Counting by One

Long days at the ballyard. The games are usually over between 4 and  4:30, however, being a deck supervisor, I cannot leave until all my stands and concessions check out correctly. Allow me to digress and tell you why it takes two hours after the game until I can leave. First of all, there are no cash registers. All money is received and put into drawers. There is no machine to “Z-out” at the end of the day. Reconciliations are made by an actual account of each and every item. For example, the amount of beer sold is not calculated by the amount of kegs used but by how many 16oz. and 24oz. cups you started you day with as opposed to how many you have left at the end of the evening. The same with soda. Its not counted by the number of transactions that take place but by the number of cups left at the end of the day. Therefore, each morning a total inventory is taken in each stand and concession. This tally is verified and turned in by yours truly. At the end of the day, the same thing is done again, minus the sold products. However, all day long product is delivered constantly, which transactions slips are written by me to account for the change. This all has to be added in prior to the final inventory tally. Sounds simple. Now given the fact that a concession could receive hot dogs, or brauts, or footlongs, or chicken, or fries, or wings, or soda, or beer, or any number of hundreds of goods can account for issues. On top of this between 8000 and 10,000 people are at the stands and concessions asking to be fed and watered while the selling, the transferring of product, or the receiving of new inventory is going on. There’s not a lot of down time for me. I’m constantly on the move and my pedometer totals over five miles of walking the deck per day. Now you see the reason I love the job. I’m constantly being pulled by one of my six concession stands. There is always a need for me to get them product, call for a new propane or CO2 tank, change the soda drink bibs, fix the Icee machine or figure out why the margaurita mix is not slushing. Its a constant state of flux and semi-pressure to get the job done in a timely manner. I love this. It keeps me on my toes, makes me use my math skills, anticipate needs an hour down the road and engage with other people. However, the long part of the day is after the game when each and every item has to be counted by hand in each of the stands. Now I do have stand leads that are in charge of this but its my ultimate responsibility to see that all comes out within $10 dollars of the correct amount. Invariably I have to go back to each and every one of my stands for a recount. WHY? Is it a problem with algebra, or division. No, perhaps its multiplication that is the issue. Nope, not that. It’s that damn old first grade arithmetic. Actual one by one counting. And each day we go back and verify the correct count by adding each and every item one by one. I am just amazed at how this first grade counting process can throw my people off. However, I learn so much from them, and about them as we spend “quality” time in the  concession stands after all are gone and home. They have become much like my students that I can teach new and improved methods. They’re just students in bigger bodies than I’ve been accustomed to in the past. And now that the season is winding down, they are finally starting to get the hang of this thing.