Labor Day Melancholia

A member of my family who I love and respect made it clear to me a while ago that my "the world sucks woe is me" writings were not a lot of fun, and he was right, so I'll try to keep from becoming too maudlin. However I am human and some human-ness, some sensitivity, might creep in.
I dedicate these words to the people who do not get long weekends, who only get two holidays a year; the people who are the grease that keeps society moving. Low wage earners and noble humans worthy of everybody's respect ESPECIALLY the phony elite who earn much and condescend even more. I am writing this on Monday night, Labor Day 2011, after having worked today.
My Labor Day weekend consisted of one day - Sunday. I worked Saturday, I worked today. It hit me hard, harder than Memorial Day, harder than July 4th. I think because Labor Day is all wrapped up in The Death of Summer. The summer we never had. Friday night in The Booze Emporium was complete insanity. People bouncing into the store, grabbing as many bottles as they could possibly hold, skipping gaily up to the registers while merrily proclaiming their three day independence from soul sucking jobs. Hell bent on getting a tiny taste of freedom, wringing every last drop of fun out of the weekend as they possibly could.
Saturday was equally twisted. More people clutching bottles of liquid happiness, wild eyed, footloose and fancy free.
In addition, Thursday was nutsos because of a combination of medical emergency and vacations, which also heavily impacted Friday and Saturday. Three days of pure unadulterated hell. We were short handed and running like inmates escaping the asylum. Only we couldn't escape. Happy weekenders kept grabbing us and throwing us back behind the registers to process their precious purchases.
Friday and Saturday people kept saying "I hope you are getting a weekend." I kept replying "I have Sunday off, so that's a good thing." As if that made everything all right. IT WAS NOT A GOOD THING. I WANT THREE DAYS OFF - IN A ROW - JUST LIKE OTHER PEOPLE.
Sunday off, for me, then back to work today. Driving in, in a complete funk. People coming into the store and saying "I can't believe you guys are open on Labor Day." To which I wanted to reply "If it wasn't for the greed heads I work for and people like you who cannot plan ahead, I could be home licking chicken grease off my fingers and contentedly belching and sipping a civilized whiskey." Instead I kept saying "Yup, people need their booze." That was the best I could muster.
In the interest of full disclosure I want you to know that I got paid time and half for today's efforts. So it wasn't complete sacrifice. Of course when you are earning 4 cents an hour, a bump up to six cents an hour is not thrilling. Sorry, couldn't resist.
That's it. Just the facts. My words are dedicated to everyone, and there are a lot of you, who had the same experience as me. Essentially making it easier for everyone else to have three days of freedom. 
And my thoughts go out to those who WISH they were in my shoes. The unemployed. I am not ungrateful. I have a job, however humble, and I laugh a lot at work. My co-workers are severely brain damaged and fun to be around.
I am merely trying to make a point. There are a hell of a lot of people who don't get the beautiful bennies, people who HAVE to work to get paid, people to whom weekends mean nothing, to whom holidays mean nothing. It is that much harder for this segment of society to get by because in addition to not getting these precious gifts everybody else takes for granted, they have to absorb or deflect some of the happiness these lucky people are flashing out there.
I salute and respect you all.