When bad signs happen to good people

It was 1987. I had just graduated from college, and had been promised a summer job at a major department store only to be told when I arrived that there was no job available after all. But… they did have another job if I wanted it. Being new to the area, and needing to pay rent and eat, I agreed.

Store officials explained that the department store was being renovated and some of the departments were literally changing locations every day. It would be my job to stand at the main entrance to the store, wearing a red and white sash – and direct people to the right location.

When the construction workers saw me, they laughed. Some of the salespeople heckled me. So did a lot of the customers. Few ever took me seriously. Why? The sash read… Miss Information.

Lisa Howell