A Portrait of a Subway Artist as a Young Man

I know that most people that work in the food service industry are probably not that excited about their jobs. I know from experience, as in my short span of careers I have scooped ice cream at two different shops. But even if you aren’t thrilled with your job, or plan to make a career out of it, At least do it with a little pride.

The main culprit that I speak of is the Subway at the University of Florida. During the lunch rush, the workers never cease to amaze me with their multitasking and ability to crank out a delicious sub in no time. However, I have found that the Thursday night crew is not exactly up to par.

Every Thursday, as part of a five-year tradition, my girlfriend and I eat subs and watch Survivor. Lame? Yes. But it’s tradition. The Subway crew last night and the previous Thursdays, have been horrendous. They chat away while my sub sits there, they are in absolutely no rush to make the sub, and worst of all, there is not “artistry” in their sub making. They simply lopsidedly throw the ingredients on and call it a day.

I searched the Subway website and stumbled across these paragraphs in the employment section under the “Our Customers” tab.

"How did we grow to be such a strong team? By serving and caring for one person at a time. What are guests our saying about their experience at SUBWAY® restaurants:

You will have plenty of opportunities to interact with our guest on a daily basis, no matter what job you are doing. You will soon find yourself seeing many of the same faces again & again, and have the chance to get to know their names, as well as their favorite menu items."

Clearly the Thursday evening crew has yet to fully dive into this frame of mind. I also found another Blogger, Oli in the UK, that has the same problem I do. While his categories may not be PC, it just goes to show you that perhaps the Subway Board of Directors has their hands full, and not just at the UF level, but globally.

Folk tales from a folk show

Last week I drove to Atlanta to go see the folk/indie artists Sufjan Stevens. The concert was amazing, sadly the other attending the concert were not. The concert, which took place in Atlanta's Fabulous Fox Theater, was packed to the brim with overly-excited indie kids that could not contain themselves once the singer and his band hit the stage. The intermittent yelling of "you're awesome," or "yeaah," was a highly distracting noise not only for the fellow concert-goers, but also for the band.

I found that there are some pretty simple rules to follow for concerts.

Michael’s blog is spot on with all the annoyances that concert-goers will face. The problems he outlines are ones that will bug you almost instantaneously once you arrive. So read them over, memorize them, and don’t be affraid to share them with your friends.

Don't be a debtor to society

While watching the Gators triumphant win over Tennessee this weekend, there was more than one flag thrown for unsportsmanlike conduct, but this one occurred off of the field.

At a football gathering I attended on Saturday, it was decided by the group that we would order some wings, a logical football food. Being the gracious guest that I was, I agreed to buy the wings and have everyone pay me back. Fifty-five dollars later, I have yet to see a penny back: But why?

Well, as is the case for an increasing number of people; cash is becoming something you find less of in wallets and more of in antique stores. In our digital age, the iGeneration has shunned cash and turned a loving and adoring eye to the debit/credit card. Live it up Visa and MasterCard, this is your moment.

After the wings were purchased, I was then informed by everyone at the party that they had no cash, but they would pay me back later. This was not part of the deal, and I definitely would not have agreed to pay for the wings had I known that they party guests looked at the food more as a layaway item.

So for all of you out there that think paying someone back later for something you enjoyed with instant gratification is alright, I would like you to check these two sites out.

• For all you Visa veterans.

• For the MasterCard martyrs.

These sites will enable you to find your nearest ATM and take out a little cash. Even if it is 10 dollars, think of it as insurance so that you will not fall into that category of a loathsome layaway looser.

How to be a Stair Master

It's a funny thing how you can type something one day, and then what you typed about happens the next day. I was in the University of Florida’s new library, Library West, and I was stuck on their nice, shiny new elevator. Annoyed and in a hurry when I had finished my library business, I took the stairs.

Much to my chagrin, and not really much to my surprise, I encountered another unnatural road block, as a group of three traveled up the stairs. This group decided that it would be alright to traverse the stairs, taking up the entire stairwell. I thought to myself that clearly these people have yet to stumble upon my blog, and second, that if they did, would they apply the same rules to stairs as elevators? So I have decided to lay it out. Lets all climb the stairs on the right, and for those of us heading down, let’s stick to the right as well. This way we eliminate the possibility of rounding a stairwell and colliding into a herd of three, staking their claim to the entire stairwell.

Elevating Your Courtesy

Today, when it comes to walking, the less we can do of it, the better. We want the closest parking spots at Target, as many remote controls to as many devices as possible, and of course, one of the greatest inventions of the 20^th century; escalators.

Yes, escalators. Or, for the airport veterans, there are the people movers. We have all had an encounter with these monstrous rotating stairwells, and I’m sure we have all had the same problem. Whether it is the family of fifteen at the airport, taking up the entire people mover with their luggage, baby stroller, portable changing station, and Grandma; or if it is the couple schmoozing each other on a single one foot by two foot piece of plastic elevating them twenty feet. All the while you are missing your connection, you are late for your meeting, or you are just plain annoyed. If only there were a set of rules governing these devices.

But wait! There actually are guidelines for taking a ride on these revolving nuisances. And fortunately, they are extremely simple.

Are you ready? Are the pen and paper handy? OK, stand on the right. That’s it. I did some digging, and the results were clear. A website I found laid it our clearly, along with some other simple guidelines. Mainly though, save everyone the hassle of standing behind you fore however long it is, whether it is 15 second or one minute, stand to the right.