Over on Author2Author, they've been discussing favorite teen jobs - always great fodder for a story or two. Teen jobs are usually sucky, minimum wage deals that you do for pocket change or so you won't have to beg your parents for money to buy new clothes all the time.
As I entered my teens, I babysat for people with lots of kids - at least 4 or 5 (or more) each. This was back in the day when most mothers still stayed home with the kids while the dads went off to work every day in the sole family car. To keep them quiet, I often sat them down at the kitchen table with a stack of paper, pencils and crayons and drew them while they worked on a picture of each other. This was good for an hour or two at least, despite comments like, "Mikey keeps sticking his tongue out at me" and "Annie keeps wiggling her eyebrows".
The first job I had after babysitting was working at MacDonald's. Yeah. I started on milkshakes, then moved on to french fries, dressing burgers, toasting buns, cooking burgers and working the counter. A favorite past time on a slow day was watching customers get out of their cars and predicting what they'd order before they approached the counter. I wrote a short story about this experience for a creative writing class in college.
Then I worked as a cocktail waitress at a student disco bar. It was loud and smoky with colored lights that flashed in time to pulsating, surround sound music. The tips were lousy but I had a lot of fun with the staff, especially after work. We went to Denny's for breakfast or over to somebody's apartment to unwind and laugh until our sides hurt. I often climbed into bed as the morning's first rays peeked over the horizon. After I'd had enough of drunks throwing up in my section, I asked to become a bartender. A slightly better job. I learned how to mix exotic drinks and to dance and play the air guitar. I also became a decent shot at pool or, as they called it, "billiards". The kiss-off song after last call was always "Last Dance" by Donna Summer. Anybody remember her?
I had other jobs, too. Carhop, aid for a special ed. teacher, clerical worker. I waitressed at the Moose Club, at a French restaurant and at a health food restaurant.
These summer jobs paid for most of my tuition and books as I worked my way through college. I developed an appreciation for all the people who work hard for a living and I know there's still a lot of stories to mine from the memories of every single one of them and the assortment of characters I worked with.
