If there was ever any doubt as to the real reason women in The Sandbox are wearing their head scarves, I have discovered exactly why they do so. And it has absolutely nothing to do with modesty or religion.
We are having guests for dinner tonight. A golfing and work buddy of my DH is coming over with his parents, who are here visiting from the States. Honestly, I don't have time to be blogging - I've got a gazillion things to do. One of the gazillion things I have to do I can now cross of my list. I needed to go to the Commissary to get groceries. We're having shrimp and avocado salad, pork chops [which were brought in from Bahrain - can't get those here!] on the grill, garlic mashed potatoes with gravy, fresh green beans with mushrooms and onions and either blueberry cheesecake or lemon pound cake. Yummy!
What should have taken a half an hour - max - from when I got in my car - got to the store - through the food aisles - through the checkout - returned to the car - and back to my house - took longer because of the young woman with a pierced nose in a head scarf working the scanner at the checkout line. Why? Because instead of trying to get my groceries scanned and bagged she was too fucking busy talking on her cell phone which she was concealing UNDER HER DAMN HEAD SCARF! So, I had to take time out of MY busy day to tell the manager about it because honestly, if she would have been paying more attention to my food than what was likely an inane conversation, probably with one of the other check-out girls two registers over who was also busy with her mobile, I could have been home in the half-hour time I had allotted myself.
The manager told me that he hears the same complaints every single day; that all of these checkout girls have given first, second, thirteenth, and eightieth warnings and that there is nothing that can be done about the problem due to the mandatory Saudization which has been implemented. I've blogged about it before - the current cashiers have no clue what "work" is all about. It's a social function as far as they are concerned, for which they are paid. Sometime ago it was decided that ALL cashier jobs were to be given only to "locals" and these girls were hired to take the place of the imported help which had previously manned the checkout lines. What was once a smooth and efficient process of getting groceries and getting through the checkout line and paying for your products is now a fiasco for which there is no turning back. Saudization is going to fail - there is just no way it can succeed with this kind of work ethic - or complete and utter lack thereof.
The girl with the pierced nose who was hiding her phone under her headscarf isn't going to be talking on her mobile again if I am in her check out line. I will immediately hold up the entire process and see that the manager is called to deal with her right then and there - no she won't be fired - that is out of the realm of possibility - but I can make sure she is doing the job she was hired to do while I am there trying to get groceries. I have no qualms whatsoever with telling her to get off her fucking phone and do her job.
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I go through the same thing here! Once, my daughter opened up a bag of chips when I was shopping but didn't finish the bag. When I got to the checkout, I put my stuff on the belt and made sure to put the chips upright in a way you could see that the bag was wide open. I guess in her 'distractedness' (is that a word?) of fixing her headscarf for the 13th time in 46 seconds, the cashier wasn't paying attention and she flung the chips everywhere! Instead of me getting pissed, she got pissed and went off on me - that I should have told her! I went off on her right then and there - totally embarrassed the hub and in the end....it affected her in NO WAY WHATSOEVER. I wasted my energy, I got myself totally upset and I looked like a maniac. It's too much sometimes though with the total lack of work ethic here.
ReplyDeleteI remember being a teenager and working for a local department store chain as a cashier. I was so proud and worked so hard pushing the prices manually into the cash register. Anyways, sometimes it just wears me out and I think, what's the point? Nothing will change anyhow! Then I go back to the whole principle thing and I'm back to square one.
I_omen - You are not alone. I too worked as a teenager, proud and hard, at Friendly's as a waitress. A lot of other teens would have luved to have had my job and could have it I wouldn't have worked so hard. The "old" work ethic...
ReplyDelete"I guess in her 'distractedness' (is that a word?) of fixing her headscarf for the 13th time in 46 seconds" is sooooo true. The men are just as bad, fixing their gutras, but with them it tends to be while they are driving instead of working.
I just can't believe it! Here where I live in the states, I work at a mall, and the scarved ladies always have their cell phones tucked into the side of their scarf while pushing around a few screaming children. Atleast they are somewhat a minority!
ReplyDeleteI never pushed the women's rights issue much in Kuwait for this reason.
ReplyDeleteA lack of work ethic.
I spent last week in Ministry and court offices trying to get help from women (I go directly to men if I can) and it's impossible to assist someone while diligently SMSing.
These poor girls, I feel so guilty causing them to break a nail AND help me with silly things such as a legal paper.
Perhaps I should get their numbers and text them my problems.
"At least they are somewhat a minority!" Only temporarily, Enamorada. Only temporarily. And, for pete's sake, can someone just tell me how these women can possibly have SO MUCH to say that their mobiles have to be pressed to their ears 365/24/7?!?
ReplyDeleteWhy, Viking Daughter, you should be ashamed of yourself. Asking for help at a Ministry or in court offices trying to get assistance! [sarc/off]
ReplyDeleteHonestly, Viking Daughter, you likely could get your problem - whatever it is - solved if you sent them a text - or called them on their "mobile." Seems to be the only way to get someone to respond to you in "these parts" these days... [I shall try this with groceries; I will text my list and see what happens. Ha!]
You're right... their weren't any saudis or arabs around here for when I was a kid.
ReplyDeleteThere is also a large number of African-Americans, or Black Americans, that live in this area- they also talk on their cell phones for impossible long periods of time. I hate it when someone wants me to ring them at my register while talking on their phone. It is incredibly rude, and hanging up is an opportunity to show that you are educated, that you care about etiquette.
Arab girls are not concerned about etiquette or what others think of them. Every opportune moment they are wasting my time at the make-up counter saying "Play with my face" and if I do a good job, they won't compliment me, they will just say that they've had their makeup done better. Arrogance!
We were over here inventing electricity and airplanes, what were they doing! (I feel so racist when I speak openly about it, but I'm half-Lebanese, so I know that these behaviours can be overcome)
"We were over here inventing electricity and airplanes, what were they doing!" Oh, Enamorada, you DON'T want ME to answer that!
ReplyDelete