What is your occupation?

What is your occupation?

What kind of work did you do over your years?? And what is the longest..   being a housewife and mom doesn’t count.. while it is an admiral occupation.. I have not found any that paid for it..  So count the ones you were paid for.

My first paying job was the usual, especially for women. Babysitting.. Wages… were 25 cent an hour… I did it from 14 to 17…  with another thrown in when I was 15 for the summers..  I worked for a Produce Stand. Selling produce. So I learn how to tell a good watermelon.. a good cantaloupe and etc..  wage.. also 25 cents an hour.. 

Then I graduated. And got a job at the Naval Exchange dept. of the Navy base in Newport R.I.  wages was a big whopping $1 an hour..  I got fired.. a year later for insubordination.. didn’t know what it meant.. so he told me to go home and look it up in the dictionary that I would have plenty of time to do so.  Reasoning being I did not know how to play office politics..  I had upset one set of the office group, while working for the other side..  plus I had walked into the supply room on a couple that was married to others…. Who were top bosses.. one of which was the one that fired me.

But that sent me down to Florida with my grandfather..  While there I would go swimming in the ocean which was lined with hotels.. One of which I got to be friends with the housekeeper’s daughter.  One day the restaurant cook asked me if I ever waited on tables..   which I smart-assed ..only my family..  But ended up telling him, I was willing to try if he was willing to teach me..  His normal waitress, had to go home to a funeral for a family member.  I was living with my grandfather who was not the happiest camper that I took the job.. but figured maybe it would do me good.  Well, it was a learning thing for sure.   Found out how horrible men where to women waitress, and because I was kind of a smart ass, I survived the 5 days.  And because of it.. I have had a respect for those who waitress.  Wage… lol.. two free lunches after the 5 days..  no time to collect during working time.   I took the orders, walked them out to the table..  Kept the tables, clean, filled sugar, salt and pepper containers, and ketch and mustard ones… and always wiping down everything as I went.. There was no kid to take away the dishes and get the table ready for the next customer.  The cook was a fairly decent guy.. but I had him as I warned him, I was not a waitress.. no experience … and HE ASKED ME to work..

Next I was off to San Diego, Ca. as my mother’s friend came to Florida to watch over my grandfather (who really didn’t need anyone but company).

My first job was working for Christmas holidays, in a music store. As soon as Christmas was done.. I helped with inventory counting and then I was laid-off..  wage $1.25.

Next up was Ratner Men’s manufactory..  which made mens suits and sports jackets. I was hired in the payroll office. I was a counter.   We were given sheets of paper.. with stickers on them.. Some times it would be about 3 or4 stickers and some times the sheet was full or there would be up to 3 sheets full. On these sheets were stickers..  about inch long and ¼ wide.  And on those stickers were numbers.

Those numbers represented an item that was sewn on to the jacket or pants of the suit.  There were 3 of us who did this part of the job.. There was another one who took over the sheets and took the items, plus the wage for that sheet of items sewed.  Bigger ones were one price.. small ones another.  Could be a pocket, a collar or waist band.. bigger ones were the legs sewn together.. and the front of the jacket to the back of the jacket.  I lasted there 2 years.. and had some fun times with fellow employees.. especially one called Judy.. I have already written about her and our escapades.   I left there, as I had gotten married and then was pregnant.   Wage $1.50 an hour.

After that I did a short time in a 26 Flavors ice cream shop that also did hamburgers and hot dogs, with fries.  That one was about 9 months.. as the man who owned it was in the Navy.. and his wife ran it while he was gone..  And he came back two days early.. and found out that she was not at the store for opening..and she wasn’t there for closing..  That I had been doing all of that… she only showed up to take the money for the day.   So he closed the shop. Wage was $1.30 an hour. Babysitter was $35 a week.

I did several years of doing the Mom job… and ended up divorce and then remarried.  I help with the business by being bookkeeper for mechanics and then for scrap iron. Even ran the smasher for a short time..  and was the car burner when it was legal.. to get the copper wire out.

When my husband passed away.. I had been going thru nurse aide classes and graduated 4 days before he passed. I went to work at a nursing home a week after his funeral.

All the kids were teens so no babysitter. And the boys left shortly after.. with just my daughter at home in school.

I worked for 18 years there.. starting at $3.35 an hour.. got a raise  6 months later as the owners really like me.. a whole whopping 5 cents.. lol.  So it was 3.40.  by the time I left 18 years later. I was making $9.11 an hour..  see our wages were frozen for 3 years.  When the new nursing care center went in and workers were jumping.. those of us got small raises as we were loyal and stayed..  those who threaten to leave got 75 cents to a $1.25 raises to stay..    Those of us who stayed were rounded off the nearest dime.. One gal had been there 34 years.. she was making .09 so she got one cent.. I was an lucky one.. mine was . 04   so I got 6 cents. Lol…  But anyway..  I was 63, we had new administration in that was cutting everywhere.. and a new nurse director.. who wrote me up for changing the residents too often and using too much supplies…   I could see the hand writing on the wall..  so I turn in my notice for the end of the month.. which was also the end of the year. HAPPY NEW YEAR… I AM SO GONE.  Lol..  hello SS…  

I did some home health for about 4 years.. and like that.. so much more gratifying.. So appreciated. Turning 70 soon, so gave up home health after my last one when into a health care center.

 

So what did you do for an occupation?