The polite smile offered by a bored salesclerk (or by someone hearing a joke for the 100th time) pulls up the lips but, literally, stops there.

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During his two-month tenure as a salesclerk at Home Depot, Rekson made his mark by repeatedly spilling boxes of nails on the floor and accidentally banging into customers with large pieces of lumber.

NEWSWEEK: Culture

"In an official statement released to Wall Street analysts this morning, Home Depot said that it was paying the former salesclerk, Lucas Rekson, 24, the unprecedented sum on the condition that "he never shows up to work again.

NEWSWEEK: Culture

If you wanted to pick up a copy of Max Roach's classic "We Insist: Freedom Now Suite, " you wouldn't have to explain to the salesclerk how to spell his name then wait a week because the record's out of stock.

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