Finding Peace Amidst the Chaos of Work

Ever been called the "terminator of bartenders"? Nikki has, and she's here with Amber to share what life is truly like in the small-town bar scene. From the mental health challenges post-COVID to the unexpected exhaustion of day shifts meant for night owls, this episode pulls back the curtain on the bartending world. We address the common misconceptions as Nikki recounts her time at the Old Town Saloon, offering a candid look at the relentless hustle and hidden strains of the job.

In the heart of Clovis, the small business life is anything but dull. We chat about the Lucky 13 Embroidery shop and dive into the rollercoaster ride of managing new hires at a bar where punctuality is a rare gem. Balancing the demands of a busy bar shift with personal obligations like Thanksgiving dinner, we paint a vivid picture of the sacrifices made to keep things running smoothly. On a more serious note, we call out the discriminatory dress codes imposed by local authorities, raising questions about inclusivity and fairness in the community.

As the episode unfolds, we tackle the omnipresent stress of always being connected to work. The constant ping of emails and calls can take a toll, and in this industry, finding a balance is crucial. We explore strategies for carving out a healthier work-life dynamic and share insights into the camaraderie and pressures of the bar industry. Wrapping things up, we add a sprinkle of humor with a teaser of upcoming content, and remind you that whether you love us or hate us, your engagement is always appreciated.

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Chapters

• 0:04 Struggles of Finding Bartenders
• 7:28 Challenges of Bartender Work Environment
• 13:35 Bar Industry Challenges and Discrimination
• 23:19 Work-Life Balance and Job Stresses
• 36:17 Interactive Podcast Promotion Chat

Transcript

Speaker 1: 0:04

Welcome to Small Town, big Mouths podcast, where our three hosts will be unraveling tales about dating and life in general that will have you laughing, nodding your head and even cringing in sympathy. So sit back, buckle up and get ready for the ride.

Speaker 2: 0:18

Welcome back to Small Town, big Mouths. This is Amber, your one and only, and this is Nikki, your resident bartender. This is Amber, your one and only, and this is Nikki, your resident bartender, and today we are doing audio only because life has been hectic and we haven't been able to get together to do a video. So bear with us and this will make my life easier for the next few weeks anyways with just audio files. So I think Nikki had a topic today and you want to share that topic, nikki.

Speaker 3: 0:44

I do. So we're going to talk about. We've talked a lot about mental health, like in dating and just in life in general, but I want to talk about mental health with your job, because I feel like everybody has a job Hopefully.

Speaker 3: 0:57

Yeah, whether you're married, dating, whatever, and some things have come to light this last couple of weeks with my job that have just made me like it's hard, like it's holiday season now. Life is tough, like things are rough, and I really thought once COVID was over that people would want to like get back to work, but I feel like they don't.

Speaker 2: 1:23

I mean, COVID was so long ago too.

Speaker 3: 1:26

It's like three lifetimes ago for me I seriously I'm I struggle to remember, like, what years. It was like, wait a minute, what year was that? What was I doing?

Speaker 3: 1:34

yeah, we're going into 2025 it's already going to be history, I know, but like the weird thing is is like. So I feel like everyone knows I'm a bartender. I work at a bar here in town, the Old Town Saloon. I've been there almost 25 years your whole life. I have been there half of my fucking adult life. My life, my whole life, not even my adult life. I've been there my whole adult life. I've been there half my life.

Speaker 2: 2:00

Right, it's never been as difficult as it is right now to find people to work. Can you explain to me what's going on? Maybe not share names, but I mean, I think you guys have open interviews at this point.

Speaker 3: 2:12

Yeah, pretty much.

Speaker 3: 2:13

So, we've had some solid daytime bartenders and it's hard to work the day shift because we're a nighttime bar. So to work the day shift you have to be able to come in, you have to have a strong personality, because there's, you know, 10 or so regulars that come in. They can be pretty abrasive sometimes and then you don't make a whole bunch of money because it's not like super busy, unless you have a following and people that want to come see you. But otherwise you're sitting there with these people that are always going to be coming in and then a lot of it is prepping for the night, cutting the fruit getting everything stocked, making sure everything's ready.

Speaker 2: 2:51

You mean you don't just show up to a bar and like pour drinks, right, yeah, no, people think that's what happens. Yeah, I mean I would never know, although I mean I, now that I know you and I hear all these different things and the things that you do and I'm like I've never even thought about those things I would think that, yes, you are a bartender, but you're like the bar manager, basically because you oversee and do the shopping. You pick up the shifts when somebody doesn't show up, which I don't know how you do it. What do they say? Terminator?

Speaker 3: 3:19

Yeah, someone called me the terminator of bartenders.

Speaker 2: 3:22

Yeah. I was like okay. I'm mad for you.

Speaker 3: 3:26

He was saying that, though, because I had a stoic look on my face while I was working and I tried to tell him. I'm like, okay, you guys are all here to have a good time. I'm here actually working, I want everyone to have fun, but sometimes I've taken so many drink orders that I'm concentrating so I'm not smiling. And you know, know, that girl needs change. That girl ordered something. That girl I need to put something on her tab.

Speaker 2: 3:52

That girl is over here waving at me to close her tab, like there's so many things going on that I just sometimes forget to smile. Really yeah.

Speaker 3: 3:55

I didn't know that you're a liar. You're a fat liar right now, never even knew, didn't even realize. I mean, I always get a smile, but yeah wasn't it you that that guy was telling you it's you wanted me to show some teeth or something. That was well, maybe you should tip her better.

Speaker 2: 4:09

And he was like well, maybe I would if I get a tooth or two. I smiled at that motherfucker.

Speaker 3: 4:16

He must be a regular, because I don't. I don't feel like I've never seen him before. But you know what? The bar is so busy sometimes at night that people will come in on steve's side or sit on becca's side and I've literally like I never seen that guy before, and then they'll be like, oh, he was in here all night sitting here with me and I I don't know because I don't. Yeah, unless they're directly in front of me or I'm helping them or they've come to me to help them, then I just don't remember because I'm not looking around, I'm helping what's in front of you were. Yeah, well, I have that reputation.

Speaker 2: 4:42

But I thought it was so funny when he was like, if I could just get a tooth or two, and I'm like, oh my god, this guy I should have went.

Speaker 3: 4:47

If I had known that I'd be giving him a, I'd have lifted my lip for him with my finger. You want a tooth? What am I, elvis presley? Oh you're, at least. I have all my teeth, yeah now, but I'm bump anyway.

Speaker 3: 5:02

So we hired a couple of. So the first girl we hired was like this is gonna be, these are gonna be some funny stories. So we hired a girl that I really liked her. I hired her and sorry, you guys not bumping in the background as roger's like sitting at my feet wagging his tail. This is one of the problems with recording at home is there's all these little things going on with roger? Um, roger that, yeah, roger that. So, uh, we hire this girl. She comes to work like the first two weeks. The second week she texts me she's supposed to be there at two. She texts me at like 1 30 telling me she has a flat tire, she's trying to get it fixed, but she's in shaver. And I'm like bitch, you were supposed to be here at two, like at 1.30, you're just now realizing that your tire is flat. You should have already been in the car driving down the fucking hill. You know what I mean. Like it's an hour drive.

Speaker 2: 5:58

She was too busy wondering what kind of excuse she was going to use.

Speaker 3: 6:01

So I just felt like, okay, she's not coming in. So then she came in the next day and like work the next weekend. But then the next weekend there was another excuse, so she was let go. So then we hired this guy and he was. We hired a girl. And we hired a girl, loved her. She's one of my friends. She ended up wanting to have a job with insurance. So, completely understand, left for a better job, Got it. She still fills in here and there. I'm going to mention her name because it's not in a bad light Shula. She's one of our listeners, she's a friend of mine. Love her, Good girl.

Speaker 3: 6:34

So Shula left and then we hired another dude a dude and he was going to be part security, part bartender. So he bartended Fridays and Saturdays. He worked security Friday and Saturday nights and then he was going to fill in here and there. Also, the problem is it's really easy to work the day shift because it's not busy. The problem we have is finding someone that can fill in at night also. So to me, any bartender that's already like worth their salt already has a job. They're not leaving their job to come be a fill-in at old town right, unless it's somebody that has a different.

Speaker 2: 7:09

Whoops, uh, a different job and just looking for some extra hours, right but even that's like a small niche of people, right.

Speaker 3: 7:16

So it ended up. He it was just, it wasn't that it was too much for him. He opened up his own business and I will give him a shout out to c Bankston he does, um, I think it's lucky 13 and he has done some stuff for us. He's done some hats. Um, my daughter does our stickers but, yeah, he, he has done, I believe, shirts for people that I know. Like I send everyone there, he'll do a shirt or two if you just need them.

Speaker 2: 7:39

Great, great guy and all done. If you want a small town, big mouse hat hat, you can contact him directly and he will make it for you.

Speaker 3: 7:49

Yes, cut out the middleman which would be us.

Speaker 2: 7:50

Yes, yeah, we don't got time for that shit.

Speaker 3: 7:51

Yeah so, um, lucky 13 is the name of his lucky 13 embroidery and they're right here in Clovis and veteran owned. He's a veteran, super cool guy, really great, very reasonable, um, really fast, with his turnaround time anyway. So he left to go do that and he's doing very well, so happy for him. He is still available to fill in here and there though. So then here comes the new girl. We just hired this girl, so we hire her. She works I think it was like two weekends every day late. The owner lets her in on Fridays and I let her in on Saturdays. Every Saturday she's late. So now she's like three weeks in, doesn't know how to turn on the lights, doesn't know where anything is, because we, because when you're late, I got to open the bar, so I got to fill the ice, I got to get the fruit out, I got to do all the things that you're supposed to do.

Speaker 2: 8:38

It's basically worthless.

Speaker 3: 8:39

Exactly, she comes in and makes drinks. Exactly you said she doesn't do anything but come in and make the drinks. Because now everything's done. Yeah, you get here. You're supposed to be here at 2. You get here at 2 30. I've got everything done. Yes, so then the last three weeks, her child's in the hospital. Understandable, it's totally understandable. But it was weird because it was like every thursday there would be this oh, my daughter's better, I'll see you guys tomorrow. Then every Friday it was like oh, she's in the hospital. I'm not like. I it was weird, but I'm not Diminishing what was going on, but it was just. If that was what was going on.

Speaker 2: 9:15

Yeah, it was. I mean because it was weird. I would have been like I need to see a no or never bought in a note.

Speaker 2: 9:21

Yeah, as the owner of the bar, I would ask for that and you're able to. Like, you keep calling in and, because that is a good excuse, you don't want to fire somebody, right? Because if that is really what's going on, that could be a problem, right? So, asking for a note for your daughter, you could get one, no problem, right? Especially if she was in the hospital. Show me the bill something I don't know.

Speaker 3: 9:48

So then the fourth weekend she came to work friday, on time saturday. I went to let her in. This was last saturday. She doesn't show up until 225. She texts me like oh, I don't have a car, I have to get an uber, but I'm on my way. This was at 150. I'm already in the parking lot getting ready to unlock the doors, because we open it too.

Speaker 3: 10:09

And that day the guys had like a nascar draw thing that they were doing. So there was a bunch of regulars like coming in, which was cool for me because I got to see people I haven't seen in a few years, some of my old regulars, which was cool. But at the same time I'm still like fuck, I still got to come to work tonight. You know what I mean. So when I got to work that night I was I'm going to say I was a few minutes late. I had already spent 25 minutes at the bar. Actually I spent longer cause I had. I talked to the people. You know I was there like an hour. I was there from two to three. So I come back.

Speaker 3: 10:46

It's like eight, oh, three or whatever three dudes sitting at the bar. I put my purse away. I'm doing all the things. I start what do you? I start looking around, okay, I start looking around. I see three dudes sitting there with no drinks, no, nothing. So I put my purse away. I kind of like evaluate the situation. I walk over, I said have you guys been helped yet? Have you been ID'd? No, so I'm like okay, so I get their IDs, I id. Then I make their drinks, I turn to her and I tell her babe, it's very, very, very important that as soon as these people walk in the door, you get their id.

Speaker 3: 11:12

It wasn't like she was busy. There was like two or three people at the bar and maybe a table, and then these three dudes, but they were sitting there the whole time. I was putting my stuff away and she wasn't even acknowledging them. So i'm'm just like OK. So I tell her this, and then she doesn't say see, I'm used to like when people leave their, their, their posts for the day, do you need anything else? Do you need anything else done? Do you need the trash emptied, the ice stocked, whatever, whatever, whatever. She didn't do any of that. She didn't even say goodbye to me, rude, yeah. So I didn't know like I was like okay, whatever. Maybe she's upset that I was a minute or two late, but she was 25 minutes late, so I whatever. So then this week I get the phone call. I worked a double on Wednesday because it was the day before Thanksgiving and it was important for us to be open, so I went in at three, you know, worked all day till three o'clock. The next morning hosted Thanksgiving at my house.

Speaker 2: 12:11

Thanksgiving dinner. Thank you, nikki, you're welcome.

Speaker 3: 12:13

I had Amber and her mom and her daughters here and we had a great time.

Speaker 2: 12:16

I didn't even want to stay and play games because I was so comatose and the cheesecake was fire. Thank you so much.

Speaker 3: 12:24

And then the next day was Friday, I had some errands I was supposed to run and we were supposed to record. Well, I get this phone call at like noon. Hey, can you da, da, da, da. She's not going to be able to come in. And then my boss is like maybe we don't open till four, maybe we don't open till five. This whole thing was going on and I wasn't really sure what was going on. Five this whole thing was going on and I wasn't really sure what was going on. But anyway, I got to work at four and when I walked in, his son, who is part owner two, was mad at me for not conveying to him that I was going to be there at four. And I'm just like, I told your dad. And then his answer to me was you told the one motherfucker that doesn't work here.

Speaker 2: 12:58

And I'm just like um that's the one that was contacting me.

Speaker 3: 13:03

Yeah, I had been so my, my thing today is how work affects you, like how it affects your mental health. There are days that I just I think people look and they're like, oh my God, it must be so fun to be a bartender. It was.

Speaker 2: 13:22

It was about 20 years ago well, until you're talked to disrespectfully yeah because even in any other field I feel like if somebody talks to you like that, now you're, you're putting me in a hostile work environment. Yes, I've been very fortunate to where I've never had a bad work environment. I've always had like a very close-knit family work life with anybody that I've ever worked with for the most part. So I've never had like, oh my god, I don't want to go to work. I mean, of course I say I don't want to go to work because who wants to go to work? Right. But it's not because of how I'm being treated, right?

Speaker 3: 14:01

I, I have to say I love my, my job. I do, but it's and it's even though I spent 25 years here it's not. It's the grass isn't greener anyplace else. I worked at another bar too. I feel like it's a it's maybe a bar and restaurant thing. It's the industry and the thing of it is is I feel like owners sometimes feel like they can speak to you however they want, because they'll just blackball you. Like they can speak to you however they want, because they'll just blackball you. When someone else calls, they can say no, I wouldn't rehire her, and then that's just it. You know right. So that's very difficult and no matter how good of a bartender you are, if you have an attitude, then nobody wants you to work for them.

Speaker 2: 14:39

So I mean you think about it too. It's like even if you worked in, say, the medical field, right, um, and you know you can have these doctors talk to other doctors, and now you're not rehirable in the medical field, which can be horrible.

Speaker 3: 14:56

Or, you know, even like working in the legal field yeah, I was gonna say don't lawyers talk to each other, yeah lawyers, lawyers, I mean, but yeah, I mean I don't know.

Speaker 2: 15:06

So I mean sometimes you hear different things or whatever, but you just never know. You know, I mean I're going to and I call you out on it and I quit and I try to go work somewhere else. How are you going to do that? You know how are you going to like try to blackball me into like not doing my job correctly because you're a fucking asshole, Right.

Speaker 3: 15:36

But I feel like a lot of places too, especially like corporate places, they have an HR department, absolutely, so you can go to HR and make a complaint. But if I wanted to make a complaint, who am I complaining to?

Speaker 2: 15:48

Yeah.

Speaker 3: 15:49

You know what I mean my boss's dad, that's his dad. Like whose side do you think he's going to take? You know what I mean it's like and, at the end of the day, I love the people that I work with, as people, right, right, maybe not as my coworkers, some of them, but as people I like them. It's just, you know, and it's it's the whole dynamic of everything. I don't just get to come to work and make drinks. I, especially in the bar, and I don't feel like any of us do, even Becca, who she's not the bar manager, but she doesn't get to come to work and just do her job. She asks stuff to do too, and and, as the bartender, I'm babysitting everyone that's working there, because when you're a bartender, you're in charge of the whole bar, so you're in charge of the security. The dj, like are they playing good music? Is the security paying attention?

Speaker 2: 16:35

like it's a lot to have on your plate I don't even know how you pay attention to like everything, because my mind would just explode like I know I, with everything that I do in my own life work life I have a hundred tabs open, but like that's a hundred tabs at different times, yeah, you know, but for you it's like so it's like a chaos every Friday, saturday night and you're trying to manage everything, yeah, while serving drinks.

Speaker 3: 17:03

yeah, and it's not just like Friday and Saturday at least there's more people. It's also like Wednesday and Thursday when there's less people, because then I really got to like okay, why is the bouncer outside for so long? Is he IDing that guy? Did he pat that guy down, did he? You know what I mean? Why does that guy have a tattoo on his neck and he's inside? Why is? Are those? You can't you? Clovis city of clovis rules no white t-shirts, no tattoos above the neck.

Speaker 2: 17:29

No, yeah, so last night there was a guy, I don't like clovis.

Speaker 3: 17:30

Right, he was tatted out right here and he had a tattoo right here on his face and he was in the bar and I'm. He was nice, he was respectful. It doesn't change how someone is. These are clovis pd's rules, because they don't want those kind of people in clovis. But that sounds sounds a little racist. I think that those discrimination.

Speaker 3: 17:47

Yeah, and I think those rules were made back when the good old boys were running Clovis. You know what I'm saying. But now it's not that. Clovis is a diverse community. There's lots of people of different, you know, ethnicities and different genres living all in the same place. So you have to accommodate those people. Genres living all in the same place, so you have to accommodate those people. So at the end of the day, you know, we just hold up the rules that Clovis PD has enforced for the bars.

Speaker 2: 18:11

So. But what's up with the white shirts? It's some gang thing. Yeah, oh my God, I don't know. That sounds pretty fucking ridiculous to me. I'm so glad yeah.

Speaker 3: 18:22

I don't like Clovis.

Speaker 2: 18:22

I knew I didn't like them for a reason, you know. I mean, I know a lot of people with tattoos that have maybe done stupid shit or whatever, but that's not who they are today. Yes, there's tattoo removal, but not everybody can afford that. Or, you know, there's programs, but usually it's for, like, the younger generation. Here I am 40 and I know people and I'm like, why would you do something like that? But those were the choices that they made at a certain point in their life, but that's not who they are today. If I did, if for me, all the shit that I've done, everybody would be like what the fuck? That's not even you, but that's not who I am today. Right? So I really don't talk about my past, because for what? That's not who.

Speaker 3: 19:09

I am, and there is a guy. I let him in. I call him face. He has a tattoo like on half of his face and I let him in. Well, he was part of the pool league so I had to let him in at one time, but when he was there he never caused a, and the first time he came in and I'm just Sometimes I let my mouth override my brain. No way.

Speaker 2: 19:29

Yeah.

Speaker 3: 19:30

So the first time he came in I was like and I said, listen, I'm going to tell you right now. You're not even supposed to be in here with that, but I'm going to let you stay because you're part of the pool league and you paid for your pool dues and blah, blah, blah, blah. I said but you cause one fucking problem, dude, I have not one problem calling Clovis PD on you. And he was like, okay, he goes, I won't. And I said, okay.

Speaker 3: 19:49

So then we became friends, yeah, and then I started calling him face because he has a tattoo on his face. And he goes what can I call you? And I'm like, I don't know, my name is Nikki. And then I was like you could call me blue. And he goes why blue? And I said because there used to be this bar that I worked at and I wore this perfume called blue and this guy liked the smell of it and so he would call me blue. So I said you can call me blue. And so he, he comes in and every once in a while he'll come to the door on a busy night and my boss is like, nope, but he knows. I said you can come in any Wednesday when I'm working, when I'm here by myself, you can come in.

Speaker 3: 20:26

But when he's here, he especially on on the busy nights, that's the nights that they don't allow. That shit, god, I just I wish they're like I don't.

Speaker 2: 20:29

Should be a case-by-case basis is what it should be. I, it's just a discrimination, yes, you know. I mean and that's what bothers me the most um, I don't like that. I don't like face tattoos, but his is huge I don't think we should be judging people that way, like it's okay for fresno but it's not okay for Clovis. The same shit that happens in Fresno is the same shit that happens in Clovis. That's what they're trying to avoid though. But why? What's so good about Clovis?

Speaker 2: 20:55

It's a rural fucking area in the central Valley it's it's not what it used to be.

Speaker 3: 21:00

That's the thing. I think all these, that's the thing I think all these Well, it used to be very like the bar I work in. There was nothing across the street, it was a field. Yeah, you know what I'm saying. So it's really grown. So with that comes growing pains and things that you have to like. You know there's different people, there's different, you know, ethnicities and different everything. So you have to like it's not.

Speaker 2: 21:24

I'm sorry, I'm going to say it. There's certain people they're like oh my God, I'm from Clovis. And I'm like fuck Clovis Like it's still Fresno County I grew up in Clovis, but I still am like I don't know the difference. Like for me, I don't either. You're a fucking human, and so am I. Exactly, this is not Beverly Hills, this is not Orange County.

Speaker 3: 21:47

Yes, like someone is the central fucking valley people. I was at a party that we were both invited to. I went, you didn't, yeah, and someone made the comment that the girl, one of the girls, oh, she doesn't drive past Clovis Avenue.

Speaker 2: 22:02

I've heard people be stupid like that.

Speaker 3: 22:06

Like past Clovis Avenue. I've heard people be stupid like that, Like what the fuck Do you know how much you're missing out on the world if you don't fucking drive past Clovis Avenue? It's like I'm never.

Speaker 2: 22:11

I'm not. I'm never leaving California. Well, you're fucking dumb. Yeah, I'm never leaving the United States. How stupid does that sound? If I can gift my children world travel, I would fucking do it in a heartbeat.

Speaker 3: 22:22

Exactly.

Speaker 2: 22:24

I mean I want to gift myself world.

Speaker 3: 22:26

And that brings us right back to the point of mental health at work. How important is it for you to have a vacation? It's mandatory that's what I keep saying.

Speaker 3: 22:37

I haven't had a full vacation since last november I mean I go on a lot of little things like three, four days a weekend you know four days, but yeah, that's not a vacation, though You're rushed, you don't feel rested, right, so that that doesn't help your mental health at all. Because, yeah, you're getting away for a day or two, but the rush of like packing, getting everything ready, just for what? To leave for two days, to come back to like unpack, do the laundry, like read back to work right, read your emails, or whatever the case may be for you, because I'm sure you have a lot of emails that are like piled up Right.

Speaker 2: 23:19

Well, and I think that's the bad thing too is I have emails on my phone. My phone so and I'm one of those people that when things come through like I want to just take care of it. So even when I am away, yeah, if something comes through and I can answer it without like my laptop, I'm gonna answer it, and I think that's why, with what I do, um, being available 24 7 is why I'm so beneficial, right, because I just get it done.

Speaker 3: 23:48

Do you ever think, though, that that is a toll on your mental health, because you are available 24 hours a day, seven days a week?

Speaker 2: 23:56

I do.

Speaker 3: 23:57

I guess that could be a mental toll, because I don't you feel the need to look at your emails though?

Speaker 2: 24:04

Well, it just pops up when they come through.

Speaker 3: 24:05

See, mine, doesn't Mine, doesn't you feel the need to look at your emails though. Well, it just pops up when they come through, see mine doesn't, mine doesn't, yeah.

Speaker 2: 24:08

So as soon as it comes through, I'm looking, you know. But I will say, during Thanksgiving week I have been very good and it's been very refreshing to have my brain shut off.

Speaker 3: 24:21

Ok, now let me ask you this Very refreshing when you and I go on vacation vacation we're planning a vacation in february will you have your phone on?

Speaker 2: 24:30

I will not. Well, um well, I already have told the person I work for that we are planning a trip, okay, um so he he already knows, but what will be? In a whole different ass country. I don't know if my phone will work.

Speaker 3: 24:49

Um, I see, because when I worked for the tool company and I would go on vacation, I could not fucking help myself.

Speaker 2: 24:57

every day I was checking the emails just to see if, like, someone was complaining or I wasn't going to answer anything, but I, if there was something immediate that I needed to, a fire I needed to put out, I needed to do that, yes, so even when I did my trip for my birthday, um, I, I did turn off my notifications, but like you still looked, I still looked like in the mornings, like you know, everybody's sleeping or whatever, um, but on the cruise, and I guess I did have wi-fi too, um, but it was like planned and summertime is slow for me too, so it wasn't really that bad. My auto response was on um, but yeah, because I I run everything, I feel like I'm responsible. So probably what I'll do is, once the dates are finalized, I'll probably add something in the beginning of the year saying FYI, I will be on vacation.

Speaker 2: 25:49

I will be on vacation and there will be no responses If I check, I check and I you know, but I would definitely want to put that in my email signature. Yes, Just so people know ahead of time. Hey, this is what's going on and I'll probably add something to our website.

Speaker 3: 26:08

Very good, yeah, I I those vacations that I took where I was working at the tool company, my boss was with me. So, and cause I ran things, I felt the responsibility to look at my. He never looked at the emails. He didn't. I never got, like you know, know, a knock on my door at the hotel like, hey, did you check the email?

Speaker 2: 26:28

he didn't even know what was going on, right yeah, and I mean there will be, because the person I work for does have like a work phone. Yeah, I'll probably add to to my auto response, like if it is an immediate need or whatever, please go ahead and call yes that number. But I think as long as I give enough notice in February, I think will be good for me. Anyways, although usually right now is super busy for me and it hasn't been as busy as it has been in previous years, I feel like this year has kind of been like even throughout, and we still have you know, done, have done really well.

Speaker 3: 27:05

Yeah. So that leads me to like listeners, like what kind of job do you have and what are your stresses? So if you guys are listening, comment, like let me know. Like they say if you. Well, they say if you, how's it go If you do something you love, you never work a day in your life, but you're still working.

Speaker 2: 27:32

Right, you, I mean, you gotta be working, you gotta be hustling, like I feel like if I'm not, I'm always I got my hand in everything, right. So it's like throwing spaghetti at the wall. What's going to stick? What's going to take off? What am I going to do? Because I mean I got to figure something out. I don't want to keep just making it surviving. I would like something to really take off, right, and hey, you know, never know, right. No, you never do, do know so, joe rogan joe, are you there?

Speaker 3: 28:08

knock knock, hello, are you listening? Yeah, um, but I just I I wonder like, because I know like people that are firemen or police officers, I know those are stressful jobs yeah, absolutely, but they're like a week on week I know. But who would look and go? Oh man, a bartender.

Speaker 2: 28:23

That's a stressful job, you know what I mean Like no one says that I feel like having a nine to five or eight to five, whatever is easier than doing what I do, even though, like, I'm very flexible with my time. I mean, you see how my schedule is. I pretty much do what I want, but I also work two jobs. Yes, I'm in office twice a week for a company that I help out with, and then I also work from work from home. So, having the two, I'm always trying to fucking juggle everything.

Speaker 3: 28:58

Yeah, do you ever get anything like confused?

Speaker 2: 29:01

I don't, because one job is strictly in office.

Speaker 3: 29:04

Okay.

Speaker 2: 29:05

But even when I'm there, I get emails on my phone. So I'm like you know, but I'm able to do that. Yes, so it. But it does suck when I am in office those days, because even though I'm only there till three o'clock, I come home and I don't my, I don't want to work at home, I just want to be done. But then I am working. There's stuff to still be done. There's still stuff to be done for the most part.

Speaker 3: 29:29

Yeah.

Speaker 2: 29:29

I mean I can. As long as I respond and confirm shit, I can deal with everything else the next day.

Speaker 3: 29:37

I just wonder, like what kind of jobs people have and what their stresses are Like. For me, like the most stressful is like I work for a family, so that's stressful to me because I hear one thing from the dad, then another thing from the son and it's. You know, those two things don't. Sometimes they don't align, and I'm stuck in the middle and after being there for so long it's like what do I do, you do, and so that's stressful, but there's no HR that I can go running to. So I know a lot of people probably work for mom and pop places. Do you have the same stresses or do you just answer to one boss? Do you know what I mean? I feel like I'm answering to two people and sometimes it's two different answers I have to give.

Speaker 2: 30:22

Well, I think too. Another thing with that is how are you going to just leave a job because of whatever is going on? Because, like in my personal life, when there's bad energy, I avoid it, right, I don't want nothing to do with it, I'm not going to give it my energy. So, but with a job, if you have negative energy, you can't just walk away, you have to deal with that. So what does that do to you, to your mental health? Leaving work, right, or what kind of?

Speaker 3: 30:53

you know like, I tried to leave once. I literally tried to leave like four years ago, and as soon as I gave my, my boss, my two week notice, I got off the phone and I was like in tears, I. And then I got to work and I would cry every day that I was there because it made me so sad, because I had been there for so long.

Speaker 3: 31:13

Did they try to like say no, don't leave, or they were just like whatever, nikki bye, kind of, because they're very like they're men that's why, yeah, they're men, but also I feel like they're very like if you can do something better for yourself to better yourself, then go ahead. But I don't feel like they feel like that for everybody. So I feel like I kind of, when I told them I was leaving, I kind of threw them through a loop. The son said my dad didn't even know how to respond.

Speaker 2: 31:46

Well, I mean, I don't think they really know what they got.

Speaker 3: 31:51

No.

Speaker 2: 31:51

I don't think they do either. I mean honestly, you know you don't realize how much somebody does until they're not around.

Speaker 3: 31:57

So a lot of things get thrown in my lap and I do a lot of things behind the scenes, but I don't come and go like, hey, I did this, this and this. I don't make a list of shit that I do for them. You know what I mean. So they may not even realize all the things that I do. So that's, you know, stressful too, because some days I want to tell them you know, I did this, this and this today, and still I have to come to work tonight and work. You know, after I've already done all these things Like today I went and bought all the you know bar supplies.

Speaker 2: 32:24

You should have been fucking sleeping until I got here, yeah.

Speaker 3: 32:26

I wish I was sleeping until you got here. So, yeah, it's, it's hard, it's stressful, like no-transcript ever say it. But I feel like there's other women there and she's young and she's like in charge of these women and they're older and I feel like they can be petty to her because she's younger right.

Speaker 2: 33:08

They're like oh my god, why is this young girl taking over?

Speaker 3: 33:10

but the boss has taken her under her wing and, like tina's smart this is how smart tina is we did a fucking escape room. Okay, maybe I've told the story. It was me and her, her wife, their child, my old roommate and this guy that I was on a date with. We had been dating a couple times. He was a cop and it was a pirate. Something themed escape room. Do you want to know who got us out? Tina, if I had to fucking listen to any of these other people, I we'd still be in that fucking room stuck oh my god escape rooms are fun I know, and I looked at the guy I was dating and I was like, are you fucking kidding me?

Speaker 3: 33:50

you're a cop, you should be able to read clues. He goes I'm not a cop on a pirate ship. And I was like, okay, I'll give you me. You're a cop, you should be able to read clues. He goes I'm not a cop on a pirate ship. And I was like, ok, I'll give you that because it was very, you know, pirate ship themed.

Speaker 2: 33:59

Yeah, I mean, I've only done two escape rooms, but they definitely get your mind going, yeah, so.

Speaker 3: 34:08

I'm a freaking idiot when it comes to them. So yeah, I don't think you're an idiot nikki, I would read the clues and I would just stand there like what? Because you got to like read between the lines.

Speaker 2: 34:18

So I have a um, I have a kind of a funny joke regarding uh mental health and working. So it says why did the office printer go to therapy? Why, why did the office printer go to therapy? Because they had too many paper jams to sort out. I know that's good office.

Speaker 3: 34:39

That's good office humor.

Speaker 2: 34:41

Yeah, don't call HR now.

Speaker 3: 34:43

Yeah, well, that's, that's a good one.

Speaker 2: 34:44

That's for the kids. That's for the kids. Yeah, here's another one. Why did the employee bring a ladder to work?

Speaker 3: 34:52

Why.

Speaker 2: 34:52

Because they were trying to rise above their stress levels. Oh my god that's perfect.

Speaker 3: 35:02

So, like I said in, any of my listeners or our listeners want to come on and like, make a comment or say, like, what, what, what is your job, what are your stresses, like. And if you just want to vent, like we're on youtube, we're on buzzsprout, we're on all platforms yeah, all platforms and especially if you go to youtube, you can leave a comment and we'll be able to comment back.

Speaker 2: 35:25

So yeah, we get notifications. Yeah, and, by the way, we're trying to reach 500 subscribers by the end of the year, so we need your help. We need your help to get there and once we get to 500, and if you message us and let us know that you followed us on YouTube, because not everybody. Sometimes I get notifications about who subscribed, but sometimes that is turned off because of settings on whoever's subscribing. So if you want to be entered into a raffle for a $50 gift card once we get to 500 followers, subscribers on YouTube, you'll be entered into that.

Speaker 2: 36:04

And all they have to do is subscribe.

Speaker 3: 36:05

It's free, right, free. Yeah, that's all they got to do. Yeah, subscribe please. I mean, we each have like over a thousand followers on Facebook, so if we could just get half of our followers each, we'd have a thousand like. It's not that hard and I don't feel like we're asking for anything that's like out of the realm of possibility.

Speaker 2: 36:23

you know, I mean, you can cash, app us too, I mean, if you really wanted to, but I think it'd be a lot easier to just go over to YouTube and subscribe to our page yes, absolutely so but, and although this is only audio, we will be doing more um video sessions too. It might be hit or miss here and there, depending on our schedule, and it is a lot easier to edit just audio. You just wanted to yeah, do an audio.

Speaker 3: 36:48

Yeah, we might see a few more audio sessions. So, and then in a couple weeks, we're going to be interviewing one of my friends in Sacramento.

Speaker 2: 36:57

All right, well, do you want to wrap this?

Speaker 3: 36:58

Yeah, let's wrap it up.

Speaker 2: 37:01

Thank you to everybody. We love you and remember, subscribe, follow, share feedback. We love it all.

Speaker 3: 37:09

Yeah, comments, we love comments, something we can, we can sink our teeth into and like comment back to you would be great. So if you want to comment, comment, I don't care what it is, I don't care what your comment is. I hate you guys, I don't care. That would be a good one. I come back with that.

Speaker 2: 37:22

I hate you, you suck yeah, haters gonna hate yes, it's all right. All right with that, I going to say, roger, that Roger that.