THE SPARK

Once upon a time, I loved working in a bookstore. It wasn't that I
had some romantic notion about what the book business is. It's
more demanding physically in some ways than many people think.
Try carrying an armful of books from one side of a 25,000 square
ft store to another.Not small books, but larger heavy books Now,
there are heavier things to lift, but while you are carrying that load
you are answering questions, making detours to show where some
book is on the shelf, etc. But that never bothered me. Like I said,
I had no romantic illusions and I'd worked more physically demanding
jobs in the past. It was the interaction with the customers that made
it fun:finding a book..recommending another, finding out if the last
book you hand sold to them was enjoyed. It made it fun.

Lately, that spark is gone. I spend half my workday on the registers
trying to get people to give us their email addy for the newsletter,and
the other half mostly on recovering the store because the company is
keeping the payroll lean and mean.

The best part of my workday is when I punch out to go home.

Once upon a time, I used to really enjoy roleplay.It challenged my
imagination and gave me a way to escape temporarily from real
life in a period that was difficult. It was fun. Lately, that spark is
gone too, partly from my own attitude, to be honest with myself

Does my rp seem wooden because I have lost that spark?
Or have I lost that spark because the rp is wooden?

Bleh.