(no subject)

		Chekov’s Gun


i received a key to the video rental store
a local business, over 15 years ago
it was a job that i hated
          a job that i needed

that summer i worked in the sibling business
	a movie theatre across the street

my drawer was always counted,
					twice
after almost every sale
i was eyed with suspicion

it was also noted that girls shouldn’t run the the projectors because..?
	well, apparently girls were inferior or something

i hated that job, but what do you do with a BA in English
	you do what you have to do to get by in the mean time

so i did. 
	i worked this job at 23
	while waiting for a grown-up job to come through
	i picked up cigarette butts from the parking lot
	i served popcorn and microwave pizza

		and i was watched
		       because i was not trustworthy
	because, apparently, “the only thing worse than a jew is a jewish girl with a tattoo”
			so said my boss anyway

i was shocked and angry and… not jewish

but necessity dictated that i not quit those jobs
	that i work for this man
		anti-semitic, misogynistic and … not nice

so i did.

until, finally there was a last straw
	halved my hours without telling me
	i arrived at the video rental store 
		i started the opening procedures
		     	and then another came and told me
				“but you don’t work here anymore”
		just like that I had half the hours without warning

i guess i shouldn’t have been surprised he did this
		i knew i wasn’t trusted
			it’s easy to follow through that he didn’t want me to work alone

i shouldn’t have been surprised by this

that evening i went to my shift at the theater
	i slammed my key on the desk
	he asked what was going on

“this would be my resignation.”

and with that i quit

no more key
i’d search for a job again
substitute teaching just came through and i worked at a domestic violence shelter

and that’s what you do with a BA in English
	no video store key necessary

Written for the topic, "Chekov's Gun" LJ Idol season 9, week 15. See many more fine entries at http://therealljidol.livejournal.com/759800.html

See and hear me recite here:

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Don't know what Chekov's Gun is? Learn about it here: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chekhov's_gun

Voting link updated later. Enjoy.