Archive through February 05, 2002

The ClubHouse: Archives: A poll of our professions/jobs: Archive through February 05, 2002

Oregonfire

Saturday, February 02, 2002 - 08:04 pm Click here to edit this post
Max, were you in Corvallis today? I say an ocean blue PT Cruiser with these purple swirly details on the side and back. In the back window a sticker said PT Cruiser Club. The woman driving was wearing glasses, was thin (sucessful dieter?), and had orangish blonde hair. Anyway, I just thought I'd ask. :)

Oregonfire

Saturday, February 02, 2002 - 08:38 pm Click here to edit this post
I had to relive the whole parade of minimum wage jobs just two weeks ago at the Social Security office, so I think I'll skip the gory details. A couple of highlights:

I was a car flagger for a summer at a huge outdoor amplitheatre in the high desert of Washington. I was more technically "security" for the concert, but didn't like frisking folks going into the show. Flagging was perfect for me. Get those cars in neat little row, get them out after the concert--it was like working a very large puzzle with many pieces moving at once. I liked that job.

We also got to go into the show for about an hour when things slowed down. That's how I got to see Dave Matthews, Phish, Bare Naked Ladies, and Ozzfest, my favorite for pure mayhem and concert madness. It was so hot that day--I'm so surprised(happily) no one died of dehydration. I ended up letting some poor guy who'd been abandoned by his friends sleep on my couch and take the bus to Seattle the next day.

The other bizarro job I had was as a "hostess" in Tokyo, Japan. As a hostess, you drink with Japanese businessmen, sink karaoke, dance with them, and basically flatter their egos for a living. It's not what you think! Listen, I felt way less like an "escort" doing that job than I did teaching English over there, and it was well worth the money. I also made some good friends, mostly European, or Australian girls doing the work. Most girls would take their money and go to
Thailand or India and party up a storm, a vicious circle sometimes for some. I took my money and went to India and Nepal. I have many, many wild stories from that job experience, but you'll just have to wait for my "Memoirs of a Geisha" to come out! :)

Donut

Saturday, February 02, 2002 - 11:00 pm Click here to edit this post
this is just the most amazing thread! I was really leery about starting it, because i figured that wherever you go people ask "what do you do" and we are so different here and free of the usual bulls**t of the world, that noone would want to discuss this stuff, but it turns out that once again, this group can put the most wonderful spin on discussions that would be mundane and superficial anywhere else. i am honored to be hanging here with such cool people. i think that all resumes should change and be written in the manner of these posts...

Urgrace

Sunday, February 03, 2002 - 01:19 am Click here to edit this post
There were only two paid jobs for me during high school, one babysitting and the other working in a department store as a sales clerk. My unpaid job was office assistant for the high school. I never intended to go to college and went to work in a finance company as the bookkeeper/paper pusher/cashier/clerk. Then I went to work in a credit bureau as a credit investigator (liked the job but couldn't stand working for the pompous manager). After I moved (and got divorced) I went to work for the County Tax Assessor/Collector for about 4 hours. He never showed up, but the spittoons sitting around the office convinced me I didn't want to work there. The next job that offered me a position got me. It was the city Chamber of Commerce who hired me as a secretary to the manager. While I was working there I coordinated and directed six divisions of beauty pageants and several parades. I also took a part time job doing secretarial work for the local Country club. I went to Mercer University to barber school after work. Well, two jobs, school, three kids and no spare time was a little more than I expected to handle and wore me down, so I did a real crazy thing and quit - work and school! I did a short stint in a beauty salon working as a shampoo clerk (it closed). From there I worked in a catalog store, first as a clerk, then as the credit investigator. This led me back to finance where I started at a large financial services company as a cashier (used my first computer like the one mentioned above that took up a city block of warehouses) and worked my way up to customer service representative and assistant manager. This meant going out and knocking on doors to collect unpaid debts. It was also the times when all offices were colorizing and genderizing and downsizing according to the position and number of employees (it's now closed). I was laid off the day before I planned to quit which helped me out financially, and I moved again. The job market was unbelievable in my new home, and I ended up on unemployment for a few weeks before I was finally hired. I did go to work as a school bus driver, but because I knew so much about the inner workings, engine parts, motor, transmission, etc. of the bus the boss took me out on a test drive the first day to test me on the icy roads. When we got back the other drivers were furious at me, because the boss had never taken anyone out for their test drive until they had been there weeks learning the inner workings of bus driving. I was ostracized and left feeling I could never work with such narrow minded people. It turned out good because I found a job as a secretary for Ed Lowe the Kitty Litter King. He had bought a town and refurbished it to bring in tourists for a seasonal attraction. That was a fun job (it's closed too), but I needed a permanent one. A few months later I was working as a bookkeeper in an aircraft products company office, but moved into the factory as a sub-assembler and inspector. I also did some assembly, packaging, inventory, and tool design. This was one of the most enjoyable jobs I ever had, because the people I worked with respected my hard work and rewarded me in kind. They also recommended me for my next job, unbeknownst to me at the time. The company was being sold (closed) and moving out of state. No one was going with the company. I was called at work and offered my next job, and my supervisor advised me in confidence to take it. I went to work as a shipping and billing clerk in another factory office, and met my hubby while working there. The company was opening a new factory in Texas, and asked us to move here with the company [by the way this division moved to another part of the country a few years later(closed)]. My hubby decided I didn't need to work anymore, so I spent several years volunteering at many endeavors. The one I liked best was fund raising. A friend needed someone to help with organizing their credit department, so I went back to work as a credit manager, setting up new accounts, working old accounts and collecting past due accounts that had not been touched for months. I brought this department from the basement to a polished up to date one in three months. Then I tried to become a travel agent. I say I tried, because after one year of classes, monies paid, and free labor as a tour coordinator my certificate was worthless. The manager and teacher was a fraud and was convicted.(the agency closed) I went to work for myself then as a newcomer greeter-business promoter, and worked part-time as the auditor for a motel. I decided I needed to work full time and make more money, so I went to work for a John Deere equipment company in the accounts receivable dept. A few months later it closed! I bartended, worked as a personal housekeeper, did yard work, mowing, tree trimming, house painting, and some interior design while I was in college as a non-traditional student, but when my son had an automobile wreck and needed surgery I quit school and went to work full time to help him out. This time I went to work as an auditor for another motel, and became Guest Service Manager. This was the longest lasting job I ever had. I also took a part time summer job a year ago at a mail/package shop.(sold) There has been little rhyme or reason to my job history, especially since most of the places I've worked are no longer in existence!! My most recent job is foster care parenting with mentally and physically challenged child, something I've been doing for nearly 31 years, but have to take courses to qualify! Most of the jobs I've had have been fun, and I feel lucky to have had experiences in so many fields of endeavor! I also am very fortunate that I don't have to work outside the home unless I want to.

Solidsnake

Sunday, February 03, 2002 - 02:43 am Click here to edit this post
could i offer you some double-space ugrace ?

Abbynormal

Sunday, February 03, 2002 - 05:02 am Click here to edit this post
My very first job was a car hop. I can remember *Benny and the Jets* on the jukebox like it was yesterday. During high school I worked for a car dealership in the office. I also worked one summer at Wendy's. We were the #1 store at the time and got a visit from Dave Thomas and his wife. I still have the *hot and juicy* pin he gave me.

After high school I worked for a local newspaper as a typist. BORING

I went into the Air Force and was assigned to the heavy equipment shop. Token female. Now that was a blast! I also worked in the forestry department with all civilians and did a stint at the golf course watering and watching t.v.

I have also been:
photographer's asst
manager of an art gallery
manager of a retail clothing store
manager of a Blockbuster Video(THE HARDEST)
bartender
waitress
block clerk at a car auction
light bulb maker
built cams for timers
switchboard operator
billing clerk
manager of a dentist office

I worked for the largest mortgage co. in Alabama for 5 yrs. in accts. recv. (clue above as to whose mortgage we held) As if that wasn't enough stress I moved over to FHA collections, getting them ready for foreclosure.

All I ever wanted to do was be a wife and mom and I am that, so I consider myself successful.

Aussiedeb

Sunday, February 03, 2002 - 08:29 am Click here to edit this post
Wow what a great thread..

Ok here is my list:
First Part : Australia..

Started work at 14 working in a kitchen of a hotel doing wedding receptions with my mom (who was a chef), there was no minimum wage as it was the hotel trade in Australia..

Graduated High School, took a summer job with K-Mart doing checkout..
Then went and took a Receptionist Course..
Worked for an insurance company for a couple of months..
Goverment Credit Union for a year..(i used to dress really out of the ordinary too..it was fun, had many "liquid" lunches lol
Worked in Medical Records for the main jail in sydney for a couple of months..
Joined the Aussie Air Force for 7 years doing Purchasing, Stock Control...that was definately the most fun..
Had a couple of kids...
Worked part time for K-Mart again in their restaurant...
Then onto the west coast of Australia..
Work for over 4years for a Pharmaceutical/Chemical company doing customer service and Purchasing again..(i loved spending other peoples money lol)


Then onto the USA:

Came to the US and got married...
Was stuck at home till I got my Work Permit, spent a few months doing nothing, got really depressed bad, so hubby suggested I put my name in anywhere, so as to get a US reference..

No one would hire me at first, but I would get interviews, just so they could hear me speak, I was a novelty I guess..

Got accepted at my local grocery store with minimum wage arrhhhh... but at least I got out of the house and met people and made friends..
Im still working there now as no one will hire me now as I didnt have a degree in anything, plus people still think of me as a novelty...

I have been accepted into college to start in the spring, and will be doing my Associates Degree in Business Management...

I want to get back to office work and purchasing so bad...I just wish they would have accepted all my experience but oh well....
Will still be working part time at the store so I have a little extra money...plus I have a car now..whoohoo....


Well thats about all for me then...am quite nervous about college though, been too many years outta school....

Dahli

Sunday, February 03, 2002 - 09:34 am Click here to edit this post
Back in 76 my first husband and I opened a travel agency, he was a 'morning man' on a top 40 radio station - so after 9AM he could do whatever - so travelling it was! We found the seventies and eighties an extremely lucrative time to be in the industry and travelled the world for free!
We split and sold it - I moved on to a tour company - in the reservations department and working with travel agents and not the public was a nice break,since being a wholesaler is a whole other travel world!

When I remarried and went back to retail as a manager in a local agency I found that side of the business changed a lot and not for the better...

Then decided to join a US company which creates software for travel businesses. We develop, install, train and support entire reservation and operation softwares in all manner of tour and travel companies throughout the US and Canada, Australia and Europe. We all have extensive travel backgrounds in addition to technical expertise which is a huge advantage for the client and our strong point. Travel people are always struggling to explain their business and their needs to computer people but with us 'we get it'!

To be able to travel to these offices, meet different people and bring to them a software solution that makes their business so much more efficient and pleasant is absolutely wonderful, and when I am not travelling about, I work in my office which is in my home where I can support and train right in their systems thanks to the internet and pcAnywhere.

Things changed a bit after 9 11 but seem to be picking back up again.

I do get a tad lonely between trips but technology helps me keep connected not only through work but here as well!

Donut

Sunday, February 03, 2002 - 10:21 am Click here to edit this post
Oregon- you are a trip!:)

Abby-we always knew you were hot and juicy!

Tess- my hub loves maps especially old ones and is fascinated in your map training-- also, i know what you mean about the BK thing. I liked doing pizza delivery this year, even if i was probably the only 40sumthing OT doing it! If anyone needs a few bucks, its pretty easy to walk into any pizza place and just start working without any resume or experience or hassle and it pays more than min wage with the tips, and more than most temp office jobs

Car54-he is especially enthralled with your job,cuz his fantasydream job is to have a little gift shop in MA

oh yeah, and i forgot some other jobs i had beside those listed up above, i worked in the office of a shady used car dealer named Louie(he was the clone of Louie on Taxi)and i helped a friend by filling in as a cocktail waitress at a private club in Palm Beach, even tho i didnt know a martini from a manhattan(i only knew kahlua and cheapwine)
and i was a Licensed Massage Therapist in MA and when i moved to FL, stupidly turned down a gig massaging the rich and famous at the Breakers in Palm Beach cuz i didnt want to work weekends. Instead i did hospital OT 3x a week and rode my bike to the beach the other 4 days. With all my roomates, rent was like 50$ a month so i could afford to not work much. those were the days. Now back in MA, 50 bucks wouldnt buy you half a cockroach in the corner of an apartment!

Aussiedeb

Sunday, February 03, 2002 - 10:35 am Click here to edit this post
Dahli...wow..I would love a job like that one...Maybe once I get my degree I might get into the travel business...my ex sis in law was a travel agent manager and also worked in wholesale travel, she said that part was much better..When she moved from the east coast of Oz to the west coast, she was the only person they could find who could use both travel softwares...
I know sabre is one, but cant think of the name of the other system...
My dream job when I was growing up was to work for Qantas doing ticketing..oh well..guess I had better get myself into gear hear and head to my minimum wage job this afternoon...

Dahli

Sunday, February 03, 2002 - 11:49 am Click here to edit this post
Good Luck Aussie! We had the joy of having a gal from Australia working at our agency for a while and she was a favourite - one reason of course people loved her accent, and secondly she knew 'Down Under' like no other!
You are right about the wholesale side knowing and handling one product is much less stressful than having to know about any and every one as travel agents do.

Funny enough I get a lot of teasing from some of my American installations about MY accent which always cracks me up since this part of Canada is known for having the most correct (read dictionary) pronunciation of anywhere in North America, which is why some large companies (Staples) locate their call centres here!

Llkoolaid

Sunday, February 03, 2002 - 12:08 pm Click here to edit this post
I had a few crappy jobs before I had kids. I wanted to stay home and raise them myself and that is what I do. I volunteer a lot at the school and for Ground Search and Rescue. I wish I got a paycheck for my job.

Dahli, which province are you in. I am a Canadian too. It can't be Nova Scotia because there are more accents in this province than I can count.

Dahli

Sunday, February 03, 2002 - 01:26 pm Click here to edit this post
You're so right Kool Nova Scotia does for sure

We are smack dab in the middle of nowhere! SASKATCHEWAN...

The first person to tell me that about this part of the country was Prince Philip way back in the 80's he had been briefed on that very point before coming here and thought it most interesting!
Then when Staples said it - well ya gotta know it's true

Urgrace

Sunday, February 03, 2002 - 04:29 pm Click here to edit this post
Aussiedeb, don't be too worried about going back to college. I couldn't believe it when I enrolled and they accepted me right away! It was intimidating at first until I realized that my 'life's' training put me in a competitive seat. It was fun. You will do just fine. If there is a non-traditional club, join it. There are always other people just like you who will be there to help you and listen to you, critique your work and give you great advise.

Knightpatti

Sunday, February 03, 2002 - 09:40 pm Click here to edit this post
I have enjoyed all your stories. I just typed my story out and it took awhile but it is not here. Maybe I will do it again another time. Where did it go?

Luvmom

Monday, February 04, 2002 - 08:36 pm Click here to edit this post
Wow!After reading all of these wonderful posts,mine seems so quiet and boring.
I starting babysitting at 12 as most young girls do.At 15,I became a strawberry picker(FYI:Avoid this job at all costs!!)
At 16,I worked as a caterer at Grand Valley Golf and Country Club.
From there I became a full time waitress at the cafeteria in Woolco foe 5 years.Which brings me to the job i have now.I have been a home daycare worker for 11 1/2 years now.I'm back to doing what I started

Sunshinemiss

Monday, February 04, 2002 - 09:32 pm Click here to edit this post
Oh my. What a convoluted road most of us have taken to get where we are. Ok, here's my story, if the memory synapses are firing well enough tonight for me to be able to recall most of them...

My first "real" job (aside from the babysitting and lemonade stand type of pre-teen stuff) was at McDonalds, like so many of us... I was 14 1/2 and felt so grown up (ugh) it lasted about 6 months, I made enough money to buy my first car for $214 (a 1965 Corvair convertible, hah). My home sitation was terrible, and I got passed around between relatives a lot, so I didnt really work another job until I sued for emancipation at age 17, went to work at an answering service for minimum wage (which if I remember right was $1.87 an hour back in 1975). It was a fun place to work. I was very shy prior to that job, having come from an abusive atmosphere I was very withdrawn with a horrid self-image, and the ability to work via voice only, no face-to-face customer contact enabled me to be able to feel safe enough to allow my natural offbeat and quasi-gregarious personality to appear. (This may or may not have been a good thing, lol.)

Being the industrious type, and also struggling to support myself living alone in the expensive Bay Area at the age of 17, I took a side job delivering newspapers. Not the big ones, the little throwaways that clutter up your driveway. I was fascinated to discover that you got paid by the "piece" instead of hourly, so working harder actually got you paid more (not the norm unfortuately, IMO). This was a novel concept, and the work was pretty easy. I made enough money to buy myself a little moped, which enabled me to deliver a LOT more, and then I recruited my teenaged brother to pre-roll and rubber band the papers for me, and soon I was a mini-paper-mogul. This got me noticed at the newpaper office, and got me a offer to manage the other "paperboys" (I was the only girl) so I quit my answering service job . I eventually moved up to circulation manager, spent about 3 years there, but this was a small family owned business and unless you wre born into it or married into it, there was no future beyond where I was, and favoritism was rampant, which REALLY annoyed me (and still does).

My sister was employed at AT & T at the time as a long-distance operator, and the money was almost as good as where I was with a lot more opportunity for advancement, so I jumped ship for AT&T, worked there as a "dial 0" operator for almost 4 years, met my husband-to-be there, then when we got married we were told one of had to go, so I was happy to play stay-at-home wife... for about 6 months before I started going nuts.

Went to work in a little darkroom/photography studio, as it has always been a hobby of mine and I have always had my own darkroom... but the money was crummy and it was getting to the point where my husband and I just could not afford to live in the San Francisco area (a small 2 bdrm apt. was over $800 per month then, and that was 15 years ago!) so he put in for a transfer to the central valley area (which is where I still am) and I took a very interesting, if a bit creepy, job. I worked graveyard shift at the county, dispatching the coroners and mortuaries for any after hour deaths. I also dispatched taxicabs and tow trucks for the CHP.

My husband and I also worked weekends occasionally doing the antique-show circuit, having always been big collectors, we found (as do most die-hard collectors) that you can underwrite your collecting by selling. That has always been a great source of enjoyment for me, and I have continued to do that to this day, albeit on a much smaller level as it is too much work to do alone.

Well, after a few years my husband and I amicably parted ways, and I needed a better paying job, so I took a job managing the customer service phone banks at our local cable company. Well about a month after filing for divorce I found out I was pregnant (after having been told I could probably not have children) a lovely surprise but required a big shift in priorities. I took a step back at the cable co, worked in sales, made more money actually but more importantly I could set my own hours and spend more time with my son.

When he started school last year, I was ready to reorganize my private life a bit- working at the cable company was easy as far as work goes, but unfortuately the company has a very poor history and EVERYBODY in our area hates it, I never wanted to tell people where I worked and you would cringe before making any sales call... I have found from experience that any sentence that starts with "You people...." is seldom good, and I ws getting a lot of those. So, I took a course at my local EDD that allowed me to have a professional revamp my resume (for free! I highly recommend it for anyone in California, it is CalWorks and a great assett for jobseekers) and while I was there they would have recruiters coming in periodically, one of which was the company I curremtly work for.. alarge delivery service with an excellent rep, full benefits, great perks, unlimited opportunitues for advancement, and most importantly (to me) I look forward to going to work in the morning. I assist in training and supervising new employees in our major call center. It uses most of the skills I have developed over my lifetime, and at 42, I have never been more satisfied with my work situation.

Now, my personal life is another story, but we will save that for another thread and another day...

Egbok

Monday, February 04, 2002 - 09:33 pm Click here to edit this post
I really enjoyed reading everyone's posts on this thread! So much diversity here and lots of interesting stories.

I raised our three kidlets with my husband's help and took night classes at the local community college over many years. I worked part-time as a preschool teacher and then later moving onto elementary school as a Computer Lab Instructional Aide. These types of jobs let me be available to my children during most of their growing years. When our oldest was getting ready to enter college, I knew that I'd need some type of "real" job. I always liked my science classes and especially enjoyed medical terminology so I looked for certification classes for hospital jobs to meet my needs. For the last three years I've worked full-time in a hospital as a medical staff services credentialer. I can truly say that I love my job.

Ryn

Monday, February 04, 2002 - 09:35 pm Click here to edit this post
ok, here goes....... (yes, I am still about - lol)

in order as best I remember (some overlap, I had 3 jobs at the same time one summer)....

Babysitting, lawn care, typical stuff most kids do.

Corn Detassling (Several summers): Someone had to pull the tassles ya know! Seed corn is made this way.

Parsite lab technician at the local Vet School (2 summers, lotsa dead animals and poop): My dad is a Vet and got me in a lab working for another veterinarian.

Ground Crew (2 summers at a factory, lawn care basically): Best tan I ever had. Darn good money too!

Fast Food (Rax Roast Beef - 5 years off and on): The result of this job is I think all fast food employees nowadays are lazy and have no "sense of urgency" when it comes to the customer!!

Video Store (4 months or so): They wanted to make me an assistant manager, I decided I better get back to school and get a degree.

Waiter (1 summer): Got to wear a bow tie and learn how to calculate 15%. Taught me that tipping IS important. As a sidenote, my base pay (1986 I think) was $2.10 an hour plus tips. Last week a waitress at Applebees told me her base pay is $2.30 - so TIP your servers if they deserve it!!

Bank Examiner (Internship): I was working on my finance degree, not much I learned at this job except to keep my ties away from the shredder!

Dorm Room Counselor (3 semesters): Lowlight, a drunk resident peed on my doorknob cause he was mad at me, he flunked out at the end of the semester :)

'Statistical Accounting Technician' (Insurance company): Here I learned a valuable lesson, never make your job simple enough that anyone can do it, cause they will eliminate your job! I automated Lotus 1-2-3 spreadsheets to make the data input MUCH simpler (wrote LOTS of macros).

Real Estate Agent (yes, tis true, after I was "downsized" by the Insurance company): Didn't think you had to be a "salesman" to do this job, you do. Learned that there is a TON of stress in the field and that buyers really are liars - lol.

Network Engineer for a computer company (we serviced other companies): Escaped from the above job and worked for a small company where I learned a hell of a lot and earned lots of certificaitions that helped me land my current job.....

Network/Computer Manager for a university department (for the last 6 years): The department has 4 secretaries and me (plus the Faculty of course). I still have users using Word Perfect 5.1 and struggling with a mouse, and I also have Profs with their own websites that they update daily. Never a dull moment, especially when a new virus pops up or someone hacks the department website (todays big thrill).

I didn't mean to make it this long but oh well :)

OH - #1 job, husband to my wife of 10 yrs and father to my 3 wonderful boys :)

Egbok

Monday, February 04, 2002 - 09:43 pm Click here to edit this post
Hi Ryn!! Long time no read. Hope you, wife and boys are doing fine.

Merlin

Tuesday, February 05, 2002 - 06:34 am Click here to edit this post
Ryn, I can see how your previous job as a lab technician prepared you for what you had to deal with at TVCH when BB2 was in full swing.

Jewels

Tuesday, February 05, 2002 - 09:58 am Click here to edit this post
Wow! What a wide array of jobs everyone has had. This is a very interesting thread!

My first job was that of running a score clock at junior high basketball games, my dad was a coach/counselor/teacher there. I think they paid me like $5 for two games, but it was only twice a week for about a month. I was only 16 so it was something in my pocket!

When I was a senior in highschool I got a job at a Hallmark store. It was alot of fun mostly because of the people I worked with. Oh, the stories I could tell of our after and during work shenanigans. It wasn't the best place to learn how to behave in a workplace, when your boss is stealing stuff from the store and tells you to take what you want...not a good role model! I worked there my senior year/summer after and then some Christmas and summer vacations while in college when I was home.

After I decided not to go home anymore for vacations and stay in my college town (freedom!), my first job was working in a motel cleaning rooms. I lasted about two weeks before I got a job at an ice cream parlor/restaurant. I lived in a southern Oregon tourist town, it was a busy place. My boss was the most anal person I had ever met (he would get mad if you took more than 4 walking steps to make a milkshake because it took to much time, everything was organized for extreme efficiency), but look back now at it as a great experience. I still use lessons he taught me to this day. I worked there during the tourist season, March to October for about 3 years. The last year I was there I did all the cooking, it was the first time in 15 years that my boss took anytime off during the busy season, so he compensated me well for it!

During my last year of college in the off season I worked at a Teriyaki Grill. Great food, strange people to work with, but still a fun job. My boss, who was Japanese, was a great cook and if we worked the dinner shift he would cook us dinner after closing. My advice to any poor college student out there....get a job in a restaurant, at least you will be able to eat!

After I graduated from college with a BS in Marketing, I had no idea what I wanted to do with my life. I moved to another small town in Southern Oregon and got a job at Bear Creek Corporation, they own Harry & David and Jackson & Perkins, among others. I was a customer service rep during the holiday season. A pretty easy job if you can put up with being yelled at because someones pear arrived bruised. The things people call to complain about are amazing! I was in tears a couple times and as soon as I passed on the call to a supervisor, the customer would be as sweet as pie. I originally was only hired to work for Harry & David, but was "promoted" to work for J&P when rose season started. Again, interesting reasons why people call, not knowing anything about roses, I learned alot...quick. The biggest lesson I learned while working customer service was if I ever order something through the mail, I always call and thank the company. Nobody ever calls to say Thank you, only to complain. I have alot of respect for customer service reps, especially during a holiday season.

I could have stayed on working there, I was one of the lucky few that didn't get laid off during the holidays, but my roommate was moving so I decided I needed a change too. I moved to another small town, and got a job working as a sales rep selling screen printing frames. Cold calls are not for me, but it was a fun place to work. I worked there for about a year before I met my husband one weekend and he lived in Portland so 8 months later I moved to Portland.

I found a job through an employment agency working for a sign company. I was "the" office. The only person doing all the computer work, typing letters for the sales staff/owner and whoever else that needed something done. I did A/P, A/R, answered the phones, you name it, I did it. My boss was the biggest jerk I had ever met, but my job was challenging and I was paid well. Slowly everyone quit, but somehow the company stayed above water. My boss liked to make people think it was still a huge company, he would even sign peoples names to the Christmas cards each year that didn't even work there just to make it appear like a big company! One day people who were customers of ours showed up and my boss said they all wanted to talk to me. As it turns out my boss was selling the building and moving the company to another town so he could semi-retire. The people buying the building wanted to hire me (thank god) and I worked there until I had my son. It was a carpet cleaning company, one of, if not, the best in the city. They clean wall to wall carpet in alot of the huge homes around town for some of the richest people in the city. They also clean and repair loose rugs. I have seen small oriental rugs worth more than my house. It was a very interesting job, my bosses have been in the business forever and are extrememly knowledgable, I really learned alot there. I was a paper shuffler, working in the office, but it I loved it. I still do some computer work for them (everyone there is computer illiterate) from time to time.

I am currently a stay-at-home mom, my most satisfying job yet! I couldn't imagine going back to work. It was been a struggle financially, but working out a new budget, I think we have more extra money now than we did when we both worked!

So, no real exciting jobs like most of you have had. I just have worked for and with some very interesting people!

Jeep

Tuesday, February 05, 2002 - 11:35 am Click here to edit this post
Geesh! I sound really boring next to everyone else.

This July, I will have been with my current employer for 29 years! (oops, age thing again). So I do not have a variety of jobs to talk about.

I work for an independent insurance agency as a sales rep. I actually started as a typist (yes, no computer just lots of carbon copies) and moved up from there due to a lot of self-study courses that were made advailable to me. I originally knew nothing about insurance.

I really love everything about insurance. It's constantly changing due to our great state legislators making new regulations or laws. So, it's almost never the same from day to day. I really have work hard just to keep up on things.

I've also seen a great change in the technology in our office. No more typing policies or invoices. Now we upload information directly to our many companies. There is an ISP in the room next to my office, so we have constant internet contact.

Our office is informal and seems like a big family. I'm also an officer in the corporation so I get to add my two cents worth about what I think is best for the business. I like that! It really makes me feel like part of everything.

So, I don't have a glitzy job or even a unique one, but I am happy and plan to stay here until it's time to retire. Hopefully, the stock market will make that possible sooner than later !!!

Jenhavins

Tuesday, February 05, 2002 - 11:42 am Click here to edit this post
I haven’t had too many exciting jobs, but the one I have now is the one I love!

My first job was for American Solar King as customer service rep for shareholders in the Presidents office (the company provided a lot of solar heating for meat packing plants in Wisconsin, as well as residential customers). The boss (Brian Pardo) was a wonderful man who could make a fortune by spitting in the wrong direction. Our spokesperson was Pam Dawber and it was a thriving company until the Solar Tax Energy credits ran out. The company laid off hundreds of people and hundreds more left when they couldn’t make payroll. He kept me on with 25 other employees and paid me out of his pocket. I got scared and quit after about two more weeks of turmoil. The company closed 3 months later, however, he has since been on 60 Minutes for his somewhat morbid approach to buying up policies for terminally ill patients and cashing in later. I believe that it is a good thing for the client, but not sure how I feel about the whole concept itself.

I fled to Al’s Formal Wear, where I got to measure men for tuxedos (did this while I was going to school). It was a GREAT job!

I worked for an Economist at Baylor University. He held a chair in the school of business, however, he went on sabbatical shortly after I was hired. I got to travel a lot, technical edit, wrk on tax abatement cases to present before the Public Utility Commission, and economic impact studies for the state of Texas (the Alamodome in San Antonio was one study we worked on). His big money came from special testimony in court cases for big companies like Browning Ferris Industries (town says BFI ruined their quality of life by dumping toxic waste, and he would work for the industry). Enough said.

I now work for McLane Company. We are owned by Wal Mart. My title is Promotional Wholesale Specialist, but I am known as a Diverter. We have appoximately 10,000 employees nationwide, and we supply convenience stores with their merchandise. My job is to buy product from someone else than the manufacturer. Example. Starkist Tuna cost 30.50 per case…Kroger is getting 10.00 per case to run it in their weekly ad. They buy 2 trucks for themselves and 3 trucks to sell off. Both parties make money in the transaction.

Anyway, I get to wheel and deal most of the day away. Last year I made the company about $11 mil. I have found my niche and I have a great feeling when I go home at the end of the day!

But ya know what, If I was told I could have a baby tomorrow, I would give it all up. Some things are more important and fulfilling than others

Whoami

Tuesday, February 05, 2002 - 11:59 am Click here to edit this post
Hey Jenhavins, are you in Colorado? I just did an on-line app (through Monster.com) to McLane for a Distribution Systems Supervisor. Hey, ya never know. Maybe this networking thing will pan out through TVCH! E-mail me if you like at wolfsoul@iwon.com. If you haven't read the "job stresses" thread, you can find out a bit about me there too!