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Posts Tagged ‘vendors’

Day 279 – Ryan J.

Posted in Alcohol, tagged , , , , , , , , , , , on October 5, 2010| 3 Comments »

Ryan hawks some beers on his first day at work at FedEx Field. (photo: Reed)

What does today’s recipient have in common with yesterday’s recipient?  They both carry things for a living.  Harold from yesterday carries the mail in DC while Ryan carries beer for thirsty sports fans at the Redskins games.

The 21-year-old, who wears a badge identifying him as Vendor #623, said that today was his first day on the job!  I asked him how it was going and he said, “The beer is heavy.  Really heavy.”  Just for that I bought one of his chilled Budweisers…you know, to help his tired arms and aching back out.  The container he is carrying around looks like it holds about a case and a half of 16 oz bottles.  Add some ice and water to that and you got a back-breaker of a load. 

He says that he has already gone back three times to pick up additional beer.  He kept moving and I followed him a little bit and talked to him between his sales. 

"The beer is heavy. Really heavy.” - Ryan (photo: Reed)

He told me that is a sophomore studying business at the University of Maryland.  I’m quite certain that in his first hours at work there at the stadium he has already learned some business skills.  I am guessing that he has learned a thing or two about the price inelasticity of demand when it comes to products like alcohol!  Maybe he can get college credit for his job.  It doesn’t matter that he is selling beers for ten times the cost that they would be sold at a supermarket, people will still buy it.  I bet they could charge $15 a beer and still have tremendous sales.  I hope owner Dan Snyder is not reading my blog and getting any ideas!

Well no surprise here what Ryan chose to do with the $10.  Yep, he’s going to buy some beer when he gets off of work.

Ryan finds some thirsty fans. (photo: Reed)

As for the game, the Redskins held a 17-point lead late in the 3rd quarter and then managed to blow it giving up 20 points to loose 27-30 to the Houston Texans.  The season is not looking good…

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Day 129 – Jimmy U.

Posted in Refusals, Transportation, tagged , , , , on April 26, 2010| 3 Comments »

Last Thursday my friend Rick got some cheap tickets to see the Nationals play the Colorado Rockies so I went to the game.  I figured it would be fun to give my $10 to whoever was sitting next to me at the game.  We had tickets in section 309, row C, seats 1-3.  So, I figured whoever had seat 4 is getting $10!

It turns out nobody was sitting in seat 4…but there was a woman who had 5.  So I offered her my $10 but she refused.  I gave it my all to try to convince her but I was unsuccessful…she wouldn’t even tell me her first name.  Oh well.  I then found Jimmy.

Jimmy, Nationals Ballpark (Photo: Reed)

Jimmy is a vendor who climbs the steps of the stands all game long hawking snacks and beverages.  This is not an easy job…you are constantly carrying around a backbreaking container of goods navigating your way up and down stadium steps.  And get this, there is no salary.  That’s right, Jimmy said he only gets commission and tips.

He works for a company that places him in a variety of different stadiums.  Hailing from Baltimore, he said he is not that much of a Nationals fan.  Actually he says he likes football more than baseball, especially the Baltimore Ravens. 

I couldn’t keep Jimmy too long.  After all, he was working and his wages are a direct correlation to how much he sells, so I didn’t want him to lose potential income.  The 28-year-old says a good day he brings in a couple of hundred dollars.  My $10 was going toward gas he said.

Check out this short video of Jimmy in action!

The Nats ended up losing the game 2-0.  On an upside though, it was Earth Day and the ballpark had a special offer that if you brought recyclable items to the stadium you could buy a future ticket for half price.  I did just that and will be going to see my favorite team, the New York Mets, play when they come to town in May!

Don’t forget to tip your servers and vendors for good service!

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