Call Me Hoss (fake) News - Local teen unsure if he received compliment.

Local teen unsure if "I like the cut of your jib." is a compliment
by Nathan Holtslander

SCHAUMBURG, IL - Michael Ray is still looking for answers today to whether or not his boss paid him a compliment last Saturday evening. The 17 year old senior at Schaumburg High School works part time at the Osco Drug Store at 1801 W Golf Rd, had just finished restocking an end cap of Angel Soft toilet paper, a task that was neither required nor requested of him, on Saturday night when he received a peculiar comment from his supervisor.

He told me, "You know what? 'I like the cut of your jib, kid.' And then he just walked away." said Ray.

Ray, who is a reserve on the Saxons basketball team who plans to attend Valparaiso University in the fall, said he does enjoy receiving commendations if he performs above and beyond expectations, he just wishes the accolades would be a little easier to understand.

"I asked my dad (William Ray, 51, also of Schaumburg) what 'I like the cut of your jib' means. He said that it's something old guys say to each other. Like a way of letting the other know that they like how that person does things. So, I guess that's a compliment. My stepmom (Stephanie Taylor-Ray, 31) didn't know what it meant, either."

Michael's supervisor, Donald Jenkins, 55, of Hanover Park has been managing the store for the past four years and reportedly has a penchant for saying cryptic and sometimes confusing things to his employees.

"I remember once, we had a big order of Halloween candy to put away." recalls Desiree Johnson, 20, a former employee who is currently a sophomore at Northern Illinois University. "We had been stocking the candy pretty quickly, I mean a lot faster than we expected. Don walked by and told me and the other girl I was working with, "Now your cooking with gas." He went away and me and the other girl just stared at each other for a while. We thought about asking him later what it [his comment] meant, but we didn't want to run the risk of him seeing us and and making us work late. We already had plans to go to a really big house party that night."

As for Ray, he said that while he doesn't fully understand everything his boss tells him, he is still content with his job.

"Sure, working there is fine. I mean there's days when you get a shipment in and are putting away a bunch of merchandise and that sucks. But, it gives me some money to put in my gas tank and they don't seem to notice if you go out and get a little high on your lunch break, which is pretty chill."

Jenkins has this week off and could not be reached for comment on this story and did not immediately return messages left at his home or the Easy Street Pub at 17 S Roselle Rd in Schaumburg, which those close to him describe as his "home away from home."