Monday the 7th July 2008. I want him out.

Monday 7th July 2008.

I am so annoyed with Daz that I can barely look at him. Our relationship has deteriorated to the point that I can no longer work with him long term. We’ve just had a huge row and I want him out.

He came into work today and announced that he had something to tell me.

“I can’t work Saturday the nineteenth for you.”

“What? Daz my holiday is all arranged, you can’t let me down now.”

“No choice. Got to.”

I have had my holiday booked for Furness Fest for five months. I’ve been given a free pass to the festival because I was asked to do the story-telling tent. If he lets me down I am going to have to let Callum, the organiser down.

Daz and I were still arguing about it when Russ came in.

“Guess what love?” I said when he saw the look on my face. “Guess who’s just let us down for Furness Fest.” I pointed at Daz.

“What do you mean, he’s let you down.”

“He’s refusing to work the Saturday when I’ve had it booked in for months.”

“I can still do the Friday though,” Daz said lamely.

“He can’t do that,” said Russ, ignoring Daz completely. Tell him he has to work it. You can’t just let somebody down at he last minute like that.”

“Look,” said Daz, getting up and turning to both of us. “One it’s nothing to do with you,” he said pointing his finger at Russ. “So you can just butt out.” Fair point I realised it wasn’t very professional discussing work in front of Russ so I asked him to leave. Daz got back to his lame excuses, “I’m going to a family barbecue in Wigan that I’ve just found out about.”

“I need you to work Daz, it’s all been arranged. You’ll have to cancel.”

“I can’t work that day, I’m going to the party. Some of my family haven’t even seen the baby yet, so you can do what you like.”

“Daz, I couldn’t care less about your barbecue, or if they never see your baby. You are booked to work that day, it’s a prior arrangement and I expect you to honour it.”

“I’m going to the barbecue.” He never once apologised for letting me down. His tone of voice was argumentative. He was arrogant, belligerent and downright disrespectful in his manner.

I got on the phone to Linda in personnel and explained the situation. I asked in front of Daz if that was grounds enough for me to sack him and she said no. The best I could do was give him an official warning, not even a written one, just a verbal telling off. Because there are only two members of staff in my shop and because the shop has to be open for sixty-six hours a week, I now have to give up my pre-booked holiday to cover. Linda did ring around the other shops to see if she could get cover for me. One bloke said initially that he’d do it, but later rang me back to cancel after he’d looked into the travel situation. He doesn’t drive and had to rely on the train. To get here for nine o’clock he’d have to set off at four thirty in the morning and wouldn’t get home until after eleven at night.

Russ suggested that we pay to have him put up in a bed and breakfast the night before and if need be the night after as well. I didn’t like the idea, why should we pay for some bloke to stay in a hotel just so that I can have my holiday? I did suggest it but the volunteer had gone right off the idea of coming oop North.

Russ was as mad as I’ve ever seen him. He told me that I couldn’t just let Callum down and that I’d have to shut the shop just for a few hours to honour my story-telling commitment. Russ sees things only in black and white. I had my holiday booked, it had been approved, therefore I was entitled to take it. Not only is Callum a good friend but he is also Russ’ immediate boss. Russ said that I’d badly let him down; that I’d let Callum down and that my loyalties should be to him and the festival rather than work.

I explained that it clearly states in my contract that I have to be ultimately responsible for the shop. I had no choice but to let them down. I said that I’d forfeit my free ticket. Finally we decided that as I could still do the Friday and the Sunday that Russ would take my slot on the Saturday and honour my commitment for me. He was horrified at the thought of having to read in public and didn’t know if he could pull it off. Sometimes he’s not very good with lots of people and can get himself into a tizz about things but that’s the level of his integrity. He’d rather put himself through hell doing something that he didn’t want to do rather than let somebody down. He was very angry.

I was supposed to be up in court today. I had to be there at ten. I got Daz into cover me and the first thing he said was. “I can only stay an hour, so you’d better be back.”

I told him that I had no idea how long I’d be. Unfortunately I don’t have control over the judicial system, nor am I responsible for doing court one’s schedule.

I got there and was taken to the witness room where I was told that the shop lifting case was not going to be heard until two in the afternoon. I asked that I be allowed to go back to work until then but they said that on the day of the hearing all witnesses have to be available all day. I said that I was only five minutes away and could get back in no time, but she said that witnesses can be corrupted and need to be in the room and ready to stand. Bloody bureaucracy.

I prepared for another stand up row with Daz and rang to tell him that I wouldn’t be back until three o’clock at the earliest. Again, he’d been given weeks of notice to cover me for this court case. He was the one who said that I’d be in and out, not me.

He told me that he could only cover until ten and that he’d walk out and shut the shop from then onwards because he had things to do at home. Surely now I had grounds to say, “Well if you walk out, don’t bother coming back.”… but apparently not.

As it was, I was ‘in and out’ just as he predicted and I didn’t need him to stay on. One of the two thieves rang up to say that she was poorly and couldn’t make the trial. They told me it would have to be postponed. Eh? Why didn’t they just go and arrest her and bring her in to stand? I’ve got a bloody cold too, but I can still make work and court cases and what ever else is required of me. She had a sick note it seems, which is the equivalent to a ‘get out of jail free’ card.

I had a fantastic day with the animals yesterday. Two great and momentous things occurred. Firstly I came down to find Stoker’s water dish filled with a hugely offensive and hugely enormous lump of poo. My snake has crapped all by himself this time God love him, so saving me sixty-nine pounds in enema fees. This prooves that his kidney’s are working properly. It’s a great weight off my mind and out of his insides.

The other great thing to happen was that Kasbah (the new uro) came out of his hide bleary eyed and sleep weary looking for food. He went to bask for a while and then tucked into a four hour-long salad eating extravaganza. I always knew that he was going to do well and this has just confirmed it for me. His colour has changed completely too. When we got him he was brown with green circles rimmed with orange on his back. Now he is light green all over his body and his pattern markings have intensified in colour to really stand out. He’s so beautiful. He and Cairo sleep together and if she knows that he’s a different sub-species to her then she’s not in the least racist about it and is happy to share her bed with him. I still don’t know if uro aegypticus and uro oscillated can cross breed.