Summer Jobs ...

Because my father wasn't working during the time I was in school from 7th to 12th grade, my family was classified as on welfare.  Mom received food items that the state doled out for families under certain income.  Not the best of anything but something to work with, I'll give them that.  And Mom worked hard to find any other services we could use to get by and make ends meet.  One of the services offered was a program offered by the City where kids in high school, starting at age 15 1/2, could work for minimum wage in one of the Government run organizations. 

The library district was the first place I worked from the Summer of 1982 to the Summer of 1983, and all through my sophomore school year.  I met a lot of good people there, and worked with Bernice and Patsy in the Children's library.  Now I didn't get paid by the library, I got paid by the City on a different payroll system.  But I got trained as if I was one of the other younger workers there.  Filing returned books and periodicals, helping patrons find things on the shelves and read the cards in the card catalog (yes this was way before anything was on computer!).  I got to help put children's craft lessons together and during the summer, help kids work on the reading lists...earning prizes and so forth.  Also periodically we had to do a complete filing inventory and go through every single book and make sure everything was filed and in complete alphabetical or numerical order by the Dewey Decimal system.  I actually loved doing that!   It was fun...again working with numbers (I know I am a freak about that). 

Some of my favorite times were going out to lunch with the others that could drive, I didn't have my license yet.  Gerald and Laurie were my two favorites and we would enjoy our breaks for sure.  I hung around with Laurie after work and on some weekends.  (I didn't know Laurie from school at all.) 

The Summer of 1984 I worked at City Hall.  I worked in the main office where city residents could get their city stickers for their cars (I don't know when they quit selling those but I am sure residents are sure happy).  They could also get their tags for their pets.   We sold liquor licenses to city and county businesses.  But the main thing I worked on was inputting the readings for resident's water bills. The mayor's office was on the top floor, I never met him.  His name was Doug Boschert, a distant relative per my Mom's side of the family.   I was the only one my age there, so there wasn't much fun in the way of hanging with other teenagers and getting into mischief or whatever.  It was pretty much a work only summer for me.   Oh, and one memory I have was when I locked my keys in my car.  I could drive then.  I told my boss and he got a coathanger and got the door unlocked with it, but in his zest to help, he tore up the molding around the top of the door, and it looked pathetic.  I thanked him immensely ...  I never locked my keys in my car again.   Lesson Learned!!

The Summer of 1985, after I graduated High School, I worked in the Air Force Recruiters office with MSgt. Moore.  He was nice as he could be to me.  I was kind of in my element there.  I had to type up prospective recruits' application forms and other paperwork.  Back then, no computers, so everything had to be 100% accurately typed the first time.  NO WHITE OUT, NO MISTAKES!   This was the military after all, they didn't want anything but top notch paperwork filled out.  I did have to retype some things once in a while, but hey you had to do it that way.  I learned to go slow and be meticulous.   

MSgt. Moore had to interview all applicants, to make sure they were acceptable to join the Air Force which has the toughest prerequisite list to get into their branch of the military.  I sat at the other desk in the office and got to listen to their interviews, while doing my work.  Some of these young people (some my age, most a little older) were so naive and so out of their element in what they expected could be acceptable to get into the Air force.  The applications asked about all criminal records, driving records and drug use.  I swear so many got turned away because of issues with any or all of these things.  You wonder what the big deal with driving records?   Well if you had unpaid tickets of any kind, even parking tickets, that all had to be cleared up first before ever getting to get to the place they do the physicals.  But really before anything else you had to pass the AVSBAD test at a certain level to get into see a recruiter.  I remember one guy came in and told his story to MSgt. Moore of why he was not permitted in the state of Texas.  He had been driving through the state with children in the backseat of his car, none in car seats, none buckled up, and he was driving 125 MPH! He got tossed in jail for all that....and wondered now why he couldn't get into the Air Force.  

There were more guys than girls that came to join the Air Force, most of the girls passed all tests the first time.  They seemed more conscientious to the idea that women were not as visible in that branch of the military as they were in the Army and Navy at the time.  Some that were refused to get into the Air Force went for the Navy, their office was next door.   Next to them down the line was the Marine recruiter office, and at the very other end was the Army.   I think the Air Force and Navy guys implied if you couldn't make it into their forces, you probably could get into the Army.   The Marines were all men I think back then, and didn't joke around much like the others.  I didn't talk much with them at all. 

Most days Msgt. Moore was out of the office at schools giving the AVSBAD test or driving new applicants to the place they go for physicals OR to the bus station where they all headed to Lackland Air Force base in Texas.  While he was out, I worked on the paperwork and got that all in ship shape.  Then if I had everything caught up, I listened to the radio, and organized my desk.  I think I retyped all the Rolodex cards and made them really neat and orderly.  And if nothing else to do at all, I brought in my needlepoint and did that.  I met a General one day, had to be on my best behavior for that.  Apparently Generals or anyone higher up the ranks than MSgt Moore would or could visit and everything had to be in order.  I was civilian so I didn't have to wear anything but office attire clothing, but the needlepoint had to be put away.  LOL

I did enjoy my summer there, learned a lot about the Air Force, and learned that I wouldn't make it through the basic training.   They played mind games and I wouldn't have been tough enough for that psych-blowing trip!!   MSgt was a very nice and amicable man.  I enjoyed it when he was there.  I grew to have a fondness of our US Military recruits.  They are trained well and they have to be pretty smart to even apply to get in the service. 

....  my first few jobs were interesting and got me well into the outside world of business, books, bills, patrons/customers, and even to understand a bit of military life.  But this was nothing compared to new work adventures ahead, and new places ahead I would go.   However it was the people that I remember the most.  And I have some new people to talk about next. 

 

Graduation....

I graduated High School in May 1985 -- at night, on the football field, under stadium lights (and the stars). I sat in the front row, of course, since we were in alphabetical order.... I sat next to someone else with the last name Bacon of all things.  I didn't even know who this person was, never had her in any classes.  Not related through my Grandpa Bacon, that's for sure.  Her name was Angie Bacon.  I will always remember that because I usually remembered everyone in my class.  The class of '85.   "Alive in '85!" I think was one of the mottoes of our graduating class.  

Now here's where you either get me or you don't.  My entire high school world was built on the premise that I was a smart kid and did well in my classes.  I didn't get straight A's like Kathy and Greg did, they were the Valedictorian and Salutatorian of our class.  But I did well, my GPA was in the high 3.6's, and believe it or not, I don't remember anymore what exactly it was.  I used to.  I do remember being 13th in the class of 222 graduates.  I was happy with that standing. 

Top 5% meant I got a couple small scholarships.  One to Northeast Missouri State University in Kirksville....which was changed in 1996 to Truman State University after President Harry S Truman.  I wanted to go onto Kirksville because it was known as the teaching university.  I also got a small scholarship to Central Missouri State University in Warrensburg.  I didn't know much about this university, it wasn't on my radar at all.  I loved that my parents were in the audience on the night the scholarships were given out and I got to go up there twice to get those handed to me.  But there were other plans in the works for the Fall and my goals and priorities would change...

What always bugged me though, was that I was never "the best" at anything.  I heard about others getting acknowledgment and accolades for their accomplishments.  I didn't.  At least not from my immediate family.  It hurt a lot.  It was like the hard work wasn't seen or known or cared about.    My FRIENDS' parents would acknowledge my accomplishments.  Guess where I liked to hang out more?  This was the downfall of my own future though.  Wanting praise from others, to fit in, to be heard, to be seen, to feel loved, to feel anything other than ignored or made fun of.  I was smart, just not the smartest....and that bugged me for a long time. 

As I knew would be the case, my diploma had the Mu Alpha Theta honors on it, and the National Honor Society honors on it.  I had to wear my National Honor Society yellow chords, as well as my cap and gown, like the rest of the graduates.  That all was so cool!   Art Holliday, newscaster at KSDK TV, spoke at our commencement.  He graduated from SCHS in 1972.  I hadn't known that, I just saw him on the NBC affiliate every night on TV.  I don't recall what he said, my mind was spinning at all the going's on that night.  Finally the time came for all of us graduates to move our tassels from one side to the other and then throw them caps in the air as new graduates after 13 years of education, we were graduates!  But soon after the fanfare came to a quick end for me.  Many of my classmates would celebrate with others into the night, I just went to find my parents and siblings and went back home...

Well that's not true, the fanfare lasted one more day.  My Mom invited all the relatives to the house for a graduation party.  I got tons of cards and lots of money, and plenty of good food.  

My friend Lori probably had a party too, I don't know.  She'd leave in the Fall to go to Junior college in Idaho.  And the other friends I saw in the clubs I was in, they all pretty much went their separate ways as well.  Some to Kirksville, some to Warrensburg, some to other places.  After graduation, most of the people I hung with during my 4 years there from my class pretty much went onto the next stage of their lives.  I still keep in touch with Lori, off and on, through out these many many years.  And now with Facebook as the meeting ground for millions of people, I have found several high school mates again and speak to some there on occasion.  Everyone's got their own lives in many different places on the planet, but many actually didn't go too far from the ole hometown.  I did get lonely with everyone dispersing and not really knowing what to do with myself that summer.  I worked my last summertime job with the City sponsored job opportunity at the U.S. Air Force recruiting office.  That's a whole other story in itself!!!

... what I didn't count on or have an inkling about was there were new beginnings, new people, new adventures awaiting me in a few short weeks after graduation.   Stay tuned for my next installment.    

My Senior Class Picture (copied from yearbook)