A group of us were chit-chatting (as we often do), and a friend of mine called our attention to an article, Seven Signs You’re Too Smart For Your Job.
She said she noticed it because it was linked to by a former employee of hers. This person (who apparently thinks that he/she is too smart for the job) failed to exhibit proficiency at either of the two jobs that were assigned, and refused to come to work if it snowed.
We all said that we have had entry-level – even menial – jobs during our working careers, but that we still learned something from each of them, and that there was satisfaction in a job well done, no matter how menial. Why is it that some individuals don’t know the meaning of the words “work ethic”?
I got to thinking this morning that it would be fun to share some of the entry-level/funniest/most mundane/first/strangest jobs that we have had.
My very first summer job was as a “swatcher.” What is a swatcher, you might wonder. I’ll explain.
The company I worked for, Beeline Fashions, sold clothing through home parties (think Tupperware). The actual clothing was exhibited at these parties, but many styles were available in a variety of colors, so a catalog was also provided to the sales associates. On these catalog pages were small samples – or swatches – of the fabric used for the clothing items.
A “swatcher” (there were many of us) was the person who glued the pieces of fabric on the catalog pages. We sat at long tables, and each person had a pile of catalog pages, and a pile of fabric swatches, a glue pot and a sponge held in a Boston BullDog clip.
Most of the day was spent gluing the fabric swatches on the catalog pages. Eight hours a day, five days a week. All summer. Occasionally, we had a change of task – collating the catalog pages into books. Pages were stacked in order on a table, and we walked around the table, picking the pages, then depositing the completed page bundles at the end of the line.
Fortunately, this job did not require silence, so we spent much of our time singing as we swatched (like “whistle while you work”?) Singing prevented insanity. And the money was okay for a high school girl – $1.25 an hour. I cleared $40.00 a week, and half of it went into savings.
Beeline was a good local employer; they hired housewives with children during the school year, adjusting their hours to accommodate school hours. In the summer, they hired high school students, who were happy to earn spending money and save a little for school. The jobs, however, were boring and repetitious.
Now it’s your turn. What job – first or otherwise – stands out in your mind? What is the worst/funniest/dirtiest/most boring job you have ever had?
Stella's Place 
That beats the heck out of my first paying gig. I made $20 for a day’s work in 1970 scooping out the horse pens in Eng Finney’s barn. It was old and about a foot thick. Everything has been uphill from there.
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The money is better, but the job is yuckier.
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You mean you’re supposed to get paid to do that?
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When it’s your neighbor and you’re 11. And it’s a foot thick. 😉
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Heck my folks always made us muck out ours and then volunteered our services to the neighbors.:)
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And if we complained, we were told you’re supposed to help your neighbor and what doesn’t kill you makes you stronger.
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I had many little cash jobs, but my first job where I received a paycheck that the government took their share of was in a HB joint.
BTW, I just learned you had started your own blog.
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Thanks for looking and commenting! I’ve had it for quite a while, but didn’t do much with it. Now I am – or trying to.
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I’ll keep looking and commenting, sometimes I get lost these days with so many names I don’t recognize.lol
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Thanks, michellc. I’ll look forward to it.
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I will definitely be reading here. Glad to see it.
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Thanks tessa!
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My first job (paying taxes, etc.) was at a jewelry store – sales clerk and gift wrapper. It didn’t pay crap but was invaluable in life lessons. One day this ‘poor ol’ farmer’ came in right before closing – his anniversary was that day and he wanted to get a watch for his wife. He.Was.Filthy. Overalls, no shirt, sweaty & smelly and really impressive to this 18 yr. old skull-full-of-mush. So, (Trump voice) I proceeded to show him our watches – none of which impressed him, and he wanted to know if we had any better ones. We did, but they were in the safe and Godzilla (yes, I’ve worked for her in many of her incarnations) had to get them out.
Long story short, he bought the most expensive diamond-encrusted watch in the store. Pulled out a wad of bills as thick as a small log and paid for it – and thanked me for putting up with him because he was filthy from work and had simply run out of time.
I wrapped that watch the very prettiest I ever did at that store. Learned a lot – books, covers, 😉
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That’s a lovely story, WeeWeed, and you told it well.
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First of all, why you keep workin’ for Godzilla all these years. I’ve seen that same scenario in a car dealership where they walk out with momma’s brand spankin’ new Caddy and he gets back in his farm truck and goes home in his and she goes home in hers. Love that. 🙂
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She keeps disguisin’ herself….. and before I know it, there she is AGAIN!!! 😀
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My grandmother felt for various reasons that it would help me to have a job. So she talked to a friend of hers that owned a small janitorial firm and got me a job emptying waste baskets, dusting, and vacuuming at night. We would go to several office buildings and banks nightly and others all weekend. I was 12 years old. I did that until I was 16 and got my first W2 job as a department store phone operator on a PBX system.
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An old plug and key PBX? I learned to use one of them when I worked for a law firm (I was relief operator).
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That and I also had the responsibility of sending store charge card applications via FAX.
I had to wrap the application on a tube that would spin to be scanned and digitized. Incoming FAX’es came out on silver thermal paper that would turn black after a few years.
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I remember those cylinders with the silver thermal paper! From WAY back when. Also Telex and TWX, with the paper punch tape.
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I’ve never got to work with the Telex and TWX, but I saw them somewhere…
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You’re younger than I am.
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I don’t get along well with my age group socially.
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I never did either, but many of my old friends are now dead, unfortunately.
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Yup. Sadly.
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It looked a little like this…..
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I remember those, but this is what I’m talking about (early 1970’s):
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It was a brand new store and mall in the early 80’s. So they wouldn’t have had that there at all. I saw that while emptying waste baskets in some office building in the late 70’s
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Each pair of plugs completed a connection, and were associated with one key. The plug closer to the board was connected to the incoming trunk, and the outside plug went to the extension. The key could be opened to talk with the incoming party by pulling it towards you, and would “ring” the extension when pushed away from you.
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My first job was a Page in the local public library in 8th grade. I couldn’t believe someone was actually PAYING me to be around books all day. One of the perks that I especially loved was getting first dibs on whatever was the newest thing on the NYT list. My favorite job was “shelf washing”, taking all the books off the shelf, wiping them down, washing the shelf, putting books back on. The special detergent we used had a lovely verbena scent. I would actually volunteer to take over other Page’s sections because no one else seemed to like that particular task. That was maybe my first clue I wasn’t wired exactly like the other toys in the toybox.
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