#ever since i got promoted in january work has been kicking my butt

[ghostlight-express]

Sometimes I think about projecting stuff with my irl job on Rena but like. Rena is dating her bosses, so just the thought of her coming home exhausted after work and if either of the twins try to comfort her it's like "my brother in christ YOU made the schedule".

Versus Sol who's a costumer at a theatre & generally has a more lax schedule & when she does work more than scheduled it's because hyperfocus kicked in & she accidentally did 3 days work in the span of 10 hours & she only stopped because either Rena or one of the twins called her asking where she was.

Of course, once Rena gets yoinked by Arceus into Hisui, things are different.

Rena trying to adapt to Hisui & working for the Galaxy Team, and then once she meets Warden Ingo she starts overworking herself because the sooner she completes the pokedex, the sooner she can get Arceus to send the two of them home.

And while those two are missing, Sol starts helping out at Gear Station (because they're down a manager AND a shift leader, both of whom are near & dear to the remaining manager; besides, the more time Sol can spend with Emmet, the less likely either of them is to completely fall into despair) on top of her theatre work. Neither Sol nor Emmet are doing too well, overworking themselves to keep the station together & if they're not occupied then their minds start to drift into bad thoughts so they've gotten keep going. At least they have each other to lean on.

When Rena & Ingo come back, it's such a relief for everyone (although the day after Rena has the sudden realization that she & Ingo should go see a doctor, maybe even check into the emergency room because God knows what kinds of bacteria and diseases they could've brought with them, but the doctors are basically like "y'all need to rest for a couple weeks but otherwise you'll be fine").

Rena finally decides to pursue her dream of becoming a singer. Sol realizes that she missed battling on a regular basis more than she thought & quits the theatre to work at the station (and in fact as a third Subway Boss, although officially she's an assistant manager).

[xmxisxforxmaybe]

Decryption_Error: “Out of Reach”

Summary: Mr. Robot protects Elliot when Y/N pushes too hard; she’s left to wonder if she’ll ever see the man she fell in love with again.  

A/N: My tech lingo is gibberish—don’t @ me, tech peeps, unless you want to rewrite my dialogue because that would be super cool 🙃

Decryption_Error: All Chapters

Word Count: 4000

Tags: @sherlollydramoine​ @rami-malek-trash​​ @teamwolf2411 @limabein​ @txmel​​ @alottanothing​ @ouatlovr @backoftheroomandnotbelonging​ @moon-stars-soul​​ @free-rami​ @ramimedley​ @hopplessdreamer​ @sweet-charmie @polarcrystall​​ @hah0106​ @clumsybookworm18​

Warnings: ANGST, shouting, aggressive posturing and grabbing/hurting (let me know if I need to warn for anything else)

It was the second Monday of March which meant it was time for a monthly status report. This was one of the hundreds of meetings I attended in which I usually had a razor-sharp focus because this was the part of my job I missed. I missed having a direct role in operations, subverting attempts at data breaches, and working on scripts that would improve day to day operations.

I looked around the table and my eyes settled on the new Senior Manager, although I guess I couldn’t call him “new” anymore. Tim Millner-Brown had already weathered three anonymous hacks and managed to keep everything (and everyone) calm.

Since Dad retired in January and this was now considered a transitory time, it was all the more important operations ran without hiccups. I fixed my gaze on JaLeah, then switched to Ali as he began to speak about a new script to assess WiFi network vulnerabilities. As I listened, my mind flashed back to the meeting Colin and I had with Ali to reprimand him and a wave of disgust prickled through me. I swore to Elliot that his attackers would pay, but here was Ali, confident and happy, leading Elliot’s team.

Tim interrupted Ali, asking, “Why can’t a two-way handshake be enough? Less connections, less chance for an attack?”

Ali was quiet before he said, “Let’s get Alderson to explain. He’s leading the work on the new script.”

Jayne returned after a few moments, Elliot following her like he had been summoned into the principal’s office. He scanned the room, his eyes lingering on mine until I gave him a quick smile, reassuring him he was here to do what he did best.

Tim redirected his question to Elliot who thought for a moment before clarifying, “A three-way handshake is necessary to avoid half-connections. If one ISN changes their mind and doesn’t want to connect, the server doesn’t see the re-sent SYN so it thinks the ISN got its ACK and the connection was established, but it wasn’t—it won’t ever be closed. If we can cut the time it takes for the GTK to associate with a device, we can cut the time a hacker has to gain an access point.

“Without compromising data flow,” he added.

This was not the same Elliot who was ready to quit a year ago rather than give a presentation. I felt a swell of pride at how far he had come, the confidence he had gained. All he needed was someone to believe in him and to push him. And along with my swell of pride came a surge of anger as an image of Elliot, blacked out and bleeding in a broken server room, flashed through my mind.

“Tim, work with Elliot to determine how much time he needs, then work with Ali to find out how much that time will cost. I want a report by Wednesday. And if everything adds up, you can start on Friday—or should we make it Monday so as not to infringe on anyone’s weekend plans?”

My eyes never wavered from Ali’s face as I watched it pale, but from my peripheral vision, I could also see Elliot’s eyes widen. Then, Miles’ voice echoed through my mind on the day I was forced to appoint Ali as Colin’s replacement: You bet the house, and you lost.

But as long as I was in charge, Ali would know I’d never forget what he did. And in that moment, I wanted Elliot to know I hadn’t forgotten either. Never mind that the secret I was keeping from him was burning a hole in my stomach, pushing me to feel even more protective of Elliot than usual.

JaLeah smirked, but she played the placater better than anyone. She peppered Elliot with questions, then Tim dismissed everyone so he and I could go over his analytics.

“Thanks, Elliot,” I said, as he left the room, his lips turning up in a soft smile.

“The two of you are dating?” Tim asked as soon as the door shut.

I raised my eyebrow and turned to look at him.

“Yes?”

“So, it’s not against company policy to date someone you supervise?”

“Elliot and I were in a sort of unique circumstance. We signed a contract with HR, but I ended up being promoted almost immediately afterward, which eliminated the direct conflict.”

“Hmm,” Tim said as his fingers tapped on the folder in front of him.

“Why?”

“JaLeah is . . . well, she’s—”

“Say no more. Obviously I’m a proponent of shooting your shot in the workplace, but Elliot and I were sure to be super transparent about it. And that’s all the advice you’re getting from me. If you want to know if she’s interested, ask her.”

Tim smiled, and I felt like I saw him as a person for the first time instead of just as my replacement.

“And I would be happy to take over her evaluations in the event she is interested.”

Tim’s smile grew a bit wider and he thanked me, twice, before we dove into the data.

It was close to lunch time when Tim and I finished, so I sought out Elliot to see if he wanted to go out. As I walked toward his workstation, he was oblivious to the world, his eyes glued to the screen and his shoulders almost perfectly still despite the furious pace at which I knew his fingers were moving over the keyboard. A pang of guilt resurfaced for the thousandth time this month as I reminded myself I needed to make a decision about what I discovered.

Since I found the grand jury’s testimony, I had been conducting some “research” on my own. All 23 members of the jury, even the one who had voted not to indict, had been receiving the same amount of money for the past 13 years: 2,500 a month.

All 23 people claimed the money on their tax returns, but in 23 different ways—gas leases, oil leases, rental properties, gifts, renting their parking spot in the city, tips, bonuses, and on and on. It was clear someone had met with them and told them exactly how to keep this money under the radar. And if someone met with them to lay out the process for receiving money, then there had to be evidence of that meeting—or that person.

A part of me was dying to share this with Elliot, but another part of me was adamantly against it, afraid of what I would unleash within him if he was given the opportunity to pursue vengeance. My mind kept returning to who he was on the night of Dad’s party and wondering if I could trust that part of Elliot, that part who seemed ready to do something a lot more rash than scratch an itch or even just file a lawsuit. There was a part of Elliot, hell, there were still so many parts of him I didn’t know, didn’t understand.

What I did understand was that every time I looked at him, I felt guilty. And when Elliot’s eyes glanced up and noticed me, he stopped and smiled, a sweet, open grin and Miles’ words flickered through my mind again.

You bet the house, and you lost.

* * * * *

Time has a funny way of making decisions for you, especially if you’ve been riddled by indecision. Once enough time has passed, the control is going to be taken from you—the decision will be made for you, rather than by you.

By the end of March, something uncomfortable had settled between Elliot and me. He was growing distant, closed off, and I stopped working to maintain our open line of communication. The more guilty I felt about hiding the grand jury transcript, the less I wanted to see him. I knew I needed to tell him, but if I had found out about the juror payoffs, Elliot would be able to, and in half the time.

And everything could lead back to my father.

And something deep inside of me knew he knew—I didn’t know the how or the what, but I was certain he knew I was hiding something.

It was after 10:00 pm on a Thursday night when I got home from a dinner party, a business meeting disguised as a social gathering, something I never invited Elliot to anymore after his vitriolic rant.

I was more than surprised to find Elliot sitting on the floor near the balcony, the door open as a wet March wind blew in, smoking a cigarette as nearly half a pack of butts were already stubbed out in the ashtray I knew had been empty.

He was drinking a beer and he was clad entirely in black, topped off with his well-worn hoody, which was something I hadn’t seen on him in a long time.

His hood was up, probably to fight off the chill of the wind, but I wasn’t sure if the explanation was so simple tonight.

“Hey,” I said softly as I pushed the door shut behind me. “I told you I had a thing tonight, didn’t I?”

Elliot nodded yes, as his lips wrapped around the end of his cigarette.

“Is everything okay?” I asked, dread settling over me like a weighted blanket as I watched him take a long drag, the cherry flaring red in the dim light of my apartment.

I slid out of my coat and hung it up on the rack before reaching down to unzip my boots. As I kicked them off, I waited for Elliot to answer. I was tired and wanted nothing more than to change out of my clothes, maybe shower away the day, and go to bed.

Except the smarter part of me knew that wasn’t going to happen and filled me with a sudden desire to just  get this over with—just blow the lid off the box and let the scraps settle so we could get back to our normal.

But that would require fixing Elliot’s biggest flaw: his inability to move forward because he never really addressed the root of his problems.

I watched as he stubbed out his cigarette and tipped his beer back, finishing the last swallow.

I sighed in frustration.

“Either tell me what this,” I said as I gesticulated to and around him, “is all about or let me go to bed. It’s been a long day.”

“Where were you?”

I blinked, irritated because we just went over this.

“I told you where I was—at a dinner party. You know, those things I don’t invite you to anymore because you hate everyone?”

Elliot stood, reaching back to slide the balcony door shut. He didn’t take his hood down as he walked to the kitchen sink and rinsed out his bottle before setting it on the counter next to the others.

Chalk that up to something else out of character; Elliot never drank alone.

“You’re lying to me,” he said quietly, his back still turned.

“About the dinner?”

“No. Maybe? How am I supposed to know when you’re the one who’s always lying?”

“I can’t do this,” I said, running a shaky hand through my hair.

“You can’t do this?” Elliot said, his voice rising as he turned around. “You’re the one keeping things from me!” he shouted, his eyebrows raised, making his eyes look impossibly huge, and the cords on his neck standing out as he pointed his finger at me.

“How did you find out?” I asked quietly as I leaned on the counter, looking at the swirled pattern within the granite, unable to meet what was surely an intense gaze.

“I’ve been waiting, Y/N. Waiting for over a fucking month, wondering why you wanted to hide it from me. Wondering what else you decided not to tell me. Wondering if everything you have told me is just a way for you to manipulate me—”

My head shot up, my eyes finding his instantly as I asked, “Why would I want to manipulate you?”

Elliot didn’t answer; his eyes were dark, a stormy grey as they swirled with clouds of emotion. He felt betrayed, and I watched as his eyes settled on my tote that was sitting on the kitchen stool.

“You saw the transcript,” I said with a sad sigh. “You weren’t supposed to find out like that.”

I lowered my gaze back to the granite of the countertop, a strange relief pushing off that weighted blanket of dread. No more hiding. No more agonizing over whether to tell him.

The silence that followed my realization was dreadful, stretching out until my ears rang and my eyes blurred as I stared at the countertop.

“I can’t trust you anymore,” Elliot said, his voice cracking.

But that was the wrong thing to say. My nostrils flared as a thick, white-hot anger rose up in my throat like bile.

“You! You can’t trust me because I withheld something from you? Once! When have I ever done anything like this in our entire relationship?” I questioned, my voice bordering on shrill, so unlike my usual tone that it didn’t even sound like my own voice.

“You’ve broken promises.”

“When?”

“After the server room. You promised me ‘the fucking assholes’ would lose their jobs. And now one of them is my supervisor.”

I stared at Elliot dumbly until he dropped his gaze, leaning back onto the counter.

“We talked about that,” I said, my tone a few octaves closer to normal. “I offered to refuse to promote Ali. You told me things like that happen—it’s a part of the way to ‘enact change.’ You told me not to fight back against his promotion.”

“You promised,” Elliot mumbled, his knuckles growing white as his grip tightened on the countertop.

Once again, Elliot said the wrong thing. If this was all he could come up with, I was livid. Every thing he did that I had to work to let go of, to not make a big deal over, every hurt I had to swallow because I loved him, came rushing out.

“And how many promises have you broken to me? Fuck, Elliot! Not even promises. How many times have you bailed on me? Hacked me? Hurt me?

“No,” I scoffed, “You never meant to do it, but you fucking did do it. I have been so patient with you—”

“I’m not a child!” Elliot interrupted through clenched teeth.

“You’re pissed at me for something you told me to do!”

“I told you to withhold information about my dad’s death?”

“I needed time, Elliot. I needed to analyze the risk—”

“I’m not a piece of fucking data, Y/N! You can’t—” Elliot paused as he pushed off the counter and stepped toward the island. “You can’t analyze me. You can’t predict my next move or maybe that’s the problem? Maybe that’s what you’ve been doing all along? Manipulating me because you think you’re smarter than me.”

“That is not what I meant,” I said, my brows drawn and my mouth closing into a frown.

“You begged me to trust you and I knew—I fucking knew someone like you couldn’t be trusted!”

“Someone like me?” I shouted back, pushing away from the counter and marching around the island to stand in front of him. “Someone like ME? Surely you’re not going to throw Dad’s money in my face again. You’re starting to sound like a broken fucking record!

“You know what—no,” I said, shaking my head and turning away from him pacing to the balcony door before turning around and slowly walking back toward Elliot. “You don’t get to do this and get away with it this time. I can’t walk on eggshells while you get to be shitty to me whenever you have a bad time. Don’t you want to know why you’re like this? Don’t you want to know why you’re so paranoid, why you push away people who fucking love you? Don’t you want to know why you don’t trust anyone?”

I was a breath away from him as he began to withdrawal further and further into himself. And because I was watching his face, my eyes desperately pleading with him to see reason, I saw the change—Elliot looked away, seemingly in exasperation, and his eyelids fluttered so subtly that if I had blinked at that very moment, I would have missed it.  

When he looked back at me, Elliot Alderson was gone; now, I was met with the steel gaze of the same person who had demanded I leave Elliot alone as he sat on the floor of my closet during the Fourth of July.

I took a step back, my mouth dropping open as fear rushed through my body, my eyes filling with tears as I realized I was afraid of him—afraid of Elliot.

“You should be afraid, little girl,” he chuckled darkly, his voice low, the intonation different. “Now get the fuck out of here and leave him alone.”

“You’re—you’re in my apartment,” I stammered, still clinging to anger despite my fear.

He looked around, remembering, and he fixed a glare at me, his eyes unwelcoming as his jaw clenched, the muscles twitching before he moved toward the front door.

As I watched him walk away, my anger and fear turned to desperation. Darlene’s words rang through my mind, ‘If he bails on you, tries to push you away, it’s not really him.’”

It’s not really him.

“Stop—Elli—whoever you are! Please. Don’t go,” I pleaded. “Stay. Talk to me. Help me understand.”

He paused, his head turning to slightly look over his shoulder before he moved toward the front door again. I raced to it and wedged myself between him and the door, placing my hand over the knob.

“Stay,” I begged. “Don’t leave like this. After everything—please don’t leave us like this. I want to help you, Elliot—if you’re in there, come back to me.”

His hands flew up and slammed into the door on either side of my head.

I jumped, flinching as he leaned into me, his lips beside my ear as he growled, “I fucking warned you!”

“During the Fourth. I remember,” I whispered.

He pulled back and looked at me with those icy eyes.

“That was the first time you pushed too hard, came too close. I can’t allow you to do that, sweetheart. Elliot’s had enough time with you. It ends now,” he said as he grabbed my shoulders and pulled me away from the door.

I grabbed his arm and he shook me off, but I grabbed him again and pulled him back enough to allow me to wedge myself against the door again.

“I told you,” he yelled, his voice harsh and unrecognizable. “I can’t protect him if you keep forcing him to open up!”

I didn’t let my fear stop me as I pressed him.

“Protect him from what? Did someone hurt him? I read about what can cause—”

His hand flew against my mouth with enough force to knock my head against the door. He pressed hard and cut off my words.

Never did his eyes leave mine as Elliot’s would have, especially in a situation of such discomfort and intense emotion. Never once did he look away.

“Shut. The. Fuck. Up.”

I held his gaze, refusing to waver. He pressed harder, the pressure on the back of my head becoming a painful throbbing.

“Can you shut the fuck up?” he asked, his brows nearly reaching his hairline.

I watch his face transition to a look of smug satisfaction as I manage to slightly nod.

He released his grip, and I deflated, the fight leaving my body as I stepped away from the door. I leaned against the wall before slowly sinking to the floor.

I didn’t raise my eyes as I quietly asked, “Are you going to keep Elliot from seeing me again?”

He sighed, some of the fight leaving him, too.

“Elliot loves you—this wasn’t supposed to happen, Y/N.”

As he said my name, my head jerked up, the syllables so foreign on his tongue I knew, without a doubt, that whoever was standing in front of me was someone completely different than Elliot Alderson.

“You have to understand that it’s my job to keep him safe. Not yours, not Darlene’s. No one else’s. No one else can keep him safe.”

“What about a psychiatrist?”

“Don’t be fucking ridiculous. If they don’t fuck him up with 15 different kinds of meds, they’ll just throw him in an institution. Is that what you want? Elliot locked up like some kind of sick-o creep?”

“I would never let that happen.”

“Daddy’s money gonna buy Elliot a happy little place in the Adirondacks? Get him a nurse, someone nice to take care of him like his worthless mother never could?”

“Is that why you hate me? I have money? Or because I consider Elliot family?”

“My job is to protect him, and I’ve decided you’re not worth the risk, sweetheart.”

Without another glance, he opened the door and slammed it shut behind him.

I buried my head in my hands, the tears I had held back throughout the entire ordeal bursting out in a harsh sob. I crawled over to the door and locked it, pulling myself up by the knob in order to secure the deadbolt.

Not that it mattered since Elliot had a key.

Not that it mattered since Elliot was being held prisoner inside of his own body.

And no one, except himself, held that key.

* * * * *

Elliot didn’t come to work on the next day.

And then he didn’t come for another three days.

When I read the email from Ali questioning Elliot’s whereabouts, I wasn’t surprised. I called him up to my office and had the secretary shut the door after she let him in.

Ali had the good manners to look concerned, but I could detect the haughtiness underneath.

“I’ve noticed that Alderson’s been out for the past few days. Can you provide some insight? He was the lead on our new WiFi scripts, as I’m sure you remember.”

The lie came much easier than any other lie in my life had.

“He’s had a death in the family, Ali. I suggest postponing the project until he returns. Ask JaLeah for someone who can handle white hat duties if your team needs another hacker.”

Some of the haughtiness fell from Ali’s face.

“Oh. Well, my condolences to him when you see him.”

“Thank you. Will there be anything else?”

“Nope—you’ve always got the answers, boss.”

“Don’t call me that,” I said as I rolled my eyes and offered him a crooked smile in an attempt to subvert his attention from the abnormality of Elliot’s absences.

Ali grinned and shrugged his shoulders.

The partial smile fell from my face the instant the door shut behind Ali, and I felt sick as my mind worked over my lie. I didn’t live my life in the shadows. I lived with integrity.

And I had just told a boldfaced lie, one that would surely make its way around the office, and if Elliot never came back to work, everyone would know I lied for my boyfriend.

What a fucking mess.

I had to see him; I had to try to talk to my Elliot, the one I was in love with, and not this other who seemed to want nothing more than for me to fuck off for good.

I made a promise to Darlene not to let Elliot bail, and clearly, the Aldersons took promises made to them seriously.  

[spicynbachili1]

Meet Nia Jax, the WWE star looking to smash barriers for women | News

This Sunday Nia Jax is about to turn into part of historical past when she performs at World Wrestling Leisure’s (WWE) first ever ladies’s solely particular occasion, Evolution.

When she walks into the ring within the Nassau Coliseum in New York her theme music “I am not like most women” will blare from the audio system. These phrases have particular resonance for each Jax and her followers. 

She has turn into one of many firm’s most distinguished stars, but Jax, a former plus measurement mannequin of Samoan origin, admits that some may discover it exhausting to simply accept that she’s an athlete.

“That is who I’m, I’m by no means going to be a measurement zero,” Jax, who’s 182cm tall and weighs 123kg, advised Al Jazeera.

“Simply because I am an even bigger woman, they may suppose I can’t do something, however no. I can carry out simply pretty much as good as anyone else. I’ve no drawback breaking stereotypes. And proving individuals flawed, it is truly fairly enjoyable,” the 34-year-old added.

Jax determined to turn into a wrestler after seeing her cousin, WWE’s most well-known product, The Rock compete reside. 

He helped her get a check out, which led to a contract with WWE, and her inventory rose rapidly following her debut in 2015.

Skilled wrestling is in fact staged leisure, and profitable a championship is WWE’s manner of rewarding wonderful performances.

That occurred for Jax in April. Not solely did she turn into ladies’s champion, she did it on the most prestigious occasion within the enterprise, Wrestlemania.

The Sydney-born grappler beat Alexa Bliss in entrance of practically 80,000 followers on the Superdome in New Orleans for the title.

However Jax, born Savelina Fanene, says turning into champion meant getting via some troublesome occasions. 

WWE units sights on Center East

“Once I first began coaching in WWE, I observed I used to be completely different from everyone. I assumed it was going to be a drawback. I used to be pondering I would want to lose 50 kilos (about 22kg). I assumed I wanted to mix in. However my coach was an enormous proponent of me embracing my measurement, and making me work with it.”

Jax turning into world champion was additionally symbolic for WWE, who gave the impression to be making an announcement by making her seize the title at its greatest occasion.

Jax’s victory over Bliss, an in depth pal of hers outdoors the ring, adopted a storyline about bullying. Bliss spent the construct as much as the struggle physique shaming Jax reside on tv, lowering her to tears.

“I have been bullied due to the way in which I’ve seemed rising up. So when this storyline got here up we had been each like, we now have to make this as actual as doable.”

Jax added: “After we needed to reduce segments, there have been issues that Alexa mentioned she did not need to say, and I used to be like you must say this. I used to be like in case you can’t say this, then I can’t present my true emotions and the individuals is not going to resonate with our story”.

Troubled historical past

Such humanising storylines haven’t all the time been part of the way in which WWE represents ladies.

The model’s ladies’s division has advanced dramatically from a interval referred to as WWE’s perspective period, which lasted from the late 90s via to the early a part of the next decade.

That period was described as misogynistic and sexist by critics and it was a interval through which the corporate’s protection of ladies, included raunchy content material, feminine stars combating in lingerie, battling it out in mud baths, and even competing in bikini contests.

Many followers laud this as WWE’s most entertaining interval, nonetheless it additionally drew heavy criticism for the way ladies had been depicted. 

Nia Jax has the most important bodily presence of any feminine wrestler on the WWE roster [Courtesy:WWE]

Since then WWE has pivoted to turn into a extra household pleasant product. Girls now headline exhibits and compete in matches beforehand reserved for males. Nia herself was a part of the primary ever ladies’s Royal Rumble in January. It is a part of what WWE name their “ladies’s evolution”.

“Being a lady proper now in WWE is a tremendous factor. We maintain breaking limitations and setting new data, proving that it isn’t simply males that draw crowds” says Jax.

Nonetheless, WWE nonetheless continues to attract criticism for its portrayals.

That is who I’m, I’m by no means going to be a measurement zero

Nia Jax

In accordance with Kate Foray, who runs the WWE evaluation web site the rawbreakdownproject.com, WWE’s therapy of ladies is what created the necessity for a revolution within the first place.

 “What might go a good distance is that if WWE truly acknowledged that it was their therapy of ladies of their firm within the first place that created a story the place a ‘revolution had available’,” she mentioned.

She added that: “We get a variety of revisionist historical past, and fixed first time ever matches and moments being introduced for the ladies, in an try to rapidly construct a backstory the place WWE can say, ‘look how progressive we’re being with our ladies’.

“The perspective period wasn’t that way back.”

WWE’s ladies’s solely present has additionally courted controversy. The corporate acquired criticism that it solely launched the present to counter fan backlash for staging pay-per-view occasions in Saudi Arabia – through which Jax and her fellow feminine performers had been prohibited to carry out in any respect.

Jax rejects such concepts.

“You possibly can create the thrill you need, however we’ll go on the market at Evolution and kick some butt. And it isn’t simply that they are simply giving the present to us. We have earned it.”

Jax accepts that there’ll all the time be critics, however she says she doing her greatest in her personal solution to affect individuals positively.

Physique positivity

A type of issues is her promotion of physique positivity. Final 12 months for example she posted a selfie of herself in a washing go well with, admitting it was one thing she was nervous about, and urging younger individuals to be assured in themselves and the way they appear. It went viral getting 50,000 likes in simply 4 days.

She says “it should not matter what you seem like, how large you might be or what color is your pores and skin. That is my message.”

Her efforts have been recognised past wrestling and he or she just lately received the #seeHER Now Award from the Affiliation of Nationwide Advertisers within the US. 

Nia Jax is a finalist for Recreation Changer of the Yr on the Folks’s Selection Awards [Courtesy: WWE]

The award was given as a recognition of obstacles and challenges that Jax overcame, and for her constructive affect on different ladies. She can also be up alongside the likes of Colin Kaepernick and Serena Williams on the Folks’s Selection Awards as a finalist for the Recreation Changer of the Yr.

WWE Chief Model Officer Stephanie McMahon, who’s a former ladies’s champion herself, believes Jax’s work in and out of the ring makes her a standout athlete.

“Nia Jax is a particular expertise and an much more particular individual. She is a game-changer, breaking conventions and rejecting stereotypes, no matter age, gender, ethnicity or physique sort, which have usually utilized to ladies within the public eye,” McMahon mentioned.

“She takes on this function with satisfaction and willpower, and her achievements are recognised by each little woman watching a present reside or at dwelling who’s impressed to say: I need to try this, I need to be like Nia Jax.

“That is what the Girls’s Evolution is about, altering attitudes in a constructive manner about ladies in WWE, and on the planet outdoors WWE.”

For now although Jax is targeted on placing on a present at Evolution, and including one other particular second to what has been a memorable 12 months for the girl referred to as the Irresistible Pressure.

Comply with Sohail Malik on Twitter: @SohailAJE

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from SpicyNBAChili.com http://spicymoviechili.spicynbachili.com/meet-nia-jax-the-wwe-star-looking-to-smash-barriers-for-women-news/

[maysoper]

Moving The Goalposts

Make no mistake that the women showed up and nearly stole the show tonight at the NHL All-Star Skills Competition. Kendall Coyne absolutely lit the ice on fire with her lap in the Fastest Skater event. Brianna Decker only went out and won the Precision Passer event. Rebecca Johnston demonstrated the hands needed in the Puck Control event. Renata Fast blew up targets in the Accuracy Shooting event. Yes, the women can play. But you already knew that. In fact, if you've been reading this blog for any length of time, you're very aware that these are four of the best hockey players on the planet. So why am I writing about goalposts moving? The women's hockey writers were all over social media tonight with their usual anger towards the NHL world in that more people should be watching the women's game. I don't disagree that more people should be supporting women's hockey with their butts in seats, merchandise on their backs, eyes on their TVs, and more. I have been a long supporter of women's hockey, and I truly believe the game is more akin to Olympic hockey with speed and skill being the highlights, and I'll take that to the grave as my reason for spending so much time watching the women's product. Here's the thing, though: the NHL is in San Jose this weekend to promote THEIR product. The invitation to the women this season followed last year's invitation of Hilary Knight, Amanda Kessel, Meghan Duggan, and Hannah Brandt to the All-Star Game in Tampa Bay where the same boisterous social media warriors got on their soapboxes, pounded fists on chests, and screamed about how people should be watching the women's game. While Coyne and Decker arguably made this year's inclusion of the women at the Skills Competition more memorable with their performances in the events they were demonstrating, I'm going to wager a bet that you won't see an uptick in attendance at women's games nor will you see any sustained support for the game after tonight's performance. Now you may be asking, "Teebz, if you support the women's game, how can you say that?". The reality is that the NHL All-Star Game is there to showcase players and their talents, but if you have no way to see this talent regularly or don't know how to watch this talent, you likely will forget how good these players are, ultimately forgetting how good they were this week. Don't be angry - that's how our minds work. There's an expression in hockey that sees teams in the Pacific time zone often using when it comes to voting on year-end awards due to the concentration of voters who live on or near the east coast of North America. This "east coast bias" term is used because most games in California start some three hours after all other games do - 10pm in most eastern markets - so the perception from the west coast is that most of the east coast has already turned off the broadcast since no one wants to stay up until 1am watching hockey. I'm not sure this holds true with the exposure that all of the NHL gets with the broadcasting deals they have - Brent Burns won the Norris Trophy in 2017 and Drew Doughty won in 2016 - but they're the only two players who play or have played in the Pacific time zone to win the award. There has yet to be a Vezina Trophy winner from the Pacific time zone, and the only Hart Trophy winners from that time zone are Corey Perry and Joe Thornton in a year where he was traded from Boston to San Jose. Why does this matter? What these writers should be howling about is the fact that you can't find women's hockey anywhere on television - the single largest media influencer in today's households. The NHL? You can find it nearly anywhere in Canada thanks to Rogers broadcasting games on Sportsnet, Sportsnet360, CityTV, and CBC. You can see men's hockey on TSN thanks to the World Junior Championship, the Spengler Cup, the World Championship, a handful of NCAA games, the RBC Cup, and a handful of other Hockey Canada-supported events. Men's hockey is everywhere in Canada, and it's why it dominates most highlight shows and sports newscasts. You know what isn't everywhere in Canada? You get three guesses. If you guessed "women's hockey on TV", you'd be a winner. Sportsnet makes it seem like they're doing the world a favour when it comes to broadcasting four regular season games, the CWHL All-Star Game, and the Clarkson Cup Final. Sportsnet owns the rights to U SPORTS broadcasting and will show the U SPORTS Men's National Hockey Championship, but doesn't even bother to send a reporter to the Women's National Hockey Championship. You know why you're all talking about Kendall Coyne's incredible lap today? Colorado's Nathan MacKinnon. Had MacKinnon not been injured, Coyne would have likely been relegated to the commercial break where she'd demonstrate how the lap around the rink would work before the cameras came back to watch the men do their best. But MacKinnon, who is a student of the game, knew there was someone who likely could hold her own when it came to speed in the rink. MacKinnon reached out to Coyne via Twitter and asked the speedy American star if she'd take his spot in the event. And did she ever!

Olympic Gold Medalist @KendallCoyne kicked off the Fastest Skater competition in style! pic.twitter.com/4Ug3dpsuja

��� NHL on NBC (@NHLonNBCSports) January 26, 2019

But let's pump the breaks here because had the Skills Competition gone down according to the NHL's plans, Coyne's lap would have only been seen by those in attendance in San Jose. The fact that both NBC and Sportsnet captured her lap was because she in MacKinnon's spot as one of the actual competitors in the Fastest Skater event. See the irony? The NHL wasn't holding her back from showing off her wheels. They're trying to market their stars in their event. That's just marketing 101, and I can't fault for the NHL for making the NHL All-Star Game about the NHL and its stars. I can fault NBC and Sportsnet, though, for opting to not show the women demonstrating the skills to the public not sitting inside the SAP Center. The problem, however, goes to a larger issues within women's hockey, and that's exposure on television. Half a dozen games broadcast on TV, some YouTube games, and grainy highlights posted on social media won't get the exposure that the women's game desperately needs to become a mainstay on sports highlight shows. "What are the answers, Teebz?" you ask. Well, the first step is to follow that whole "one league" dream that everyone keeps demanding, but only two people can solve. Once that happens, this new Women's National Hockey League can fall under the NHL's watch, and I would hope that they would include a weekly televised game in both the Canada and the US on the NHL's national media partners in Sportsnet and NBC. The enemy of the women's game right now isn't the NHL or men's hockey or men or the apathy that most hockey fans show when it comes to women's hockey. Hockey Canada and USA Hockey have done their parts in making the World Championships and the Olympics must-watch TV when it comes to women's hockey, but they can't run weekly tournaments. That comes down to the two women's professional leagues, and the fact that they have no national media partner who broadcasts games regularly is the major reason why people didn't know that Kendall Coyne was one of the fastest humans on the planet before tonight. In states like Massachusetts and Minnesota, women's hockey is hugely popular because it gets its fair share of coverage locally with some regularity. Women's hockey has long been beating the drum about "you can't be what you can't see". Those are the goalposts onto which women's hockey writers should have their crosshairs fixed, and it starts with demanding that the professional women's leagues either come together to become a stronger product or by having each of the leagues going out to find a national broadcast partner. If you recall, the NHL was once mocked for putting games on the OLN network. The NHL worked through this to prove its product was a viable entity, and they've since been able to sign bigger and more lucrative deals in the United States by continuing to deliver ratings and advertising dollars to its partners. It didn't start with an NBC deal, though, and that's what the leagues and writers need to realize. Time slots on Sportsnet and NBC Sports are expensive. The networks are there to make money, and the women's game simply can't provide the same monetary return as other sports at this time just as the NHL couldn't provide the same return in 2005 when they signed with OLN. This is simply the reality of where the sport is on the sporting landscape right now, and it's a harsh reality that one needs to accept if this sport is ever to move forward. The lack of television broadcasts are the answer to "why isn't this sport more popular". The only way to fix that is to find a way onto television regularly. I'm not a television executive by any means, but I suspect that if the leagues could likely find a somewhat-obscure network to take a chance on one or both of them, then popularity of the women's game will grow by leaps and bounds as the die-hard fans turn casual fans into more dedicated fans and so on and so forth. Y'know, kind of similar to how the NHL grew in non-traditional markets in the sunbelt with local broadcasts and a national deal with an obscure television network. The goalposts need to be moved. This would certainly change the playing field if a television deal was struck. This is entirely what the women's hockey writers who are screaming about Kendall Coyne's performance tonight should be asking their leagues to investigate. If the problem with women's hockey is that no one is watching, it's time to get onto the medium that most people watch. Until next time, keep your sticks on the ice! from Sports News http://hockey-blog-in-canada.blogspot.com/2019/01/moving-goalposts.html

[generationtrygirl]

How I Made $57.30 in My First 3 Weeks of Blogging – March 2017 Monthly Report: Ho

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Not gonna lie, I almost didn’t write this “first month of blogging” monthly report. My goal was to publish it by April 1st. But hen I got distracted by “BUT MAYBE I SHOULD WRITE AN APRIL FOOL’S DAY FACT POST,” which I started but never finished. Because honestly there are not that many April Fool’s facts. And all of my sources said the exact same things. And I don’t want my blogging to become copy and paste. ANYWAYS, when I missed my deadline I was like “Well, I missed it. I’m just not gonna write it.”

As the days went on in the month, I started to even think “Hey, in fact maybe I’ll never write again! I already failed anyway!” It was my inner perfectionist/sloth speaking. In my head I thought I couldn’t write another post before I wrote this one, even though I had no desire to write this one at the time. Finally, I kicked that thought away and wrote something else that I was actually excited about — a fun Easter craft I got to make at work– and was again motivated suddenly to write again! The next day, I sat outside with my cat and got in my writer zone, and what you have is my full personal monthly review for my blog, as well as my goal’s for next month!

If I’ve learned anything from my social media work over the past two years, its that keeping a monthly report can really help you track your progress over time. Would I have guessed Plaid would have 140,000 Facebook followers only  two years after I joined them at 35,000? Nope. But here we are. Now, as I reflect on what I’ve accomplished over my first month (well, really, 3 weeks) of blogging, I’m actually excited to scoot on ahead. I want this to be the first of a monthly series, tracking my progress every 30 days or so. ‘Cause goal-setting gets things done y’all. SO, without further ado: how I made $57.30 in my first 3 weeks of blogging, and my reflections on those weeks.

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MARCH 2017 INCOME:

Qapital: $20

Qapital is a mobile banking app that I use to help me save money without thinking. After connecting it to your regular bank account, you can set up “rules” for savings. My favorite rule is the “Freelancer Rule” that automatically sets aside 30% of any deposited pay checks so that you’re prepared for tax season when the time comes! You can learn more about Qapital in my post here.  If you want to try Qapital yourself, you can get an extra $5 with your first deposit by signing up through my referral link here!

Ebates: $25

Ebates is a cash-back App, Website, and Google Chrome Extension that gives you 1-40% cash back online and in-store at an ever growing list of major retailers. Every quarter you are rewarded with your cash back from your spending when using the app with a “big fat check.” Basically, it’s an app that rewards you for shopping. Read up more about it here. By signing up through my referral link, you can get an extra $10 cash back after your first purchase at any store of $25 when you have your Ebates rewards turned on!

Ibotta: $10

Ibotta is a cash-back grocery shopping app (which has now expanded to other kinds of retailers too!) that gives you and everyone with the app on your “team” (a.k.a All your Facebook friends!) major coupons and cash back rewards on both grocery staples and new products! I’ve made over $100 cash back using the app so far, and I’ve only had it a few months! Read more about Ibotta and six other ways to save while you shop here. Also, with my referral link, you can get an extra $10 the first time you use Ibotta!

Google Adsense: $1.30

Whoo! Big money, Google Adsense! Admittedly, I’m not running nearly as many Ads as I could (you’re welcome), but I may go back and optimize a few of my posts this month.

TOTAL: $57.30

Not bad for my first 3 weeks of blogging, I’d say! Not making a profit off it yet (still getting my money back from my initial expenses of hosting/domain buying.) But hey! I’m glad to be getting it back slowly but surely, especially because I quite enjoy blogging.

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  MARCH 2017 SOCIAL FOLLOWING:

Facebook: 153 [GenerationTryGirl]

Pinterest: 646 [@Generation_Try] (Psst, I’ll tell you more about my Pinterest strategy in my “achievements” section below.)

Twitter: 116 [@Generation_try] ; 637 [@CeliaQuillian]

Instagram: 288 [@generationtrygirl] ; 340 [@Quilce0]

YouTube: 0

MARCH 2017 BLOG STATS:

# Posts Written: 11

# Comments: 171 (I think half were my responses to others’ comments.)

# Views: 1,757 , Avg per day: 57

# Unique Visitors: 1,009

80% New Sessions, 20% Returning Sessions

Avg Session Duration: 1:55 minutes 

Best Post: 186/187 views, 15 Inspiring Quotes For  International Women’s Day and Qapital App Review (adsbygoogle = window.adsbygoogle || []).push({});

MARCH 2017 ACCOMPLISHMENTS:

Actually starting the darn blog! I’ve been wanting to start a blog as a side business since June 2016, when I actually learned that was a thing. Seriously. I had no idea you could make serious money blogging. In August 2016, I had my idea and bought my domain/hosting, but then got all caught up in the details and wanting to make it perfect. I told myself I would FINALLY start in December. Then January. February. March. Finally, I think on March 6th, I actually kicked my butt into gear and published something. I only wish I’d started sooner!

Learning a lot about WordPress Plug-Ins & Blog Promotion: Read a LOT (but I still feel like I’m barely grazing the surface) that other bloggers have written about the best wordpress plug-ins to use, and the best ways to boost your site’s SEO. I’ve also joined a number of blogger groups on Facebook, which I believe resulted in an increased number of views/comments. It also helps motivate me!

Taking my time to optimize for SEO. With my other blogs in the past (doing them for pleasure, and not trying to do them for profit at all–because, again, I had no idea that was a thing), I never optimized. I barely knew what SEO even was! I’ve learned A LOT this past month. And not only has it made me a better blogger, its also made me a better worker at my contracting social media jobs!

Reorganizing my old Pinterest Boards. At first, I created a new Pinterest account for this blog, which literally meant: Starting. From. Nothing. By the 3rd week of march, I had about 30 followers. Not bad for a new blog, but not great. I then remembered my personal Pinterest had something like 690 followers (pretty good for the average Joe! I’m just assuming this is because I was a VERY EARLY Pinterest adopter.) So I decided “Why start with 30 followers with 630 followers?!” I went to my old Pinterest boards and consolidated and cleaned them up. I lost probably about 40 followers along the way that followed random boards I never pinned too, but I’m not complaining. My Pinterest now looks much more professional, and my boards are optimized with actual SEO optimized descriptions.

GOALS FOR APRIL 2017:

I strongly believe in the value of writing down your goals and thereby making your goals more likely to be accomplished. So, here are my goals for my blog in April. (Shhh I know April has already started! I’m working on it!)

Publish 3 Posts a Week (roughly 12 times/month). From all I’ve been reading about blogging, I’ve heard this is a pretty good goal for optimizing your blog. The best thing would be to have your posts written well ahead of time and scheduled out on regular days of the week. But I’m not there yet, okay?

Write yo’ damn about page, and make blog more easy to navigate. I cringe a little every time I see the large number of views on my blog’s “About Page” and know that there is really nothing there. Not even a picture! Which: Side note, mini-goal: Get my hair touched up and make my boyfriend to take blogger-y pictures of me. For blogging and vanity purposes, obvi.

Create some kind of guide or downloadable to entice email subscribers. I dunno what’ll be, but it’ll be exciting. Apparently having an email list is a good thing? I /have/ one, but I have no idea how many people have actually signed up. Which brings me to..

Figure out how to use a damn email list. Seriously, Celia. You’ve worked in PR, Marketing, and Social Media way too long to not know how to make a good email newsletter.

Don’t Fret. Keep focused. Stay consistent. I sometimes have a tendency to totally stop a project if I fall off the bandwagon for too long. Case in point, I was going HAM on my blog in the first two weeks, and then in the second two weeks of having it I only wrote one post. When I finally forgave myself, I wrote a single post, and now I’m back at the “Hey! I actually super enjoy this!” phase again. The goal for April is to be consistent, but always hop right back on that blogging horse.

Increase Social Following: Goals – 180 for Facebook, 150 for Twitter, 675 for Pinterest, 325 for Instagram

Make more income in April than in March. Don’t know if this will happen, but it’s still a pretty solid goal! Right?

What about you, other bloggers?

I’d love to hear any of your blogging stories, or read any monthly reports of yours! How do you stay focused on moving forward, and what do you do when you feel behind? Something that I’ve already noticed about the blogging community is that it is super supportive, so I’d love any advice you have to give! Comment below and let me know. <3

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from How I Made $57.30 in My First 3 Weeks of Blogging – March 2017 Monthly Report: Ho

[365daysofbrentpuccio]

Letter of Resignation

Dear Chet Cadieux,

First off, I’d like to thank QT because without them I never would have been able to afford and purchase my first home at 25. Without them I would not have some of the luxuries I have today or would I have met some of my best friends, so for that I am forever grateful; however, the QT that I got hired by five years ago, is not the same QT that we have today. Somewhere along the way over the past few years the culture has changed and I don’t see any sign of it going back to where it was. You may ask why I’m writing this letter of resignation then since I have already made the decision to quit. This letter is not for me this is for my friends and family still working at QT who I have become very close to over the last five years and I don’t want to see the same things that happened to me happen to them. Let’s get to how this all started for me and why I finally decided enough was enough and decided to quit.

A series of unfortunate events happened to me starting last February when I came down with the flu and a bad sinus infection. This flu never seemed to go away and I was in and out of the doctor’s office almost every week. I was trying to get promoted and my manager at the time was retiring so I kept coming to work to make sure the store didn’t fall apart more than it already was. I felt the need to take on the added responsibility of the manager not being there; however, I worked myself to the part where I was almost hospitalized. I hadn’t been able to breathe out of my nose since January and it was just something I was learning to live with; however, it made stocking the coolers extremely difficult for me because of the pain and pressure in my head and it mixing with the cold was not a good combination, but I didn’t want to seem weak. My doctor finally ordered a CT scan since I wasn’t getting any better and just kept getting progressively worse. The results weren’t what I was expecting. I was told I had paranasal sinus disease, which I didn’t even know existed at the time, and a deviated septum which I needed sinus surgery to correct and fix. Then the doctor also told me that they had found a growth behind my right eye and they would have to do an MRI to find out more information, but the next opening wasn’t for another month. I asked him the odds of it being cancer but he couldn’t give me an answer until he had the results from the MRI. Mind you I was still going to work during this time because my FMLA had not gotten approved yet and I did not want to get fired or the store to fall apart any more than it already had. I finally got the results back from the MRI and luckily it turned out to be nothing so that was a giant relief, but when finding out that I didn’t have cancer we found out my grandmother did which she passed away from a few weeks later. I worked until I had to have my surgery done and then after my surgery I was out for a month on short term disability because I wasn’t allowed to lift anything over five pounds, bend over, or do anything to raise my blood pressure; all things that we do on the daily at QT. My doctor said recovery time could take anywhere from 5 to 8 weeks, but I couldn’t afford to stay on short term disability because my paychecks were barely over 20% of my normal pay. So, I came back not fully recovered and tried my best but that didn’t seem to be enough because everyone was used to how good I was before I had gotten sick and I just couldn’t give 110% like I used to my body would not let me. I was under the impression that my manager was relaying everything to my supervisor because I didn’t want to go over his head but I guess all he told him was that I had taken a lot of time off work and then came back not as good. My manager was still hardly ever there so I still felt like I had to pick up all of the slack because I was still working towards getting my 1A interview that my manager kept telling me next month I’ll put you on the list…. every month. I finally realized he was just probably saying that so I would do all of his work too and was actually never going to put me on the list, so I got to the point where I couldn’t take the stress and pressure anymore and asked for a store transfer even though by asking for this I had felt like I had failed. I put my pride to the side and asked anyways. I wasn’t sleeping, I wasn’t eating and my health was still not where it was supposed to be. Three months later the week that my manager is going to finally retire and we’ll finally have a new store manager I got a call from my supervisor to go cover at another store because an incident had happened, and the next day he called me again to ask if I’d like to transfer over there and it’ll help me to become 1A and challenge me and I had asked for a transfer previously. I accepted because I wanted to do the right thing and they needed someone there. I realize today that this was a move to help QT and not to help the situation I was in at all because at this store I made less money and it was way more stressful then my last one. Regardless I tried to make the best of the situation. I had set a goal for myself to be on the 1A list by the end of the year and I had informed my manager of this as well which he said wasn’t outside of reason. I busted my butt at this new store. All of the clerks loved me and we were starting to develop a bond and I felt part of a team again since I actually had a store manager. I had my first one on one with my manager and everything went well we had a Gary ride coming up so I took it upon myself since I wanted to get promoted to make sure everyone made the store look awesome. Not that we didn’t always try this but you know how everyone gets for Gary rides, and it payed off we got a 93% which was one of the best Gary rides my store had ever gotten. I was so proud of myself and my clerks. I had my next evaluation and I had exceeded on almost everything except a few CSA things from when I was at my old store where we had staffing and merchandising issues because the manager was never there. However, I guess I had also gotten shopped the week after my Gary ride and received an 82% and was told I wasn’t going to get a 1A interview because of that even though the highest shop at my store was an 88%. I felt defeated, like all of the hard work I had put in was for nothing. It felt like they just decided to ignore all of the good I did and only focus on the bad and negative things. It was at this moment that I truly started searching for another job.

I gave over five years of my life to this company and rarely asked for anything in return. They chose me to head one of the biggest projects QT had ever done, the kitchen training project, and that was a blast for me. I was having fun teaching and training people coming up with raps and jingles so people would remember the proper ways to make things. I even wrote, produced and stared in a training video for the company to help train people in the kitchen. Then that project ended and I finally had become a 2A which I had been pushing towards since the beginning and I thought things would get better once I became 2A…. but they didn’t. You would think it would be in the best interest of the company to make sure one of the individuals responsible for training most of the Arizona division in our new kitchen remodel would be taken care of and checked up on in case another project came up that they needed me for, but that wasn’t the case. I felt abandoned and forgotten in a store with a Manager already on his way out with all the extra burden placed upon my shoulders. This wasn’t the QT that I had started with five years ago, the QT that I saw myself moving up in and becoming a supervisor in.

Somewhere along the way we lost sight of our core values and the thing that made this company so great. If you don’t believe me I’m going to break down our core values for you which I still use in my everyday life and try to show you in my opinion where I think things went in the wrong direction. Let’s start out with the first one Be The Best. QuikTrip is still in my opinion the best gas station and convenience store out there for its customers, but I don’t think we’ve been the best at hiring the best employees since our kitchens opened. I get it that we had to hire a lot of people however when you sacrifice quality for quantity it will affect the company in the long run which I feel like it truly did, and I know you realize this as well. Which brings me to next core value of Do The Right Thing. I have always tried to do the right thing when working at QuikTrip and in my day to day life, but that didn’t always seem to be the right thing in QTs eyes. I’ve saved a woman from getting beat up from a man on the lot and have stood in front of a loaded gun before not because they’re things I wanted to do but in my heart I felt like they were the right thing at the time and both times I got in trouble for my actions even though in both of those situations I just acted without time to really process or think about what was going on. In situations like that your instincts kick in and you just do. I don’t feel safe at work sometimes, and it’s not that I can’t hold my own it’s my fear that if I get put into a situation and have to defend myself I will get fired because almost everyone who I’ve seen this happen to has been terminated. In allowing all these people to steal and not doing anything is actually making us more unsafe in the long run because more people know about it now causing more people to come in and steal. Hell the guy who robbed that one QT and then got shot later on at another gas station was interviewed and said on the news that he robs gas stations just because he can get away with it because they’re not supposed to do anything. I used to always trust QT to have my back but now I second guess most of my decisions. Also, along with the first core value I see so many people passing training that aren’t QT material but they’re passed anyways and then later on effect the store moral and overall productiveness. Leading to the next core value of Never Be Satisfied. We shouldn’t be hiring mediocre people. We’re QuikTrip come on only the best of the best should get the honor of wearing the red and khakis, but somewhere along the line we were satisfied hiring the B’s and C’s and hoping they’d become QT material along the way which never ended up happening. When I was hired, it was hard to get into QT because they only hired the best. I don’t feel like that’s the same mind set anymore. Has the company just gotten too big and started relying more on profit then of taking care of its customers and employees. I see hours getting cut more and more and less people being scheduled each week which gives us less employees to help the customers which in turn is going to be harder for us to achieve those 100% CSAs. I feel the company is more worried about the bottom line then taking care of their employees and customers now. Just like that sign in the office says “If you’re not taking care of the employees, you are taking care of the people who are”, but are we? Less employees scheduled and more hours cut is having less people there to take care of the customers who are the ones who ultimately pay our paychecks. That’s why I started looking for another job I wasn’t satisfied with how I was being treated and I always knew and saw the potential I had to achieve great things. It’s just sad that that potential wasn’t mutually seen by the company. Another core value Focus Long Term has seemed to be forgotten as well. We are only focusing short term when it comes to hiring. We just needed bodies to run the kitchens and that’s what we got bodies… not Quiktrippers. Why are we passing everyone that comes out of training? It’s ok to fail someone if they can’t do an upkeep or are just not right for QT because then it’ll save money in the long run and make room for someone who is the right fit for our company. Then the last and final core value Do What’s Right For QuikTrip. I’ve always tried to do what’s best for QT the entire time I’ve been with the company, but recently the best thing for QT doesn’t always align with what I feel morally is the right thing to do. The way I was raised I’m always going to try to do the right thing however I sometimes second guess myself now if that’s the right thing for QT. So many people steal from the current store I’m at and there’s nothing I can do about it and it just drains you both physically and mentally. I feel like I’m stuck in Azkaban and all of the customers are dementors just slowly sucking the soul out of me. I don’t want to have to be faced with the choice of is what’s right for QuikTrip and what’s really the right thing to do.

I know so many people at QT who want to leave but are too afraid to because they don’t think anything is better out there. They stay because the benefits and pay are pretty good, and I don’t like how QT uses that fear to keep them here and that brainwashing technique of that they’re the best that there is and you’ll find no one better. Then I see people get over looked for years until they’re finally promoted. I’ve seen people’s lives and marriages fall apart because of QT and I just got to the point where I couldn’t live in that fear anymore. I can’t remember the last time I was truly happy. I used to be singing and laughing all the time and now I just kind of fake it to get by. Now there’s days where I’d rather get into a car accident then go to work. Not a bad one where I die but just enough that I wouldn’t have to go into work that day. The last time I went to the doctor I was diagnosed with severe to moderate depression and I just can’t let a job have that much effect on my health, personality and life anymore. There have been multiple times things could have been handled or done differently where this outcome would have never come to but they didn’t so here we are. I’m finally taking a leap of faith and found a job with a better schedule with around the same pay and benefits and I’ll finally be able to pursue my dreams of becoming a stand-up comedian and making the world laugh. I shared some of those laughs here but somewhere along the way I lost the thing that made me the person I am and now I have to start looking out for myself instead of everyone else. I have no hard feelings. I completely understand you have a business to run and changes happen but if you’re wondering why there has been so much turnover recently and people haven’t been as happy at their jobs I tried to give you my own personal experience and opinion as to why things are happening the way they are. Hopefully you took the time to read this and hopefully it made you realize what has been happening from an employee stand point. I just don’t want to see the same thing that had happened to me happen to others. Like I said at the beginning this letter was meant more for my friends and family still at QT then it was for me. We are a QT family after all. QT will always have a special place in my heart and I’ll miss it but it’s time to say good bye and start looking out for my best interests and wellbeing. I know people usually only tell supervisors what they want to hear and not how they actually feel because they’re afraid of losing their job or getting stuck and never promoted. Hopefully this letter is able to reach the right people and maybe even Chet so QT can get back to prioritizing the things that made them so great of a company. I figured this was the best way to go since QT doesn’t do exit interviews anymore. I wish you all the best and I hope to see some of you guys at my shows whenever I make it big!  

Sincerely,

  Brent Puccio