Remember that summer job??

ChuckleDoodle
Wed, 08 Sep 2010 13:29:19 +0000

The summer job I held right before college was at a carboard box making company. My dad, brother, uncle and aunt worked there so ithought I would be a shoe in for the laminator job. Unfortunately, it wasn’t that easy to get a job there…My dad came home one afternoon and told me that the foreman didn’t want a girl to work the floor- the job was too hard. Really? I was bummed but went looking for another job to get some money for college.

The next weekend my Dad drags me to the company picnic… yep same company that didn’t want me… Dad told me to just talk to the Foreman- first impressions and everything. I was too stubborn and wouldn’t do it. But opportunity came knocking at my door- they had a dunk tank and low and behold… the forman was sitting in the tank waiting for someone to dunk him. ;)

Against my brother’s advice, I paid my $1, stood at the line for the men and not the girls and dunked the foreman all three times. Made my day and the rest of the picnic really enjoyable.

My dad asked me later if I had talked with the Foreman. I told him not in a conventional manner but yeah, I gave him my point of view about his opinion. I told my dad what I had done, he just about bust a gut- along with all the other guys who found out that ChuckleDad’s little girl dunked the big bad foreman.

A few hours later, the Foreman comes up to my dad and tells him - hey ChuckleDad, bring your daughter to work on Monday. She has a job.

That was one of the better moments when my temper worked in my favor. Not many of those :)

As far as the job was concerned, I had to take long pieces of single wide cardboard about 40x80 inches, run them through a glue press (think elmers) and stick about 10 sheets together for the Miller Lite company. Place these sets in a giant press so the glue could set and then put them on a pallet. Repeat ad naseum. Add glue as required. Two weeks before college started an idiot co worker came up behind me and thought I was clear of the press. I wasn’t- the tip of my right thumb caught between the sliding part of the press and broke my thumb- about half way into the nail part. I could see the bone on the inside- wierd and kinda cool at the same time! I ended up pulling the thumbnail off and getting a splint for two months. Boy was it hell taking all the writing tests for college. The good part- that thumbnail is the only one that I like now- it grew back straighter and better.

I think I made about $4 an hour for that. Boy does my son have it easy.