Ignoring the financial aspect of it, I actually didn't mind working in a department store all that much. During downtime you got to socialize with coworkers (ma

Ignoring the financial aspect of it, I actually didn't mind working in a department store all that much. During downtime you got to socialize with coworkers (many of whom were female), during busy times the time just flew by, you got to move around a lot and be active, you weren't expected to know every detail about everything you were responsible for, just be able to answer some basic questions about certain products ("Why is this more expensive? Which one is best for situation X?"). Also your friends could stop by your workplace to chat from time to time. As for the no guarantee of 40 hour work week... well, again ignoring the financial aspect of it, only working 20 or 30 hours a week was much more enjoyable than 40-55 hours (or even higher at some places) work weeks.