Monday, October 18, 2010

It all goes back to fudge and coffee.

When I was about 14 or 15, my dad said to me, "Meg, you should get a job." I'm not sure why he thought that. Maybe it was that age that kids used to go off and make a livin' back in the day. Maybe he was tired of me asking for cash (entirely possible). Or maybe, just maybe, he thought I could go out and learn somethin'.

I started the job search that day. I remember it really well. It was a sunny day and I kinda think it was fall time which means it was most likely summer. I sat down in my room with my totally 90's-tastic clear phone with the neon pink florescent light in it (it rocked, I know it) and started making calls. Being so young had its disadvantages. I couldn't drive, laws prohibited me from worked to much or past a certain time, and of course it had to be cool. I couldn't just work anywhere! Eventually, my parents suggested I give a woman from our church, Vanetta, a call. She owned a place called, "Prints of Peace." It was a art gallery, framing place that also happened to have a coffee bar where they made fudge, cappuccinos, and lattes. I was hired! That was such a stroke of luck!

That was maybe the best job in high school EVER. I was a barista in the highest form...well, maybe not but I could make a mean Funky Monkey latte. The store was in Grabill, Indiana so it wasn't the metropolis of nearby Fort Wayne but it was pretty busy at times. After working there a few years, I decided I needed more experience so I, um, traded up to Blockbuster. That was not as fun and walking into a Blockbuster these days still makes me shudder. I'm not sure what the smell is at Blockbuster but there is one. I'd traded in the aromas of fresh fudge and coffee for plastic and weird smells I still can't distinguish.

College was a weird mix of jobs but once I left the coffee shop, I kinda think it took a turn for the worse. I worked at a dry cleaning place for all of 2 weeks at most (and holds the record as the only job I was fired from...don't ask). Then I worked at a senior living community with the best cuties ever. One, Wilma Fox, still holds a special place in my heart. I also had a student ministries position working with teen moms in Anderson by my university, Anderson University.

After college, I can sum it up really quick: worked for my dad, worked for two other companies, lived in Cardiff Wales (BLISS!), worked for my dad, and then to where I am now working for both parents. My post-college jobs all involved graphic design. I did nearly give it up once to go back to school and get my masters in English so I could go into the book business. I didn't though when my parents opened their own company.

I'm not sure why the job history via blog. I've always felt happy I never had to be a waitress. I never had to work fast food. And aside from the dry cleaners, I've been really lucky. I didn't always treat the jobs right (dry cleaners) and the first three design jobs I had, I took for granted. I was really young and probably had too much autonomy than I should have.

I've always found it interesting how much enjoyment I get out of work and it really is fulfilling. I've been sick for a week with the flu and then a cold. Tomorrow I am going to tackle it again and I'm kinda nervous. Like the first day of school. Kinda, like my first day at the coffee shop.

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