Appetizer: What was your first “real” job?
During college I worked at Atlantic Coast Electronics, a place that made printed circuit boards, which were much bigger in the 70s. For three summers and holidays I sanded their fiberglass edges, stacked them up, inspected them for errors, and (this was fun) drilled holes in them. My dad did some work at the place and liked the owners, so got me that job rather than some random thing. I had a friend who did the same thing--he was going to be a dentist, but his brothers owned the company so he got to work there when not at school, for barely over minimum wage. I learned that factory work is hard and I better get that degree. I also learned that factory workers are not stupid or boring, and can, in fact be really interesting, knowledgeable and kind people. I am so glad I got to know those working class folks--they had all kinds of wisdom and experience that I learned a lot from that I'd never have learned working with other teens in a fast food restaurant or something. I paid for 1/3 of my college costs working in factories. 1/3 came from a National Merit Scholarship. My parents could barely afford the other third, due to Mom's medical expenses. And this was when $3K got you through a year at a good state school.
Soup: Where would you go if you wanted to spark your creativity?
The woods
Salad: Complete this sentence: I am embarrassed when…
...I call someone by the wrong name, which happens to me in odd ways--I tend to get people named Karen/Janet confused and I tend to get people named Jessica/Jennifer confused. It's the similar vowel patterns that do it, I think. And it will happen with people I know quite well, and know many details about...just the wrong name slips out.
Main Course: What values did your parents instill in you?
Work hard and do the best possible job you can, and don't count on anyone else's help. Also that no particular group of people is any better or worse than any other.
Dessert: Name 3 fads from your teenage years.
Mood rings, platform heels, tube tops
2 comments:
One of my mentors, although he would not consider himself such, was an older black man with whom I worked at the Rice Factory. Percy was an iconoclast who had worked in the mill for at least 20 years when I knew him. He compartmentalized his work and home life very well, although he was willing to talk about them. He was also ruthless in pointing out hypocrisy and inconsistent thinking, especially with regard to race and class. He was really the only person there whose opinion of me mattered to me.
I love mood rings and I just bought a very funny pair of vintage platform shoes, but Boy do I miss tube tops! They were so exciting - one never knew when a breast would pop out. Mom never let me wear them, but I had one. I snuck out of the house with it under my blouse and ditched the blouse later. The boys at the skating rink laughed at me when I showed up wearing it. They said my A cups were barely enough to hold it up and that if it fell down nobody would even notice! I was so humiliated. If I had known then that I would end up with Old and Faithful, the 38 DD Baby Feeding Geisers, I might have felt differently. When I needed breasts, I got them.
Kissing gloss was also in fashion then. Strawberry flavored shiny sticky goo.
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