“Talking some kids into reading is challenging at first, because they don't understand how important it really is. But, It's rewarding to see their faces once I hand them a book.”
“I've been doing this for exactly three months. I sell everything from electronics to clothes. Everyone who comes in here is always looking for the best deal and the lowest prices. But that's normal, it's part of the business. At the end of the day, I feel like I'm helping people. I provide them with a service. If I can give them a good TV for a good price, and they thank me for it, it's a good day for the both of us.”
“I don't want to do anything else. I've been doing this for twenty years. Everything is challenging about this business especially keeping up with the trends. Someone came in here once and asked for a hard side part, and a chin strap with a pompadour. The side part is a really short cut, it's kind of like a 50's style. A lot of different things make a barber great; personality, technique, style, and a lot of it comes down to the mechanics of how to actually cut hair. Execution and consistency are huge in this business. You might not be the best barber, but if you give a good haircut every single time, people come back for that.”
“ I have been a tattoo artist since 1993. I have been in Bridgeport for 10-years. I love expressing myself as an artist and I love body modification. It's always pretty busy around here. It used to be that summer was the time to get a tattoo but now people are getting them in the winter so their tattoos are ready for the summer. I have done all sorts of tattoos over the years and they are all unique; not just one stands out. A tattoo means something different to everybody. Not just one experience defines that tattoo. I consider it a great honor to be able to tattoo someone.”
“ I have been a bartender for 30-years. I couldn't sit behind a desk all day and do one thing. I need to move around, I need to talk to people. It's pretty busy around here, I see hundreds of people a day. I bartend some nights over at another place down the street. The difference between the crowd over there and the clients in here are that the clients in here are much older blue collar workers. At night time it's usually a younger crowd of kids and it's a lot different. They have really weird names for drinks and use a lot of slang words when ordering them. They'll ask me for “Jamo” when they want a Jameson, or a car bomb, or an Irish bomb. There's a lot of bombs. I prefer to work during the day rather than at night, I find the clients are more easy going. This is more of a shot and a beer place. At my other job, I make martinis all day. I like the people and the money. I'd say vodka sodas and Pabst beer are one of our best sellers right now”
“Before this, I was working at Dunkin' Donuts, but I’ve been riding skateboards ever since I was a little kid. My favorite thing about what I do at work is helping to inform customers about new boards and equipment. It's even better when I know there will be an event that day. We just had a car show here today too. I skate competitively, and have won a few gold medals. The last competition I was in was 2-years ago at the West Haven skatepark. They call it the Savin’ Rock Skate & BMX Festival. It's down by the beach and they have vendors and musicians who perform on stage, it's pretty cool. They judge competitions on tricks; basically who ever does the best trick in that category for that competition, wins. I only competed in the best park category, which is a competition for overall performance. I ended up winning 1st place.”
“I am making a film about giving flowers to presidential candidates. I have given flowers to all candidates expect for Donald Trump, Carly Fiorina, and Hillary Clinton, who have all refused them. I have been doing this since back in July and this is my 28th Trump rally. I've tried to pass off a flower to Donald each time I see him but he's not biting. This is a symbolic gesture I call 'a flower for peace.' and whether the candidates know it or not, by accepting the flower they are agreeing to peace during their term. Today, I got a flat tire and I knew I wasn't going to get here on time but typically I show up 3-hours before the rally in order to get a good seat. Ted Cruz took a flower, Marco Rubio took a big bunch of flowers, Bernie has taken them twice, Jeb Bush took flowers dozens of times and even let me pray with him on stage."
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“We're 'Nom Eez' a Vietnamese noodle bar that has an extension of a donut shop inside of it. I've been a chef for 25-years and I own a couple of restaurants, and my wife is Vietnamese so I decided to open a noodle bar. My business partner happens to own a donut shop called 'Donut Crazy' so that's how we came up with the idea. A successful restaurant is made up of good food, consistency, great staff, great atmosphere and a good location."