Tuesday, June 23, 2009

Get A Job!


Do you remember your first job? I do -- I wasn't in the building 5 minutes before I walked out the door! It sounds horrible, I know, but it turned out to be a telemarketing job. I had no idea when they hired me because they weren't clear on what I'd be doing, other than answering phones. When I showed up on my first day, I was instructed what to do. Someone sat me down at a cubicle and walked away. I think I picked up the receiver, looked at what I was supposed to say, and then walked right out. There was just no way I could do that. Obviously, I've never listed that on a resume.

After high school, my mom didn't have money to send me to college, so I worked a variety of jobs. At the time, I was really into The Who and my main interest was traveling to England with my friends who liked the band. I got various jobs to earn money to do that. I worked as a hospital housekeeper several times, worked in a hospital laundry, did cashier work at a department store, worked in a deli, was a receptionist at a hospital, which later turned into a full-charge bookkeeping job. Believe it or not, but I liked the housekeeping jobs way more than I liked the bookkeeping one. Oh sure, I got to wear nice dresses and high heels as a bookkeeper, but it didn't matter how good I looked if I made a mistake on someone's paycheck and they got all pissed off at me. Working in a hospital in housekeeping was actually fun. It was like being a fly on the wall because I got to see every department at all different times of the day and night. Unlike other hospital jobs, I wasn't confined to a lab or nurses station or kitchen -- I was everywhere. I got to talk to everyone, from the kitchen staff, to the doctors, to the patients.

My favorite job was when I worked as a veterinary assistant for the Pet Emergency Clinic. It was like an ER for pets, and it was only open at night when regular vets were closed. They hired me with no experience and trained me. My first day there was wild. The vet and an assistant were working on a huge dog on the table, while another assistant was struggling with a ferocious cat in one of the kennels. The vet told me to help the lady with the cat and I will never forget what came to mind. I thought to myself, "Oh, my, God! What did I get myself into? I can't do this!" However, I had no choice and had to help the poor lady with the spastic cat. Turned out, I LOVED the job and I'd do it again in a heartbeat.

In my picture book, A New Job for Dilly, there is a little rat who loves sour pickles. The problem is that he hates stealing them. He doesn't like being called a thief and doesn't like being chased. Dilly decides to look for a job so he doesn't have to steal pickles. An honest rat -- who would have guessed! Dilly tries jobs from A to Z to find the perfect one for him. I can't say I've tried as many jobs as Dilly, but I see the reasoning behind his search. There was one thing he loved most -- pickles -- and he was willing to do whatever he could to get them. As I got older, my one thing was my kids, which is why I decided to be a stay-at-home mom so I could be with them. It's definitely been my most challenging job to date, as well as most rewarding.

My host for Dilly's blog tour today is Elysabeth Eldering on her JGDS blog. Elysabeth is the author of the Junior Geography Detective Squad book series published by 4RV Publishing. Today she's featuring Dilly and a job related tour stop. I hope you'll hop over there and check it out. Also, remember you can win an autographed copy of A New Job for Dilly by simply leaving FOUR comments throughout our 7-day blog tour. Now I leave you with this classic, which could very well be Dilly's theme song ...




10 comments:

  1. I'm sure you're enjoying the tour!

    That video's a hoot. Look at all those neat and clean white kids!

    My parents had my sister and me working for money from when we were little. I think the most must fun we had was being the gas pump attendants at our Mobile gas station. I was like years old or there abouts.

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  2. I've heard the song, but never seen it performed.
    My first job was part time selling boat stickers at a state park. I sat in a lawn chair and read most of the day!

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  3. My first job was a housekeeper at a hotel in the town I lived in. I loved it. You went in early in the morning, cleaned mostly by yourself, got to watch tv in the room while you cleaned, and got off early enough to still enjoy your day. I also worked as a busgirl at a restaurant in the same town. I loved that too, super easy!

    Hope the blog tour keeps going well!

    Nancy

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  4. I do remember my first job...it was at Hardees (now known for Carls Jr.) We did some pretty crazy things. Like...roll up the foil and zip them down the hamburger shoots to see how far out in the lobby they would go. Or...how about the times we took turns going to the freezer to eat FROZEN COOKIE DOUGH!! =O

    =D hahahaha

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  5. My first job was as a cashier in a shoe store. Wow! That was a while back *lol* BTW, love the pickle frog in your last post. Too cute!

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  6. The minute we got home from college, during the summers, my parents used to sing "Get a Job!" at me and my siblings. Subtle, don't you think?

    Hope your day gets sunshinier. Check out the comment you made here about all the things you have to be thankful for. That might make you feel better. : )

    http://suzannecasamento.blogspot.com/2009/06/question-of-day-217.html

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  7. I also didn't go to college. I worked as a hair dresser right out of Beauty School many many many moons ago :)

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  8. I remember showing up for what I thought was a real job and realizing I was supposed to sell laser cartridges by pretending that it was just a reorder. I didn't stick around there either!

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  9. I was 16 when I got my first job was as a waitress at a chicken and rib place called Jeds. I worked there until I was 19. When I finally went off to college ( I stayed out a year after HS), two of my regulars left me a $200 tip and a pair of new hiking boots. I loved waiting tables!

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  10. My first 'real' job (babysitting and umpiring baseball games aside) was working in a hotel. I started there on a co-op program from school when I was 15 and got to work at the front desk, the restaurant, the bar (not serving obviously) and housekeeping. When I finished the program, I was offered a job in every department except the bar and chose the front desk. It was an awesome job and I was the youngest person to ever work the desk. I worked there for over 10 years - put myself through college and ended up as the catering manager.

    Sadly the pay was awful and I left the hotel when I was 25 - but I still miss it sometimes. You just never knew what could happen next - and how you would handle it!

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