What Jobs Did You Have As A Kid

delivered papers..Sundays were the worst
mowed lawns in summer and shoveled walks and driveways in winter
worked in an apple orchard in the fall
gas pump jockey @ 2cents a gallon
worked in a cement plant making burial vaults for 2 weeks
also was a fill in pallbearer at a local funeral home
picked tobacco leaves...now that one really sucked as it was so hot

 

Babysitting. And LOTS of it. When I was about 12-13 I was booked almost every night. Then when I turned about 14 and moved away my brother and I delivered a free weekly paper to every home on our side of town making 2c a paper. That was a lot of work, especially in the winter

 

Let see upto 18 years old.... dishwasher and bus boy then I found a job at the mall lol thank goodness..

 

*2x daily chores and field work on the family farm from third grade through first year of college
*dishwasher at buffet restaurant during years 2-3 of college
*bank teller during rest of college years
*worked in quality control in a canning plant one summer

All helped me hone my work ethic, patience, and sense of humor!
All my bosses--except my Dad--tried to talk me out of leaving. I took that as a compliment each time!
For Dad, he was very happy to see me get off the farm and do something different with my life...

RICHARD

 

• Paperboy - delivered weekday afternoons and Saturday morning - age 12 - 14?
  
• Soccer Ref - age 10 - 14?
  
• IT Desktop Support - age 14 - 18

 

that's affirmative

 

At 14 I worked as a "gopher" at a Swenson's Hamburger Drive-in (Akron, Ohio). Then at 16 I worked at Akron Music Center downtown. After moving to California, I worked at an Albertson's as a bagger, then a checker till I went to college where I got a job at a pizza -parlor during my years at Chico.

This period right now, since May is the first time in 45 years I haven't worked... feels kinda weird, but also kinda good!

 

Delivered groceries on this gigantic bike with a huge basket on the front. I could make $25 with tips on a Saturday, big money [emoji383] for a 16 year old in 1965.

Delivered the Philly Evening Bulletin. People would leave their weekly fee inside of their storm doors in an envelope. Neighborhood junior gangsters started stealing the money [emoji383] and the newspapers. I quit when the Branch Manager trip to make me pay up for the thefts. May have been my first meaningful Fuck You.

Moving around by hand huge boxes of rags.

 

Paperboy from 11 till 16 yrs old. Then I worked as a bagboy at a supermarket where we also were janitors and floor cleaners. I also had small summer jobs as a landscaper and pool attendant.

Just before turning 18 the supermarket manager promoted me to cashier. Wow, I thought I had made it big in this world........

 

Starting at age 14, I lived with my aunt and uncle during the summers and worked as a farmhand. Threw thousands of hay bales during that time.

 

I can completely relate! Minimum wage was like $2.30 in '76 and the Albertson's I worked at was union, so I think we made $5 something! There was a strike and a couple of us younger guys and girl baggers (courtesy clerks) got upped to checker and $6 something to start... man... we were living!

 

Worked at burger chef ... precursor to McDonald's. 68 cents an hour. Then moved to bus boy at the local steak house 87 cents an hour. Cleared 25$ a week and was one of the envied at the time.

 

Babysitter for neighbors/parents' friends from about 13-15.
Summer job from a grant for our city in the 80's promoting "the arts".
A bunch of Community Theater kids going around to hospitals, nursing homes.
On weeknights a street in our city would be blocked off for us to
perform for the neighborhood with a live band and everything.
Broadway hits...singing and dancing.
Got about $70 a week but it was one of the most fun times of my
teenage years.
Had to grow up pretty quick by the time I hit 18-19 with my mom
getting sick but I'm grateful I got to do it.

 

the jobs I had before I could get a work permit were:
babysitting
detassling corn
roofer's helper
If I remember correctly I had to get my mother's signature on a work permit at age 15...then I could work legally anywhere, but with restricted hours until age 18.

 

Ages 14-16, did house cleaning and ironing for a couple who had a fairly large house and a daughter who was 2 years older than me; she was too busy with high school cheer-leading to help at home.

Age 16, left above for $.25 more an hour to work in a hospital laundry folding hot from the dryer towels, sheets, etc. Learned a valuable life lesson, find a job with AC!

Age 17-18, transferred from hospital laundry to hospital cafeteria (which had AC) as a cashier and food server.

 

Whew! Now that is hard work! I can just imagine you getting into a wrestling match with a buddy. You'll think of him as a bale of hay and away he goes!!

 

Yes, that was around the wages we got too. My younger brother and sister simply adored me since I was able to buy them things. My mom made me feel like a real man when she would praise me when I gave her some grocery money to help out around the house. It was my first real job with significant earnings. It made me very happy. I always wanted to help out since we were not well off.

Now, decades and decades later, I wish I didn't have to work anymore, ha! ha!

 

RICHARD

 

Delivered a weekly paper.....local dog chases local cat over local fence.....when I was around twelve to maybe fourteen.

Seems like there were a lot of paper routes for us back in the day.

Yard work from fourteen to sixteen.

First job at sixteen was a cable grip for a local television station for live local summer event coverage.

From almost seventeen, to eighteen after the teevee station I worked after school as a cashier/stockboy at a discount store, like Dollar General, before I split for college.

That was horrible, working retail for me was a nightmare. People were weird and rude, and those were the other employess.....the customers were even worse !