Summer used to be something to look forward to. A kid can sit through months of schoolwork when the gleam of summer sunlight shines through it.

To most, the promise of block parties, barbecues and swimming pools makes the last day of school feel like Christmas Eve. Summer vacation is the epitome of childhood.

But there comes a time in life when every kid realizes he or she isn’t so much a kid anymore and a weekly allowance for taking out the trash and vacuuming the living room just isn’t enough.

At first thought, “job” sounds like the most disgusting word ever. Soon enough, these same kids are cruising around town turning in applications to any place that will take them.

I am every bit the kid that loved summers until the one four years ago when I first got a job. Ever since then, I’ve returned to school slightly richer, and yet slightly more pale than I was when I’d left.

It was two summers ago that I learned the dirtiest six letter word out there: R-E-T-A-I-L, which I thought consisted of putting clothes away and helping customers find things.

Little did I know, retail also translates into babysitter, personal shopper, travel maid and personal phone call maker.

We all know customers can be downright rude, but there are ways to make sure you’re not another person to ruin a college kid’s vacation.

First of all, if I wanted to clean up after someone, I’d go home and clean up after my family. If you knock something on the ground, pick it up and put it away. When you try on clothes, please don’t leave the clothes you’re not purchasing in a pile on the ground. Hang them up, right side in, and, at the very least, take them to the fitting room rack. If you’re feeling extra generous, you might even take them back to where you found them.

The child you are shopping with is your responsibility not mine. I’m at work, so I probably already have a headache, and letting a child scream and yell isn’t helping. There’s also a lot of stuff to run into, most of which would probably hurt, so rambunctious children running around is going to end badly more often than it ends well.

Wheelchairs are there to aid those who have trouble walking, which is contrary to the popular belief that they are made to race around the store by two fully capable people. <br/>If you get the squeaky cart, trade it in as soon as you discover this.If you get the squeaky cart, trade it in as soon as you discover this.
If you get the squeaky cart, trade it in as soon as you discover this.

If I tell you I don’t know where something is, it’s going to take me just as long to find it as it would you.  It helps if you know the brand, color and style of the item you’re looking for. Don’t send me on a wild goose chase. If it’s on clearance, you’ll probably find it before I do.

When you’ve walked around the store contemplating a purchase long enough to decide you don’t want it, the next closest shelf probably isn’t where it goes. On that note, price scanners are not the same as a fitting room rack. If you decide the price isn’t right, don’t just leave it there.

Every shirt in a stack usually looks exactly the same. You don’t need to unfold and look at every single one.

These guidelines aren't that hard to follow, so you should try following them. Even if those of us who work all summer can't get an actual vacation out of the three months away from school, the least could be that we might be able to enjoy working.<br/>