What do you think?
Rate this book
You Can't Make This $#!+ Up!: Retail: Politics like you've never seen it before!
This can’t be happening! Mike Triggs had spent most of his life in politics, primarily working for the Republican Party. In fact, he was considered a political golden boy until his career is forever tarnished. While managing a governor’s re-election campaign, a right-wing opposing candidate unceremoniously OUTs him and he quickly spirals from the top echelons of the GOP to selling underwear at a high-end department store in Sheboygan, WI. Seriously!
Going from his comfortable closet to the retail world, Mike never expected the crazy drama he would encounter. From hoity-toity Sheboygan shoppers to crafty shoplifters, religious fanatics, screaming kids, racists, entitled “Karens,” and drag queens to an evil store manager and her slimy sidekick, a co-worker who thinks she’s an African queen and vicious coworkers scrapping over a whopping 1% commission—you just can’t make this $#!+ up! And Mike takes it all on with satiric flair while revealing his struggle with coming out, coping with the aftermath of the AIDs epidemic and finding true friends in unlikely places.
Based on true experiences, Seriously, You Can’t Make This $#!+ Up! is just as laugh-out-loud fun as it is undeniably heartwarming.
Going from his comfortable closet to the retail world, Mike never expected the crazy drama he would encounter. From hoity-toity Sheboygan shoppers to crafty shoplifters, religious fanatics, screaming kids, racists, entitled “Karens,” and drag queens to an evil store manager and her slimy sidekick, a co-worker who thinks she’s an African queen and vicious coworkers scrapping over a whopping 1% commission—you just can’t make this $#!+ up! And Mike takes it all on with satiric flair while revealing his struggle with coming out, coping with the aftermath of the AIDs epidemic and finding true friends in unlikely places.
Based on true experiences, Seriously, You Can’t Make This $#!+ Up! is just as laugh-out-loud fun as it is undeniably heartwarming.
319 pages, Kindle Edition
Published January 4, 2023
6 people are currently reading
18 people want to read
About the author
Mike Triggs
2 books5 followersFormer political 'Golden Boy' reduced to selling underwear at a high-end department store.
Overachiever, customer service 'Rock Star' & storyteller extraordinaire.
Prior to coming to work for the Nordstrom and Von Maur Department stores and a men's boutique at The Phoenician Resort, I was a policy analyst for the Iowa and Wisconsin legislatures, worked for two Governors and a Secretary of State, was a political appointee in the administration of President George H. W. Bush and the Executive Director of the Minnesota Republican Party. I've been a lobbyist for Planned Parenthood of Minnesota and South Dakota and a freelance writer. I've had Guest Opinions published in the newspapers throughout Minnesota, Iowa, Wisconsin and Arizona.
After being “outed” and ripped from my comfortable closet by a right-wing political opponent I became an LGBT and Democrat Party activist. I was one of Mayor Pete Buttigieg’s early supporters in the Iowa Caucuses. I Chaired the Arizona Human Rights Fund Dinner, was a board member for both the Phoenix Gay Men’s Chorus and Desert Overture, a LGBT concert band and was a judge for the GLAAD Media Awards for Outstanding Print Article.
Overachiever, customer service 'Rock Star' & storyteller extraordinaire.
Prior to coming to work for the Nordstrom and Von Maur Department stores and a men's boutique at The Phoenician Resort, I was a policy analyst for the Iowa and Wisconsin legislatures, worked for two Governors and a Secretary of State, was a political appointee in the administration of President George H. W. Bush and the Executive Director of the Minnesota Republican Party. I've been a lobbyist for Planned Parenthood of Minnesota and South Dakota and a freelance writer. I've had Guest Opinions published in the newspapers throughout Minnesota, Iowa, Wisconsin and Arizona.
After being “outed” and ripped from my comfortable closet by a right-wing political opponent I became an LGBT and Democrat Party activist. I was one of Mayor Pete Buttigieg’s early supporters in the Iowa Caucuses. I Chaired the Arizona Human Rights Fund Dinner, was a board member for both the Phoenix Gay Men’s Chorus and Desert Overture, a LGBT concert band and was a judge for the GLAAD Media Awards for Outstanding Print Article.
Ratings & Reviews
Friends & Following
Create a free account to discover what your friends think of this book!
Community Reviews
Displaying 1 - 5 of 5 reviews
December 28, 2023
I wouldn’t feel good about leaving a review because it’s my book!
That said, I hope you will give this first time writer a chance!
You really can’t make this $#!+ up!
That said, I hope you will give this first time writer a chance!
You really can’t make this $#!+ up!
February 18, 2023
This was a phenomenal read! It's been a rough couple of weeks and I really needed an escape. Well, this book was the escape i needed! I haven't had the experience in a long time of "oh i should probably put this down and go to bed" ... and then 15 chapters/stories later I'm still going strong. Mike does a great job of inviting the reader into his world. I don't remember the last time that I laughed out loud while reading before. This book was definitely the escape that I needed! Though most of the stories are funny and absurd, there are also some poignant moments of clarity where you -as the reader- are able to feel the weight of some heavier themes touched on throughout the book. The book is brilliantly written! Stop reading my review, and start reading the book! You're gonna love it!!!
November 16, 2023
I lived in Iowa for many years and was near the Von Maur store in Coralville. Yes, their customer service was legendary and I always wondered what went on behind the scenes. This book gives a look at customers and co-workers who have surprising and shocking behaviors. At times, I was laughing-out-loud, though, at the humorous and silly shenanigans that Mike related working in this high-end department store. The poignant chapters on the young man dying of AIDS and his funeral were touching.
Sadly, this book suffered from very poor proofreading! I marked with a pencil dozens and dozens of errors throughout the book. And no, I am not an English teacher. Not sure how a book gets published with all these mistakes! Did the editor read the book?!
Sadly, this book suffered from very poor proofreading! I marked with a pencil dozens and dozens of errors throughout the book. And no, I am not an English teacher. Not sure how a book gets published with all these mistakes! Did the editor read the book?!
March 31, 2023
Creative. Quirky. Laugh-out-loud funny. I could just see the stories unfold and looked forward to reading the next installments every night until I finished it.
June 3, 2023
Fantastic story line, very engaging and enjoyable to read! The Author’s message really comes through!
Displaying 1 - 5 of 5 reviews