Somewhat Sane Ramblings Of An LGS Owner

So, I own an LGS, and tomorrow, December 11th, it turns one year old. I think it stands for Local Game Store. Basically, people come into my shop and play card games. Not, like, poker and stuff. Trading card games. Pokémon and stuff like that...except I don't actually run Pokémon... but that's beyond the point!

I love my job. 

Being behind the counter is like being a bartender. I have regulars who come in and tell me their life stories over games of Commander. I get to hear people tell me about their jobs while they deck-build or hear about how well their semester is going. My boy Alex just aced his finals, and my guy Jonas is preparing to propose to his girl, who also plays at the shop weekly. I learn why Hector moved here in the first place. I learned about how he got a well-paying warehouse job after escaping the concrete jungle so he could raise his kids in a safe place.

Being that I spend upwards of seventy hours per week in my shop, my regulars are my friends, and seeing how all of my blood-related family is several thousand miles away, my friends are my found-family.

Being so close to a military installation, the constant influx of servicemen is also a treat. They're usually quite kind (even if very vulgar), and they're typically big spenders. The only downside is that they never stay for too long, since they eventually get shipped off to another state or country, even if I haven't yet fulfilled my promise to finally beat them in a match of Modern. However, those who return always have stories, and they're happy to share 'em.

Man, now I really wanna visit Korea.

Before opening the shop, I didn't play any card games. Now, as I get into these games, a mandatory part of the job, I learn about and experience the many joys this hobby brings. The satisfaction of deckbuilding. The feeling of opening a six-dollar pack of cards and pulling a single worth several hundred dollars. The glory of winning a tournament, even if there were only six guys this time around and the stakes were unbelievably low.

People tell me how much they love the place, how warm and welcoming it is. The music that I always have going on, the witty banter that can be heard from the regulars, the hollers of the guys playing Smash Bros. in the back. When it comes to making a cozy home-away-from-home, I succeeded. Months ago. Now, in regards to business...

I hate my job. 

I hate that the only time I'm ever able to meet these people is when I'm on the clock. I hardly have time for anything else in my life, since the shop takes up all of my time. I'm only left with enough time to do other basic tasks like eating, sleeping, etc. It's good that my shop doubles as a massive relaxation center, literally built to be a comfortable, cozy hangout, but man, being in one place for a majority of all your waking moments is mentally draining. 

People keep warning me that the "We must imagine Sisyphus as happy" mentality can't last forever. That I'll burnout eventually. I'm a year into this thing, and while it hasn't happened yet, I can't be sure that it won't. And if it does eventually happen, I won't know what to do then.

I hate that I'm incapable of working indefinitely. If I could split myself into two, I'd have one Me who loves working (because my job is genuinely fun and easy, outside of literally sitting down and playing TCGs) and one Me who loves interacting and playing with the customers. But I can't do that. I have to decide which days I have to slave away and which days to relax.

I hate that things costs so much. Some things have great resale value (if you want to support a business, buy water bottles) and other things don't. While I do make money off of a booster box, it does kinda suck putting upwards of a hundred bucks on the line to only get a thirty dollar profit. It just feels... slow.

I'm fortunate that my customers understand my plight. They know they're supporting a small business, they know that I'm here almost 24/7. The only reason I don't literally sleep in my shop is because it doesn't have a shower. If it did, you'd know damn well that I'd be sleeping on the couch I have set up in front of the Nintendo Switch.

Well... maybe not. Someone remind me to wash those cushions.

I have "employees," which are really just unemployed friends who swing by and help out for a hundred bucks a week, and free snacks and drinks. These guys are my heroes and I wish I could hire and pay them properly, but goddamn is it tough to make money. Right now, it's basically neutral. We make as much money as we spend, which means, yes, we're stagnant, but at least we're not sinking.

I hope this endeavor one day bears fruit. I hope one day I can take some days off. I hope that one day this pays for my rent, or even my mortgage. I hope I can pay my guys good wages. I hope I'll be able to make this amazing cozy place even better. I hope my efforts don't go to waste.

Worst case scenario, I'll probably apply to be a cop. I've got the figure and structure for it, and I hate the government enough to not want to operate unjustly on its behalf. 

Dear local PD, if I've applied to join, and you're reading this as part of a background check, that previous sentence is a joke. I actually love arresting people for minor drug offenses!

If you're reading this, what's wrong with you? Go out there and buy some packs of Cardfight!! Vanguard: Omniscient Awakening, out December 13th. Stand up, Vanguard!! Dark Zone supremacy.

Bonus: For some reason I can't get rid of KGLW's "Dragon" song in out of my head. Dawn, of, e, ter, nal, niiiiiiight.