Like most kids, I wanted to be a grownup as soon as possible. And, like most kids, I had dreams regarding what career I would have as an adult. Some kids dream of being astronauts, movie stars, or famous athletes. Some may even aspire to be a senator or president. As for me, my ambitions were a tad less grandiose.
I often wondered how I could go about getting the highly coveted dream job of driving a road grader. That giant yellow skeleton of a machine looked like something straight out of a fantasy novel. I wondered how many decades of college a person would have to accumulate to learn all the controls of such an elaborate contraption. I knew deep down that it was one of those jobs where you would have to know the right people, and I didn’t know anyone.
Speaking of giant yellow machines, I also dared to dream that I might one day drive a school bus. How cool a job is that? I assumed they made more money than lawyers. They’d have to, right, being in charge of the safety of kids? My two bus drivers, Herman Cushen and Kathy Winkles were masterful at the balancing act of keeping their eyes on the road and tiny bridges while also keeping an eye on rowdy kids.
Every year, from the time I was 11 to 15, my mom drove me around to all the grocery stores in hopes of getting a summer job as a bagboy. I never did. I knew I was lacking the flare for such a high-profile position. I must have looked like a country bumpkin right off a pig farm to the store managers. Of course, it didn’t help that I actually was a country bumpkin right off a pig farm. So, I never got hired and always found my way to a potato shed.
When I was 16, I went to work third shift as a knitter at Cooper’s Hosiery Mill. I worked there until graduation. It was hard work, but it was also the gateway to what, in my mind, was the loftiest position in the entire county – a fixer, those guys who repaired the knitting machines whenever they broke a needle or jumped time or whatever. The female knitters looked upon those guys like they were rock stars. And get this – they made $7 per hour. I’m not making this up. I couldn’t get over that.
I never did land any of my dream jobs, and I guess it worked out for the best that I didn’t. Still, if anyone knows who’s in charge of the road graders, I’m available for temp work.