The meaning of words if you work in retail....

Having worked in retail myself, albeit in a support office capacity, I can nevertheless totally, 100% identify with this Buzzfeed article!!

There are plenty of things which certainly do have a very different meaning to those who work in retail.  

Here are a few of my favourites:

Holidays, and particularly at Christmas, for most people means a time to relax, forget about work, enjoy yourself either with or without family depending on your circumstances, eat, drink and be merry and so on.  To the retail worker however the Christmas holiday period in particular is "the most horrific, exhausting time of the year....".  Many other holidays aren't far behind it either.

So what is a sensor?  Well, in retail it's a loss prevention device that helps prevent theft and protect merchandise.  To anyone who actually works in retail though they are constant reminders of the inherent dishonesty of many people who are intent on either stealing or destroying your merchandise.

Shrinkage in retail refers to stock losses ie a reduction in inventory, due to thieving customers and dishonest staff.   For a loyal retail worker it's a chance to stare danger in the face and protect that merchandise until doing so becomes distinctly life threatening, in which case you follow police advice and let the thieving, pilfering so and so leave the premises with his spoils.  You may end up having the seek the services of a shrink just to get over the experience.

Returns - this is probably my favourite.   The facility to be able to return a product that you no longer want for whatever reason is a fantastic deal for the customer.  For the sales assistant behind the counter however it's a character building opportunity to get yelled at by customers who don't like being told that the merchandise they have destroyed or damaged beyond repair is not able to be returned or exchanged.

Customer - technical definition from Wikipedia - a person who buys goods or services from a shop or business.  Unfortunately for the retail worker the term is all too often synonymous with people who assume that once you start work for the day you leave all thoughts and feelings of your own at the door and become a robot. 

And this one is a beauty - salary: a form of periodic payment from an employer to an employee in return for services rendered.  If you work in the retail industry it pretty much means having just enough money for gas/petrol, maybe rent and some cheap fast food every once in a while.

Closing time - well it should mean that it's time for customers and retail workers to shut up shop and head for home but more often than not it means that if you haven't locked and bolted the doors bang on time customers will continue to wander in expecting to get served even though you're clearly in the process of closing down the cash registers and counting up for the night. 

Complaints are a great way to express discontent, unhappiness, disapproval etc etc etc and an equally great way retail workers can get to hear about every bad decision the company has made and over which they have absolutely no control.

 

Kid President - Diabetes vs Diabeetus

We're all pretty much familiar with what diabetes is despite this lighthearted video by the precocious Kid President.

Essentially, diabetes (or diabeetus lol) occurs when there is a problem with the blood glucose regulating hormone insulin, which is produced by the pancreas.   Insulin is responsible for controlling the flow of glucose from the blood into body tissues where it is converted into energy.  Excess glucose consumed over and above energy requirements is stored as fat.  When insulin is not working properly the glucose can't leave the blood and so builds up causing high blood sugar levels.

There are 2 main types of diabetes: 

Type 1 diabetes occurs when the pancreas can't make insulin, generally because of an autoimmune destruction of insulin-making cells.  Patients typically require insulin replacement therapy and it is possible to successfully manage Type 1 diabetes with insulin injections, nutrition and exercise.

Type 2, which is more common, is caused when cells no longer respond correctly to insulin and take up sufficient blood sugar (insulin resistance) and / or the pancreas can no longer produce enough insulin to regulate blood sugar.  Type 2 diabetes is strongly related to life style habits including obesity, smoking and so on.  It is therefore highly preventable but regrettably is on the increase in western societies because of poor life style choices.

The third type of diabetes is gestational diabetes which occurs in pregnant women due to increased blood sugar levels.  If left uncorrected it can cause fat build up and excessive growth in the unborn child.  Gestational diabetes is known to occur more commonly in certain groups of women including:

• Women over 30 years of age
• Women with a family history of type 2 diabetes
• Women who are overweight or obese
• Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples
• Women of particular cultural groups, such as Indian, Chinese, Vietnamese, Middle Eastern, Polynesian and Melanesian women
• Women who had gestational diabetes in a previous pregnancy.

Pre-diabetes is a transition phase between normal blood sugar and Type 2 blood sugar levels.   At that stage the condition is controllable and indeed reversible as insulin levels are still sufficient to cope but if left untreated it will develop into full blown Type 2 diabetes.

Cure for diabetes??

Unfortunately there is no cure for diabetes (yet).  Successful treatment revolves around controlling blood sugar levels, blood pressure and cholesterol levels and making healthy life style choices.  Sometimes these treatments are sufficient to significantly reduce the condition to the point where an almost normal, albeit more careful, lifestyle can be resumed.

Health and Nutrition strategist Matt Traverso has put together a program which helps Type 2 diabetes sufferers and those with pre-diabetes to get back in control of their condition.  Underneath the inevitable marketing hype and drama which accompanies the promotion for this program is a seriously good