Happy Orange Holiday (Blogophilia 14.25)

Cherished memories?

Given the holiday theme. you would think I would go all mushy about great family times, or special presents (like the purple Schwinn Fastback I got when I was 10), or whatnot. 

But if you have been reading me for any length of time, you know I don't get into the cinnamon and clove falseness of the Feast of Conspicuous Consumption. My hero was pre-ghost Ebeneezer Scrooge and his wise words about pocket-picking. 

That said, I do have an interesting story.

The week after Christmas 1979, I was scanning the want ads in the Atlanta Journal-Constitution before lining my cat box with them. My eye landed on a 4-line one for an Accounting Clerk, if interested call this number. Well, I was unemployed at the time and while I still had a little money in the bank, I didn't see that holding out for much more than a couple of months. So, I called. The perky secretary told me to bring my resume up the day after New Years. 

The office was on the third floor of an office building just off the freeway. This was before lobby security, so I was able to ride directly up to the floor unattended. There was nothing spectacular about the place, just a solid door with the plaque "Marcus-Blank Enterprises, D.B.A. The Home Depot." on it. That gave me a little pause. Their ads were all over the local media and they were starting to get some good word of mouth about being a good place to shop for hardware. Needless to say, I was intrigued. I give the receptionist my information and she gives me a job application. I finish it a few minutes later and I am introduced to the lady who would be my supervisor and we go into the suite. 

The place wasn't large, with 8 private offices and two bullpens. As we go down the hall towards the interview room I am introduced to everybody, including Bernie Marcus and Arthur Blank who I would soon refer to as the Mutt and Jeff of retailing. I managed to sell myself during the interview process, even though I had nothing to offer anybody except my own confusion.

For the next three years, I rode that bull. When I started there were four stores and 18 people in that office. When the bull threw me there were 24 stores with 12 under construction and 150 people in the office. Now, of course, they are all over the world. 

Did I get rich out of it? No, I left before I vested my stock. But that's fine. I wouldn't have been happy as a rich person. 

But it was worth the trip. 

Merry Christmas, Everybody.