Honestly, this drives me crazy as well. Especially the arm thing.
I don't have to walk home at midnight, thankfully, but from my job to my home is 8km, or about an hour and a half. I'm four months pregnant. My feet are swollen and painful already. I agree with you wholeheartedly, what if you were their daughter- would they want you walking home at midnight? What if I were their wife? Shameful.
I know retail sucks, because I myself worked retail for years while I was in University. Seriously, though, all jobs have their pitfalls, and whining about it isn't going to make it any better. I would wager that the majority of people dislike their jobs at least some of the time. If you don't like it, you are the only one with the power ot change your circumstances.
Wow, it'll be great when you actually have kids and they decide to assert their independence by eating nothing but grilled cheese for a week...
Re: “Where have all the good people gone?”
Stop letting yourself be a doormat for these people. They are not your friends. Trust me, I was a doormat fora long time before I smartened up and started investing time in a much smaller group of people who know what friendship is.
You are being used, and true friends wouldn't do that to you.