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Home > Michelle's Blog > Previous Postings > 4/26/07
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Previous Postings |
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April 26, 2007:
Teenage Jobs
as an Iowan girl, I walked beans. For the "city folks" reading this, it's not like "walking your dog." Out of bed in the 5's, head out to the fields and just started walking for 8 hours, up and down the rows in the bean fields, chopping, pulling, or in some cases, hiding the weeds (just enough so that they could not be seen from the road - or the farmers house). It was endless, but I got paid $3.50 - which was a lot of money to a kid back in those days.
I remember this one farmer made us pull everything - we were not allowed to carry any sort of tool. I weighed about 80 lbs, so when I came to a chunk of corn stalks that I had to pull, it took my entire might and I still ended up on my butt. He was the same farmer who made us pull thistles - even today I cringe looking at those prickly things. I'm sure there are many reasons we each need therapy from youthful experiences, so I’ll add this to one of my reasons.
Another job I had was painting buses. The guy who owned the bus painting company was kind of, well, how do I say this....he only hired the young girls who also played sports and could wear a bikini top “appropriately”. We all liked that job because at 10 am and 2 pm, he took us to the local cafe and we got snacks. Benefits of wearing a bikini in your teens I guess. Perverted? Maybe, but again, good money – (let’s pretend this picture was me!!!)
I also had many jobs as a waitress. The most memorable was at the Princess Restaurant in Pocahontas, Iowa where my brother Bruce and I were the waiter and waitress. The owner, Art, allowed us to have dinner before we began our duties, to which we thought was so great, coming from a huge family who rarely ate out at restaurants. French Fries, Burgers, Yummy!!
on the counter, dug deep into this pot of "something" on the stove, and came out with a scoop of chicken broth and then about 6 chicken feet - toenails and all - and poured this concoction into the bowls. He put one
in front of each of us and said, "Dig in."
So we did. He showed us how to put the whole foot in our mouth, suck off the nail and spit it into another bowl and then "persuade" the meat and skin off with our tongues. Honestly, it was pretty good. I know you are probably about ready to hurl now, but I'm telling you, it wasn’t too bad. And felt kind of adventurous. I'd do well if I'm ever stranded on an island - especially one with chickens - because I can eat everything but the feathers and the beak!
I polled a few of my customers asking about their teenage jobs, and here were some of the responses. Bruce Bond from NWGG in Walla Walla, Washington said, “My career began mowing neighbor yards, then working as a box boy at a grocery store during my high school years.”
Randy Hehman from Premier Ag in Columbus, Ohio said in the early years, he was a paperboy after school. Then he worked at a gas station, washed cars at the local Ford dealership and finally landed with the US Air Force.Ruth Mangold from Innovative Ag in Monticello, Iowa said, “There were way too many responsibilities at home for me to have a summer job. Dad & Mom farmed 1000 acres, milked cows, raised hogs and chickens. I came from a large family like you. I was the 2nd in 13 children (8 boys 5 girls). My chores consisted of feeding and watering the chickens (cleaning the coop which I hated!!!!), gathering and washing eggs and packing for sale, mowing the lawn and gardening. I was a built in baby-sitter, of course, (there was always a BABY). I did get to baby-sit on weekends for neighbors for my spending money.
“The egg money was our grocery money to buy staples like flour, sugar and salt. Everything was made from scratch. During the summer I spent much of my time picking beans, peas and tomatoes by the 5 gallon buckets and sweet corn by the wheelbarrow. My job was to prepare fruits and vegetables for canning or freezing for our winter supplies. My summer jobs were not for monetary value, but I learned to work very hard and how important teamwork was in the farm family living. I was always busy, but you couldn't have found a more satisfied and happy kid!”
My dad told me his job was helping his dad deliver milk. They took the back seats out of the Model A car so they could fit the milk in the back. And in those days, not too many people had refrigeration, so they delivered twice a day – once for breakfast and once for supper. As a young lad helping his dad, he did not get paid for this job, but the reward he received was getting out of school early to help with the day’s second delivery. Plus, I think he got a nickel a week for allowance.
The jobs we had back then created a work ethic in us that is second to none. Work hard, but don’t forget to “play” hard too! A well rounded person understands that happiness is the ability to keep work and play in perspective when measuring life’s worth.
Keep Smiling!
Michelle
