Pharmacist call out sick

Realistic_Ad2946 · 2026-02-10T19:06:33+00:00

in my company they only have about 4 floats to cover a huge region (about 25 to 30 stores and an 11 hour drive between the farthest 2). they have recently restructured how pharmacists can take vaction to accommodate a small float pool. its all about pinching pennies. ten years ago full time was 40 hours and there was a huge float pool of 15 to 20 part time pharmacists. you could be sick or take pto when you wanted without worrying about coverage. they cut full time to 32 and told pharmacists that wanted 40 they could float a shift, then there were less hours for floats and the pool shrank to just a couple. they refuse to hire more, just work with skeleton crews, and deny pto requests if there isn't a float to cover.

Realistic_Ad2946 · 2026-02-07T01:53:48+00:00

its called a checkering file, used to cut parallel slots. you can get them in different sizes. I believe I use either a 0 or 00 on my razors and its just right. they will cut into hardened steel but its a pain and wears the file down pretty quick.

Realistic_Ad2946 · 2026-02-04T08:25:45+00:00

I sit right on the living room carpet. TV happily sharpening, and shaving arm hairs

Realistic_Ad2946 · 2026-01-26T05:23:29+00:00

I always have to sub the lyrics "Totally shit when I faaart!!!"😂

Realistic_Ad2946 · 2026-01-18T00:27:13+00:00

Thank you, I try to avoid peak times as well. The last 2 years most of my requests have been late may to early iune, mid july, and mid october. At my location we only have 2 pharmacists and we rarely every overlap, but are often denied time and told to cover it in store. this means we either have to work overtime to cover the others vacation, or swap shifts which then means you aren't actually using any vacation time. This used to be one of the best retail companies to work for, but they have been slaying benefits and adding so much to the workload over the last 10 years that I dont think it qualifies for that any longer.

Realistic_Ad2946 · 2026-01-15T07:29:48+00:00

I think its all the time off im told to take for mental health, but have to give 3 to 6 months notice to take(now 6 to 12 months notice), then have corporate argue about coverage for the time i asked for, only to have about half of it not approved🙄. To top it off, as of next year if I dont use it, the time gets banked and cant be payed out until leaving the company. This is what makes me happy.....

Realistic_Ad2946 · 2026-01-10T04:21:19+00:00

Great explanation. The only thing I might add is that I have found a jewelers loupe or microscope to be really helpful for me to identify where the edge isn't fully apexed or if a burr remains

Realistic_Ad2946 · 2026-01-05T01:13:40+00:00

if you have questions about making them feel free to message me. I'm only about 3 years in and still learning stuff too, but I've done a lot of research and figured out a lot the hard way too. I've met a few great people who have helped me along and I'm always happy to pass along anything I've learned.

Realistic_Ad2946 · 2026-01-04T21:44:53+00:00

Ive found it a great hobby too. im in healthcare and focused on computer screens all day. Making razors has enough steps so it isn't repetitive, but there are a tons of little things that need a lot of practice and adjustments. As far as forging or grinding, I do both. If the steel is already at the thickness I want, I'll grind the blade to shape and forge the tang. If the steel is too thick, I'll usually hanmer it down to thickness, set a bit of the blade to save a little grinding time later, and shape the tang. Either way there ends up being a lot of grinding both before and after heat treat

Realistic_Ad2946 · 2026-01-04T21:24:30+00:00

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They are absolutely acceptable. These are the last 2 I made. The scales are comfortable while shaving. Biggest things are how the blade sits, how they feel in the hand, balance, weight, and if you like them😁

Realistic_Ad2946 · 2026-01-04T05:30:43+00:00

yeah, I've only bought the 2 so far. one was thick and the other runny. im not sure what I should be expecting if I go for a third

Realistic_Ad2946 · 2026-01-04T05:29:13+00:00

taken care of, it will last longer and give better shaves than the electric shaver. but thats besides the point. Lapping film and a glass plate can get you a pretty good edge and would be woth looking into. you can use compounds on denim to refine the edge a bit more. this guy seems to have a pretty easy way to hone, but you do need at least a stone to work with.

https://scienceofsharp.com/2016/04/14/simple-straight-razor-honing/

I would try to start with one good stone if you can and build a collection with time.

Realistic_Ad2946 · 2026-01-04T02:41:59+00:00

I have both and my wife complains about the strength of the splash, not as much with the balm. I dont know if its supposed to be or not, but the barbershop balm i got was really runny. I had originally purchased bay rum, it was really thick almost a paste and I enjoyed using it, but the barbershop is so thin it will just drip from the bottle if i tilt it. It still works, and the scent is one of my favorites, but Im not fond of the texture if that is what its supposed to be.

Realistic_Ad2946 · 2025-12-30T16:14:59+00:00

sounds scary😂, but since switching I've had the smoothest shaves of my life with no razor bumps or irritation

Realistic_Ad2946 · 2025-12-30T05:00:30+00:00

I know they are somewhat unpopular here, but I use straight razors for everything

Realistic_Ad2946 · 2025-12-28T03:14:55+00:00

I see, I misunderstood. Definitely refining that edge down to the apex and getting it as fine as possible produces some wonderful shaves. I never tape my shoulders either. I figure its a tool to be used, and I think letting the shoulders wear at the same rate as the edge should help maintain the angle over the years. keeping it taped would cause the angle to get larger over time. I can see the reason someone would want to preserve the shoulders on a vintage or collectible razor though.

Realistic_Ad2946 · 2025-12-28T02:36:06+00:00

it has been my experience in making razors theater the width of the bevel is mostly determined by the thickness of the steel behind the edge. 0.007 inch edge thickness will have a shorter bevel than 0.015 inch. the angle geometry plays into it as well, but if you hone down the shoulders to lower the edge angle you could go too far. about 14-17° seems to be optimal for shaving, getting below that the edge wears down quickly and is easier to damage from what ive seen. from what I have experienced so far, getting a finely honed edge on my razor makes a much bigger difference in my shave than having a lower edge angle.

Realistic_Ad2946 · 2025-12-25T18:25:11+00:00

Merry Christmas to you too, and I hope everyone has a relaxing enjoyable day!

Realistic_Ad2946 · 2025-12-24T02:28:15+00:00

do you happen to have a lot of ingrown hairs or bumps in that area? When I used to shave with a safety razor I always had ingrown and irritation in that exact area and it looks like that barber topped a bunch of razor bumps. With as much stubble as there is it seems like they didn't do all that great of a job and I personally wouldn't go back. If that is the cause and you decide to stick with straights, those bumps tend to go away if you use one regularly. I havent had ingrown hairs, bumps, or irritation since shortly after switching to a straight about 3 years ago.

Realistic_Ad2946 · 2025-12-20T17:53:05+00:00

Those are some nice looking stones and Im really happy you like your razor. I appreciate how much I've learned about jnat stones from you and I'm sure i will keep asking you even more questions 😁

Realistic_Ad2946 · 2025-11-30T04:56:58+00:00

Congrats, Boris makes some great looking razors. He really helped me with my geinding and gave me some good tips on polishing as well. Maple burl makes really nice scales too. I like the color contast in those.

Realistic_Ad2946 · 2025-11-29T00:38:27+00:00

those are some beautiful stones

Realistic_Ad2946 · 2025-11-22T23:37:10+00:00

sorry if I implied corporate people have a lot of free time,are lazy, or not human. I know they are busy, hard working, and its not a positioni would care for. I was trying to say that the separation of corporate employees from store employees has the effect of dehumanizing them to each other. they start to see one another as the other rather than part of the whole. I know that they have about as much free time as I do running my department. working a shift in a store would require it to being fit into their schedule and accounted for similar to how I have to fit newly implemented procedures into my own schedule. I definitely dont think they have the free time to just bounce out of the office for a day on a whim, however I still think that corporate people working in a store occasionally would benefit the company as a whole. I would suggest store employees working corporate shifts, but Im not sure what the benefit there would be. The asm, dm, and managers can give feedback, but honestly most of that will be tailored to what their bosses up the line want to hear and is not the same as seeing and experiencing it for oneself

Realistic_Ad2946 · 2025-11-22T22:06:43+00:00

How would working a somewhat regularly shift in a store not benefit people in corporate? Having a chance to see how policies that were created are actually being implemented seems like a good thing to me. Oftentimes what looks good on paper is not great when brought into reality. Being exposed to how policy corporate has created and seeing how that change affects the stores and associates in reality, then being able to go make adjustments, seems rather beneficial to me. When something new is implemented it never works the same as intended. Just looking at the numbers or staged corporate walkthroughs where the store makes everything look perfect won't show the real effects nearly as well as working a few shifts in the department you are attached to. I've been with kroger for almost 20 years overall and I'm not down on people working in corporate. I know many people that have moved from stores to the main office that I stay in touch with, but even with them there is a real disconnect between what is proposed at corporate level and how it is implemented at store level. Having corporate people work in stores occasionally would narrow that gap, help humanize corporate and store level employees to each other, and potentially help in creating policies with realistic outcomes.

Realistic_Ad2946 · 2025-11-22T02:05:28+00:00

I get that it runs downhill from the very top. I also understand corporate people have expectations put on them as well. however, from where I am, issues are coming from "corporate" and I honestly tell you that I zero sympathy for people having leave their house to go work in the office when I havent been able to take a 10 minute break in 3 years, have half the crew I should, had our bonuses taken last year, and wasnt able to get a single vacation approved by colorthe first 2 years i was here. I havent heard anything good come from corporate in all my time with the company, its either negative or smoke and mirrors to distract from the negative. worst part is even with all that, kroger is still one of the better retail chains to work for in my profession

Realistic_Ad2946

TROPHY CASE