So I am a salesman by trade, and I have noticed something that really annoys me lately. (Dear Breakfast B., You can use a blog to just vent about what annoys you in the world!) As I am driving home from work every day, I pass about 4 of those stands that sell corn in the parking lots of Mexican restaurants and gas stations this time of year. And lately, it seems, there is some annoying 15 year old boy with a corn cob in each had, shaking them about, as if to entice me over to the corn stand. Now, I love to spend money. But I don't really see corn as an impulse buy. I've never once been driving along, thinking about how much I love Wynonna Judd's latest CD and the thought "CORN!" And why the shaking? Is the corn more appealing in motion? Is it to make me think of corn in its wild, free state where it roams the plains in great herds, killing lesser vegetables?
And it isn't just the corn people. Little Caesar's always has some idiot out on the street corner waving around that $5 pizza sign (seriously though, was that Hot n' Ready idea the greatest idea ever or what?) And you can't help every day but drive by a furniture store that is going out of business (why is that?) and they have paid some homeless man to hold a sign advertising their incredibly low prices. And wait...he's SHAKING the sign to reel those of us in who could resist his obvious charms. "Look honey, that transient is waving a purple sign around. Let's go buy a new settee'!"
And every time I go to the mall, I am accosted by 21 year old return missionaries in too much cologne trying to sell me a cell phone. "Excuse me, sir? Do you have a cell phone?" Does anyone NOT have a cell phone? (Chris and Lisa Clark notwithstanding.) And if you didn't have one, would the guy at the mall actually convince you to get one by yelling across the hall at you? Don't you think if I don't have a cell phone, there is a reason? It isn't because I haven't yet heard of them and I am hoping that someone will enlighten me and sell me one. And then there are the booths that sell stupid lotion or Proactiv or whatever that only employ Ukrainian girls who can't speak a lick of English except to try and sell me hand cream. And why do they teach them to start out with: "Can I ask you a question, sir?" and then I have to be the jerk and say "No!" because I am sure the question is "Are your hands dry and chappy, pappy?" and then I am sucked into the sales pitch. I don't WANT any lotion! If I did, I would know where to find it. And now you think less of America because we are all such jerks, but really we just don't have dry hands!
I don't stand outside of my store and shake a twinset around. Or approach passers-by and say "Hey do you guys own pants?" I just wait for customers to come in ask where the twinsets are. Is that so wrong? Does that make me an unsuccessful salesman? I don't believe it does. I believe it means....CORN! Excuse me.
