Training at HEB: Illness Delay

rewrite : Yes the first part of working for HEB is the training. They use the same training facility as they did when I worked at Central Market. They have a mock-up of a store with registers so you can practice. I remember it reminded me of what I imagine they would have in the Soviet Union to train spies on what America is like before they sent them during the cold war. It is around an hour by bus from me, but it is just for a week or so if I remember correctly. I don’t know if my training will be different for the role that I have, Cross Functional Representative. Basically my position fills in the gaps at the store and works in all the departments. So that means I get to do all of the different jobs of the store. I figure that it will be a good opportunity to learn how the entire store works and would be good if I wanted to go into management someday. At Central Market they were fast tracking me for management before I left so that is part of the reason I accepted this position. Normally it starts at 16/hr and they almost did not want to hire me because I was overqualified and they insisted on giving me 17 an hour thinking it would not be enough and I would negotiate higher, I was happy with that since Uber Eats paid around $4/hour after car expenses. I think I am sick though. I started to get a sore throat yesterday and this morning it is much worse. I will most likely not start at HEB for a week or so. Hopefully I am over whatever bug I picked up. I think I got it while I was waiting in line for the food pantry. Most sore throats only last a week or so I think. No cough so I don’t think it is the ‘Vid. I have had Covid at least 5 times I think at this point it does not really bother me. I used the gift card yesterday. I found a cat food that Captain seems to like that is only $0.70 per 5.5 ounce can at HEB and I got him 40lbs of litter. That should hopefully tide us over for a while. Captain is my largest expense so that will help a lot. All of the stuff I get for Captain is HEB brand so if I remember correctly the discount we get is for all HEB brand items at 5% off. Since I only get HCF for everything else anyway this is going to be a lot of savings. HEB also has good medical care. They have their own clinics that they run just for their employees. From what I have heard the company has changed some since one of the main founders died, but HEB is still a private company and not publically traded so they are able to do things that are not always concerned with being as profitable as possible. That is another reason I wanted to work for them. AT&T puts a lot more pressure on their employees and from what I have heard cares much less about their well being. Captain still wakes me up at 3am everyday. He has figured out how to knock stuff off surfaces in the bathroom to wake me up. I have stopped feeding him immediately when he wakes me up and wait until 5am so hopefully he will let me sleep in till then some day. I look at his food bowl and he still has some left, he just wants the bowl to be full all the time. He has gained weight and was around 14-15lb last time at the vet compared to 11-12lb the time before that. So over a year or two he gained around 3lb. Mostly because he is a terrorist if you don’t feed him so I give in. He is still not overweight, but if I continue to feed him whenever he wants he will get be overweight, so I am just going to feed him less. I am going to wait on getting a real mattress a bit longer. The air mattress completely deflates each night so I am getting used to sleeping on the floor pretty much even though my back does not like it. But I am starting to get used to it, which will make my new mattress that much better. The main expense I am waiting for is my electricity bill. I set the thermostat to 79 and just use a box fan so hopefully it is not that bad. Once I know how much that is going to be I can gauge how much I need to keep saved. I am not expecting my first paycheck until 2-3 weeks after I start work and I am not expecting to start work for 1-3 weeks so at worst the first paycheck is 6 weeks away, July 18th. Well HEB if I remember right pays each week so possibly much earlier than that. I am still earning income from my online work, roughly 150-250 a month. So long as my electricity bill is less than $120 and I keep getting my food from food pantries I should be fine without the money from HEB. I have around $550 saved right now. So in theory if I do not spend anything extra I should be fine for a few months since my check from SS is $999 and my rent is $1031. So my plan is to not spend anything at least until I know how much my electic bill is and whether or not I have to pay the $200 deposit or not. I should not have to because I enrolled in autobilling and paperless which they said would allow you to not pay it, plus due to my low income I can also qualify to not pay it, but I would probably have to prove it to them. I have also started working on the large painting again. I kept some of the red paint I used on it. I was halfway through the yellow layer so I am starting at the beginning and doing a red layer over it. It makes me feel like I am being more productive. Other than that I have been exercising and walking in order to get ready for being on my feet all day. I have gotten out of shape from driving everywhere. Other than that I have been watching all the poltical news. I think this will be an interesting election. It is the first time in my lifetime that we get an election where we already know what kind of a president each candidate will be. Biden in my opinion has not been that great. I have found that my Democrat friends are delusional about the economy, mostly because they are already rich and the ebbs and flows of the economy do not really effect them, what are called “limousine liberals”, and it seems like they only care about the social issues rather than the economic and geopolitcal issues which I have found Biden to be lacking in. I honestly prefer Trump’s “peace through strength” approach to foreign policy than the Obama style of Biden’s foreign war-like foreign policy. As far as economic policy I think that Trump will pressure the federal reserve to cut interest rates which will help with the housing crisis. I personally got to experience the housing crisis while trying to find a place to rent. Higher interest rates in my opinion are good for investors but not that great for the common person. The job market on paper has more job openings available but companies are hiring part time, not full time mostly. Other indicators such as when I worked for Uber Eats and Lyft the amount of demand was much lower in comparison with the number of workers. Also in retail Best Buy has been doing poorly along with other retailers. People are going out to eat less. Because of the higher interest rates loans are more expensive and investors are keeping their money in investments rather than extending credit, making them richer but at the detriment to the common person. Inflation though seems to be the biggest concern. That seems to be tied to the wars in my opinion. Iran would have never been able to fund the war on Israel if Biden had maintained Trump’s policies towards them. Russia would not have been forced to invade Ukraine and we would not be headed towards a war with China. What good is supplying Ukraine with our long range missiles doing anyway? Russia has been jamming the missiles and they have not been effective.

Certainly! Here's the revised version: Yes, the first part of working for HEB is the training. They use the same facility they did when I worked at Central Market, featuring a mock-up store with registers for practice. It reminded me of what I imagine Soviet training for spies about American life during the Cold War might have looked like. The facility is about an hour away by bus, but the training only lasts a week or so, if I remember correctly. I’m not sure if my training will differ for my role as a Cross Functional Representative, which involves working in all departments to fill in gaps. This should provide a good opportunity to learn about the entire store, which could be beneficial if I pursue a management role someday. Central Market was fast-tracking me for management before I left, which partly influenced my decision to accept this position. The starting pay is usually $16/hour, but they insisted on giving me $17/hour due to my qualifications. I was content with that since Uber Eats paid about $4/hour after expenses. Unfortunately, I feel sick. My sore throat started yesterday and worsened this morning, likely delaying my start at HEB by a week or so. I hope to recover quickly. I think I caught something while waiting in line at the food pantry. Most sore throats last about a week, and since I don’t have a cough, I don’t think it’s COVID. I’ve had COVID at least five times, so it doesn’t bother me much anymore. I used the gift card yesterday to buy cat food that Captain likes for $0.70 per 5.5-ounce can at HEB and got him 40 pounds of litter. Captain is my biggest expense, so this helps a lot. All his supplies are HEB brand, and I get a 5% discount on those, which will save me money. HEB also offers good medical care with their own employee clinics. Despite some changes since one of the founders passed away, HEB remains privately owned and isn’t solely focused on profitability, which is another reason I chose to work there. AT&T, by contrast, puts more pressure on employees and seems less concerned with their well-being. Captain still wakes me up at 3 a.m. every day, knocking things off bathroom surfaces to get my attention. I’ve started feeding him at 5 a.m. instead of immediately, hoping he’ll let me sleep in eventually. He just wants his bowl full all the time and has gained 3 pounds over a year or two, now weighing 14-15 pounds. Although not overweight yet, I’m feeding him less to prevent it. I’m holding off on getting a real mattress. My air mattress deflates each night, so I’m getting used to sleeping on the floor, which my back doesn’t like, but it makes the new mattress seem better when I get it. I’m waiting to see my electricity bill before making any big purchases. I keep the thermostat at 79 and use a box fan to keep costs down. My first paycheck from HEB might be 2-3 weeks after starting, possibly as late as July 18th, though they pay weekly, so it might be sooner. I still earn $150-250 monthly from online work, and with $550 saved, I should be fine for a few months if I keep my expenses low. I’m waiting to see if I need to pay a $200 electricity deposit. I shouldn’t have to because I enrolled in auto billing and paperless statements, and I may qualify for an exemption due to my low income. I’ve also started working on a large painting again, applying a red layer over the yellow. It makes me feel productive. I’m also exercising and walking to get ready for being on my feet all day, as I’ve gotten out of shape from driving everywhere. I’ve been following political news, finding this election interesting as it’s the first in my lifetime where we know what kind of president each candidate will be. I’m not impressed with Biden’s performance and find my Democrat friends out of touch with the economy. I prefer Trump’s “peace through strength” foreign policy over Biden’s approach. I believe Trump would pressure the Federal Reserve to cut interest rates, helping with the housing crisis. The job market may have more openings on paper, but many are part-time. Retail demand is down, and higher interest rates benefit investors but not the average person. Inflation is a major concern, tied to current wars. I believe Trump’s policies towards Iran and Russia could have prevented some conflicts, reducing inflation. Supplying Ukraine with long-range missiles seems ineffective, as Russia has been jamming them.