murfreesboro, and that wouldn’t be so bad, I do really like my boss there, but, It’s the OPRY HOUSE!  Really hoping for a chance to be up there!