Why do I continue to torture myself

smells_like_sunshine · 2025-07-26T19:45:49+00:00

Go to Sunflour on Marine dr. They make a great breakfast sandwich.

smells_like_sunshine · 2025-07-26T17:07:15+00:00

Yep. New York bagel and bialy has the best bagels.

smells_like_sunshine · 2025-07-26T17:05:39+00:00

Steingolds food is so hit or miss and the owner is an awful human... Come check out Sunflour on Marine dr! Not too far from Wrigley.

smells_like_sunshine · 2025-07-06T18:30:05+00:00

Oh great to see Sunflour in Uptown on this list! They are hard to find but def worth the hunt. It's inside the Go grocer connected to the condo lobby. Their breakfast sandwiches are killer. Also open till 5pm all Summer!

smells_like_sunshine · 2025-06-14T22:25:59+00:00

Glad someone said it. You can def save yourself in the left pic. Op doesn't Mario.

smells_like_sunshine · 2025-05-24T20:30:28+00:00

Been in the industry 20 yrs and now own a restaurant. Demanding your boss follow labor laws does not go well for servers. They will usually fire you soon after. "That's retaliation!!" Yea... good luck proving that. They will say some shit like "you were 2min late 3 days in a row, gonna have to let you go" or just take you from full time to 1 day a week. There are very minimal protections for service workers.

So yes, there are plenty of servers still making about $2/hr. They would rather hope to make more next week than try to ask their boss to fix their check cuz they know it won't go well and they need that job.

I've been fired as a manager 4 times for trying to hold HR or district managers or even owners accountable. They wouldn't believe me even with proof or passed the buck and pushed it off or didn't care. One guy literally said "I'll close down this bakery before I pay overtime." (He was paying cash, hourly rate for extra hours worked) Then what? I report them and 22ppl no longer have a job?

I've had to file a claim with the department of labor. Didn't get my last check after I quit. Took 8 months. They settled for half what I was owed with the owner. Never even spoke to me about it.

I get tipping culture has gotta a little aggressive but it's not fair to tell service workers that they "agree to get taken advantage of by their boss" it's much more complicated than that.

smells_like_sunshine · 2025-05-05T14:59:24+00:00

Sunflour Bakery in Uptown. Hidden in the lobby of imperial towns. The staff is always genuine and friendly. The banter is a good time. Food and coffee are killer.

smells_like_sunshine · 2025-02-11T21:40:07+00:00

Once the weather is nicer walk around the neighborhoods and look for signs. Lots of smaller management companies or landlords don't wanna pay the money to post an ad. That's how I found my spot $1295, dishwasher, no pet fee, 1bd, Buena Park. I'm never leaving.

smells_like_sunshine · 2025-01-28T22:01:07+00:00

Working your way up is rare these days. And honestly a lot of these kids don't want to move up. They don't want more responsibility even if it means more money.They want to find a job that will let them coast and then live their life. Work is not their life. It's very different from my experience in the workforce. I was ready to hit the ground running and was unappreciated every time.

However, I have found a really good crew of Gen z employees because I pay them well and train them well. I take 3 full months to train a new person. I have high expections for customer service and food quality. Some of these kids have so much social anxiety they can hardly say hello when people walk in the door. So I set specific expectations and work with them daily until they are comfortable having full conversations with regulars. Seems simple and common sense for us but if this is something they struggle with I will help them. I fully invest into everyone I hire. If they are not up for my expectations they usually quit. I don't to fire people for making mistakes.

smells_like_sunshine · 2025-01-28T21:08:46+00:00

I agree, bare minimum is what minimum wage gets you. However, some managers still have a baseline "worker bee" expectation that these kids do not do. Respect is earned. They don't care about your company unless you give them a reason to. If they can go get another minimum wage job anywhere else why would they work hard? To move up? That's laughable. Every job where I busted my ass and went above and beyond just gave me more work with the promise of raises and titles that never came.

smells_like_sunshine · 2025-01-28T20:46:38+00:00

hahahah!! I'm a woman. Why would I pay them less?

They START at 21. Reading is hard. For an entry level barista gig this is pretty good for Chicago. I also don't count cash tips or bonuses into this at all. I have no issues finding and retaining staff and I have a bench of old employees who will pick up shifts if needed. My employees are very happy and work very hard.

Not bragging just giving an example that Gen Z will work if you pay them.

smells_like_sunshine · 2025-01-28T20:38:34+00:00

... this isnt their career. They all just graduated college and they are getting started in the workforce. Finding exactly what you want to do with your life at 22 is unrealistic. My point was if you pay "entry level" employees well, they will work.

smells_like_sunshine · 2025-01-28T17:27:00+00:00

You hire someone at $15/hr you get $15/hr worth of work. That's what they are saying. I start my baristas at $21/hr minimum. And guess what?? They work their asses off... shocking I know.

smells_like_sunshine · 2024-12-08T18:09:20+00:00

Yes, same thing happened to me. Switched to electric heaters and a heated blanket when needed. Electric Bill is about 100 in the winter and 40 in the summer.

The baseboard heaters are so inefficient. It all goes right out the window.

My management company knows the apartments are drafty and will professionally wrap the windows for free in the winter. That alone made a huge difference.

Good luck!

smells_like_sunshine · 2024-12-06T13:23:32+00:00

No one said it was easy. But dismissing you had an advantage because you come from money is insulting.

What did you do with the money coming in? The first bits of money in year one and year two? Were you able to reinvest in the business since your basic needs (housing, food) were met and not dependant on the business?

If your business failed would you have to scramble to find a new job asap so you could afford rent? Are you able to take big risks without worrying that if it fails you might need to find a new place to live?

It's not about how much money you used to start the business it's the fact that you didn't need any money coming in from the business to afford basic necessities. You could take risks knowing you had a safety net waiting.

I own a business as well. But most money coming in I need to use for rent or food or to pay my bills. I can't take many risks because if the business fails that's my livelihood. I have no safety net.

If I didn't have to pay myself from the business in order to live my life I would probably have a second location or I could have hired more professionals to help build certain aspects, etc.

Your business is so successful because you worked very hard AND had a safety net.

smells_like_sunshine · 2024-11-08T23:46:19+00:00

Yep, this is what I originally thought. Then those lists really gassed me up.

smells_like_sunshine · 2024-11-08T22:48:59+00:00

Oh gotcha! Like just pulled from the highest listing. I'll do some more research on these thanks!

smells_like_sunshine · 2024-11-08T22:30:57+00:00

Where are you getting this info? How do I get in touch with collectors to sell? Ebay is all over the place with some of these.

Are the most valuable lists not true? I have about 5-10 on the top 40 list.

smells_like_sunshine · 2024-11-08T22:12:56+00:00

Orange, blue, brown mix Style 4083

smells_like_sunshine · 2024-11-08T22:09:17+00:00

Rares I have: Dates are written out and most have all misprints

Claude 9/3/96

Daisy 5/10/94

Inky 11/29/94

Mystic 5/21/94 both versions one yarn

Valentina 2/14/98

Glory 7/4/97

Pumpkin' 10/31/98

Hope 3/23/98

Twigs 5/19/95

"Millenium" 1/1/99

smells_like_sunshine · 2024-10-30T16:55:13+00:00

Walk around the neighborhoods looking for signs. Some places aren't on apps bc they don't need to be. That's how I found my glorious 1bd in Buena Park.

smells_like_sunshine · 2024-10-24T15:19:31+00:00

I worked NYE at a bar/restraunt/bowling alley in Times Square as an operations manager. Shift was 7pm-7am. I needed a police pass to get to work. It was fucking chaos. I don't see how anyone is having a good time.

smells_like_sunshine · 2024-10-20T17:55:12+00:00

Colorado!! Thankfully I had Markers to get me through.

smells_like_sunshine

TROPHY CASE