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I've had a few jobs. Part I posted Sunday, April 18, 2004
Jack of all trades, master of none. After my first "situation" at one of my current jobs here in Airlie Beach, Australia, it made me glance back at all of the work opportunities I've had and the moments of experience in the past. The ones that I quit and the few that didn't make it past the 3 month probation period that I was given. Get comfy, this may take awhile.
My first paid job was roughly at the age of 13. Delivering newspapers to a few hundred houses 3 times a week. I still vividly remember, my ink stained hands and clothes from handling papers, the tricks I learned from fending off one certain dog that had it in for me and how often I'd deliver the day before or the day after to suit whatever schedule a 13 y/o could have. To compensate, cold winters were warmed up with sympathetic people and their hot chocolate. I think I earned about $50/week as my salary and $80/year over the Christmas season from tips.
A little later I wound up selling the Toronto Star newspaper. Although at 15 I was the oldest in the crew it didn't stop me from enjoying the bonuses for being top seller. Strongly against my dads wishes, I learned to drive my first 5-speed car with that boss. We would also drive around each flapping an arm out the front windows pretending the 15 passenger company van was a giant seagull.
During Grade 9, with the help of inside connections I was taught how to hose down a box of human waste. Not like there's much to learn. Actually to be more precise I was deemed worthy of power washing portable out houses that were rented out to concerts or weddings and such. Thankfully I didn't get the pleasure of pumping out the treasure. I simply had to spray off any toilet paper from the walls and roof caused by misfits tipping them. I quit that job after the summer but I was made aware of my poor attitude during my time there. Other then the normal dirty underwear that ceased to surprise me, the weirdest thing I found inside these foul smelling units was a womens urine funnel. You can try, but you'll never be able to take away our one advantage, sorry ladies!
With the power to stop traffic I felt I could conquer the world. While working in road construction with my mom, together somehow we inherited about 4 or 5 STOP/SLOW traffic signs and still have them in our garage. Feeling powerful doesn't mean I had power. With a stretch of road about 1KM long and 1 lane closed for bridge rebuild, some excited people would prefer to ignore my stop sign being waved frantically and tackle a loaded dump truck coming the other way head on with no room on either side of one lane for error. I did my job, the rest is fate.
Next I helped stock a new grocery store in town. But not long after the job was done and the doors opened for the first time I was laid off. Easy to see it was my attitude though. So this is number 2 attitude problem. Try and keep track.
During the same period I was in charge of cleaning the local laundromat. At 16 having full key possession was of course another powerful feeling. After making a few mistakes, such as getting busted by the cops after becoming completely hammered for my very first time at 3am with friends inside the store and snoring on the counter during a quiet Sunday at cash after a very late party the prior night, made me realize I was lucky to have had an employer that kept me fore 3 years until I quit a year later.
Delivering for Pizza Hut was, at the that stage the best job ever. Without a doubt I give a 100 percent at every job, so while I continue to point out all my flub ups, no means does it intend to cast a shadow on my skills. Because without sunshine there is no shadow. I had my first off the record car accident with two pizzas as my passengers. The pickup truck driver let me go, so I drove away in the dark with smashed headlights and grill while I was given two weeks to pay $100 for his dented bumper. Maybe not near as funny but memorable is when a supervisor from Pizza Hut emptied out 4 liters of Pepsi at closing time to fill them with beer from the tap. Ironically at the age of 17 I still wasn't immune to the taste of beer. Still it was the thought that counts.
Lets skip through a few quickly. I set up portable office trailers for a couple weeks. I learned a lot from that job as I do every job. I learned how to bypass the safety on air powered nail and staple guns by firing them through ceiling tiles or Styrofoam. I had small wounds to prove it.
At age 19, an upper engine technician was my title for a few months. I really enjoyed working at a 10 min. oil change center. The job was simply to fill up the oil after drained and check other the fluids. When I was bored, while no customers were around, it always seemed I was the only one working, stocking shelves, sweeping floors. I like to keep busy. The memorable parts were the tricks my slacker coworkers taught me. After one of us fires up the ignition, to run the new oil through the filter, its important to tune the radio to the India or Pakistan station and increase the volume 400% before shutting off the car. Rarely were we thanked for the surprise. We had a kick, with the expressions, when people thought we were drinking oil after throughly cleaning an oil container only to fill it with coke. We once charged someone the 5450 invoice number to their visa by mistake instead of the price. Our lobster dinner was exquisite that evening. All in all I was the one let go at the end of my probation. Mostly caused by my attitude, although I know I worked the hardest.
Selling organic meat freezer packages sure wasn't the easiest job. The packages included enough meat to last a full year. Min price was $3600. I'd spend 20 Mins. to 4 hours in the houses of strangers persuading them this was a good deal when I knew it wasn't. There were a couple of sales jobs like that. 1. Selling radio advertisements. I didn't make any money but I earned my first business card. 2. Selling the service of natural gas. Any home owner in Ontario may remember the deregulation of gas. People knocking on doors only interested in your signature, in which is the only way we get paid. I earned an average of $1400/week thanks to bonuses, before tax. A few weeks there were times I was honored with a $2500 check. Still I could no longer sell what I didn't believe in. Found out later I was only a few sales short of the amount to reach for an all inclusive trip to Mexico. Where as, I was leading up until the day I quit. I took a break from sales for awhile and wanted to follow the footsteps of my dad in his early years and obtained my truck drivers license.
To be continued.....
"If you have a career you enjoy, you'll never have to work a day in your life."
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 3 current comments...
Chris - 4/20/2004 Nice, I remember the paper delivery "tank" I wonder what ever happened to that...
Candice's Mom - 4/20/2004 You sure did have a lot of jobs, but I guess you haven't found what you really want to do yet or really have a purpose for a job. Maybe you should write a book, seems you are pretty good at that. Hope you find what you are looking for. Stay safe.
anette - 4/19/2004 zzz.. boring :] its fun 2 be back in norway.. im workin a bit and havin a great time here... the weather sucks.. but the people are great. i dont miss australia at all :) Have fun !!
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