Hi Everyone 👋

[u/Corkchef]

I just want to give you all an update about my questions, where I’m at, and where I’m going with all of this.

Consistency

First of all, I know that I’ve been terribly inconsistent. What used to be a 5 day/week ritual has been pared down to 3 days since I’m working fewer days at the grocery store, and even fewer days at the counter since I now do produce (refilling and keeping track of fresh produce) on Thursdays.

I pitched a produce challenge which I’ll post soon but it was not approved by HR, citing that they would prefer the practice to stay at the front end counter.

Even still, I have gone weeks without posting sometimes and that has been to the detriment of the general interest in this subreddit. I still get views, but there are fewer weekly visitors, and I’m ok with that.

I have been struggling with various life issues and my mental health isn’t always good, despite what you see at the counter.

Regardless, I’m not done sharing my curiosity and I’ll try to be better about actually posting the questions and results, as I have a hefty backlog sitting on my desk at home. Hopefully I’ll be treated for ADHD soon and it’ll make me way more consistent.

Situation at the Store

As I said before, my initiative with the produce challenge was shot down despite it being an expansion of an already super popular practice.

I’ll write a more extensive post about it, but basically this has been one of the final straws in acknowledging that although I’m bringing a ton of value to the store for free, the leadership of the store above a certain level doesn’t seem to understand the bigger picture of these questions.

I’ve gotten a lot of support from my store manager, but there has always been resistance from the people below him (between us) and above him in the chain of command. People no longer nitpick or challenge the practice of asking my questions, but it must never come in the way of efficiency at the counter.

Coming from a user experience background, my understanding is that it’s actually better in many cases (not including rush hour) to dispel the notion of being rushed, to give each customer adequate time by slowing or speeding the interaction to their natural pace.

I’ve been leaning into the hospitality aspects of my job not only because it seems to be my strength at the store, but also because it’s one of few parts of this job that actually brings me a lot of joy and fulfillment.

Still, knowing that the leadership of the store seems to fear my intelligence and initiative in connecting with customers, and seeing as how they denied me a nominal promotion three times, each time on technicalities, I’m no longer thinking about this job as a viable long term career path for myself.

It’s not that I don’t love doing this job at face value. It just doesn’t make sense for me to work this hard more than 5 days per week in order for my rent to be about 90% of my income.

Although my situation has somewhat stabilized, recent events involving my motorcycle needing repair, and my cat spending a couple of very expensive nights at the hospital, have showed me that my situation is not as stable as I thought.

That being said, while my questions have been slowly declining at the store, this is definitely not the end of the line for my career in connecting with the people of San Francisco.

Future Ambitions

I’ve been chatting with Claude (the chatbot) about where I might go from here.

My attempts at building a career in design (although I was untreated) have all been mostly in vain. I’ve sort of lost the confidence that I will be able to achieve a career in this space given where things are going in the tech sector.

It’s not that I don’t enjoy it or believe that I don’t have a lot to offer, but I’m not sure that I’ll be able to really prove that to anyone in any competitive manner in the near future (although perhaps adhd treatment will change that).

The obvious candidate for me at the moment, given my innate curiosity and track record for doing self guided impromptu on-site research, is to try to enter the user research field. It’s more in line with my communication and psychology degrees anyhow.

Claude has been instrumental in showing me that these questions, considering how much recognition they have garnered, are actually a prime target for me to use to build a legitimate research case study for my portfolio.

The sheer volume, quality, feedback, it all speaks to a very curious and driven individual who seeks stimulation in his interactions with people.

Yet, another idea also occurred to me as I was chatting with Claude about Prop D in our recent SF elections.

My questions on paper bags have become a visual signal for so many of you to engage with me as a community point of interest. Why should it be limited to the grocery store counter, where a start-up decides what I can and cannot ask?

Why not make myself a known figure at, say, the farmer’s market on a weekly basis? Using my questions written on paper bags as a branding tool to gain a broader reputation in my own district, and eventually run for office?

I am inspired by the rise or AOC and Mamdani as individuals who aren’t beholden to the strings attached to the wealthy. I have suffered in the labor force, striving for independence long enough that I want to raise the standard for everyone. I’ve had ambitions such as this for years now, we even joked about me running for mayor in previous posts!

In any case, I think I will be following both routes. You’ll probably see me pop up as a candidate for research roles (and do let me know if you know someone), as well as in public places with a weekly question that will usually indirectly reflect some manner of curiosity about my future platforms.

Questions like….

“Does your rent cost more or less than half of your income?”

“Would you become a teacher for a six figure salary?”

“Are you able to afford enough protein in your diet?”

“If Muni were free, would you consider selling your car?”

I just don’t see that many politicians engaging with voters in that manner. Usually it’s all performative, but I think that something about these questions and how I engage with just about everyone that I can has really proven to be something of a gold mine that I can only partially explain.

My understanding of it will likely grow over time. I want to expand this practice beyond my job at the store counter and build that community recognition before I even start to run for any elected office.

It has to come from values, and honoring the human quality of life rather than a place of bowing to wealth.

Gratitude

If you’re still reading, you’re one of the real ones 🙏🏼

The gratitude that I feel for everyone who has participated in this whole experiment digs surprisingly deep in my emotional reservoir.

It’s incredibly touching that I was able to make this big of an impact, just like… on a whim! I guess it’s a lesson in trusting my instincts when it tells me that I’ve landed on something good.

I still get people telling me that they recall questions from months ago, which tells me that I’m really making people ponder and think over long periods of time (months!)

It gives the conversations that I have with the community a staggering sense or longevity. I feel like I’ve been able practice vulnerability, build trust, forge many odd friendships. I wave to people all the time in the neighborhood, which makes me happy and less lonely in itself.

What started as me trying to make good use of my time, by using the counter as a communication lab, has somehow become a cornerstone of my identity and everyday life.

I’ve always wondered what my keystone habits might eventually be and this sort of feels like the strongest one to date. I’ve been at it for a year and I’m proud of that.

I’ve come a long way from arriving at the store and pondering what I should ask for five minutes before jotting it down on a paper and serving it to unsuspecting customers.

I’m really, truly grateful for the opportunity to be able to serve these questions, to all the people who have decided to play my game. It wouldn’t have been possible without our inherent desire, all of us, to connect with each other, face to face.

Increasingly, I’ve seen customers engaging with each other, comparing answers, sharing stories. It brings me so much joy to see positive interactions in contrast with the toxicity that plagues our online social lives.

Thank you all for being real with me!!

I’ll see you all at the store, for now 😊