Money Talks, Bullshit Walks Part 1

There is nothing in the world that drives me crazy more than someone stickin' it to me. Not simply being taken for granted, more along the lines of someone going out their way to make sure that you're getting a raw deal. For those of you that don't know me you should know that I work for a multi-national home improvement retail chain and let me tell you it has been one raw deal after another.
The saga starts in the Spring of 2005. I had been looking for a job for about 4 months after we moved back to the area where our friends and family were located. I had a freshly minted B.A. and eight years of military experience In the U.S.M.C. as well as other skills and experience that would make me extraordinarily valuable to any employer. Or so I thought. Turns out moving back home was a bad move. The economy was sluggish, one of the worst areas in the country at the time. Jobs were few and far between and employers could have the best workers in the area for sub-par wages. I trolled for hours for "junk jobs", so called because they were not what I wanted to do when I grew up. I landed an interview here and there but nothing panned out.
When I got the call to attend an interview for the multi-national home improvement chain I really didn't think I would get a job with them. They had several openings and asked which department I preferred. I chose Appliances. How hard can it be sell washers and dryers. They called four days later and offered me a Garden position as the Power Equipment Specialist. Instead of washers and dryers I would be selling lawn mowers and weed trimmers. The pay was $10.50 to start and in three months it would go up to $11, no commission. Seemed fair to me, besides I would be looking for another job in the meantime.
I started this job while there was still frost on the ground and the store was getting ready for the Summer selling season. I learned a ton about plants, power equipment, brick/block and grills. I also learned that retail hours suck big time. You could be scheduled anywhere from 6:00 A.M. to 11:00 P.M. and it was not uncommon to 1) stay until 1 A.M. just to get things done because the store is always short on staff and 2) even though you were scheduled until 11:00 P.M. (but stayed until 1:00 A.M.) you would have to be back to work at 6:00 A.M. the next morning. Everyone knew that it was common sense not give back to back shifts because whoever got them would be toast on the back end shift and not very useful for the entire day. It was brought to management's attention more than once but nothing ever changed. But it was a learning experience and I didn't mind the job for the most part. It was also at this time that I learned that I have a great aptitude for customer service and this would serve me well later on.

I'm breaking this story into chunks because it's rather large. More to come...