A
Lifetime of Work
I want to tell you about all kinds of jobs I
have had in my lifetime. We always had things
to do at home that were inside the house, but
outside was what we really thought of as work.
My dad
was a dry-land farmer. As all the children (13)
grew some were old enough to leave home; some
were old enough to work in the fields. I got my
share of picking cotton and pulling corn. When
we picked cotton we pulled a cotton sack and the
rows were about ˝ mile long. We did this after
school and Saturday. After the corn stalks died
we went along beside the wagon and pulled the
ears of corn and threw them in the wagon. Both
of these jobs were very hard on the hands.
We left Andrews County and moved to Kimble
County, Junction, Texas. (This was in the
depression years) 1937. My dad had a contract
to clear a right-of-way for power-lines. We (Bob,
Jim,
Dorothy,
Alice,
Ernest,
David,
and myself) did anything we could do that had to
be done. We stacked brush, stacked cedar posts
according to size, stacked cordwood in cords
amount. The wood and posts were sold and that
was what my Dad got for the work. We got $3.50
a cord for wood and 3 to 5 cents each for
posts. According to size and if we could get a
semi-truck to come up on the mountain to get
them. The cordwood we hauled to town
ourselves. We had a truck and sold to the
laundry.
In 1938 we moved to Boise, Idaho. When we got
there we got a house in exchange for milking 17
cows. We helped with this. The boys helped
Papa in the morning, but we girls helped in the
evenings. Well, guess what? The prunes and
apples were ripe for picking. We went everyday
after school and on Saturday. Times were then
that people didn't work on Sunday. We went
through the rest of fall and spring then school
was out for the summer.
Mama got
a job for her and me and
Dorothy
picking berries. We had to be in the Berry
fields by sunup. I hated getting up so early,
but we enjoyed eating berries and taking a swim
in the canal on the way home. We had lived out
in West Texas and I doubt we had ever tasted
berries (of all kinds). He told me and Dorothy
we could eat all we wanted and I'm sure his
profits were down that summer.
End of summer and back to school. When next
spring got there we had a fruit and vegetable
stand so we worked in it some days after school,
but always on Saturday. Now between all these
jobs we had plenty of time for fun. We swam a
lot in the canals and hiking in the foothills or
across the sagebrush. Lots of horseback
riding. In the winter there was sleigh riding
when we had snow. Ice skating in the empty
canals as there would be 2 or 3 inches of water
that would freeze.
My next job was working on Saturday cleaning
house or washing windows. I got $1.00 for
working 8 to 10 hours. "Time Marches On" I
got a job helping care for children and helping
with housework. I got $5.00 a week. I had a
bedroom but I had one day a week off. Of
course, at the end of summer. About one month
into the school term I got a job at the 5 & dime
store. This paid $5.00 a week for six days. So
I just quit school. I didn't ask I just quit.
My parents didn't say anything. We needed the
money and I'm sure that is why. The country was
at war and Papa was not well.
1942 Plans were made to move
to Texas. We sold our house and that was enough
to get us a car and (that is a whole other
story) move to Houston.
My first job there was
delivering telegrams on a bicycle. This was in
University Place so I was worn out by the time I
got there. Some of the deliveries were a long
way from the telegraph office. There was a boy
(we were about the same age) delivering also and
we both had to go for each delivery. We took
turns at the door so we both got tips. I can't
remember what I got paid for this one.
A job came open in a machine
shop. I lied about my age and got hired. I
operated a lathe machine. I think I was paid 50
cents an hour. Boy-O-boy here was $20.00 a
week. Well, things were going just fine and
moving along.
In 1942 A job came open at
"Dickson Gun Plant" a division of Hughes Tool.
I got a job there. It paid 75 cents an hour and
a few cents more when we worked grave yard
shifts. My job was welding. I welded a big
u-shaped handle on the ends of gun-barrels (the
size used in tanks and ships). After it came
out of the heat-treatment then I used a cutting
torch and took or cut the handle off.
I left that job to get
married and start a family. I didn't work again
until the war was over. I did work a short time
in a department store in down town Houston
before the war ended.
Now after time had passed my
brother,
Ernest put in a dry-cleaning plant. I
would go there and help out in exchange to use
the sewing machine. It was very hard to find
jobs now as so many veterans were back and there
were many more people looking for work, than
there was available. But with my little
experience I got at my brother's I was able to
get one at a Dry Cleaning. This paid $30.00
dollars a week for six days. But it was 8-hour
days. I left there after about 3 years and was
up to $32.00.
In 1949 My next job was in
Dallas, Texas in a shoe repair shop. You could
get your shoes repaired or a shoeshine while you
waited. My job was waiting on these people. It
was down town and we were always very busy.
I went to my next job: This
was packing canned biscuits: you picked up 10
biscuits (5 in each hand) set them on a square
of foil, folded the ends and put them in a
container. Now we had to can 250 an hour or
else you didn't have a job the next day.
Believe me the time went by quickly.
My next job would be in California. This was in
a shop that made Christmas decorations for
street display for one of the cities in Los
Angeles. Well as soon as Christmas was over so
was my job.
My next job was in a machine
shop. I ran a lathe and a drill press. I was a
Texan so the foreman did not like me, so I got
my share of the big machine. Sometime when I
pulled the lever down on the drill press it
would lift me off the floor. I was just as
stubborn as he was so I never complained. I
worked there until we moved back to Texas.
I cared for 2 or 3 children
and also did sewing and alterations. I made
uniforms for restaurants and also sewed a lot of
uniforms for the Spring Branch Drill Team. I
was happy to have work at home.
In 1965 Then we started an
upholstery shop at home. We had long hours and
good income. We moved to Montana and took the
upholstery with us.
In 1971 I moved to Arkansas.
I went to work for Levi-Strauss sewing on
jeans. This was assembly line work. We had to
sew 60 dozen to get out the standard, above that
we got more money.
In 1976 My next job was
working in a sewing machine shop. I
demonstrated, repaired and sold sewing
machines. We also did a lot of monogram work.
From there I went to an
exclusive dress shop. There I did alterations.
I wasn't there but a short time.
I ended up from there at a
gas station. To buy gas you had to buy tokens
and put them just like a slot machine. However
many you put in was how much gasoline you got.
This was truly a learning experience.
Things happen so I was back
to another "Dress Shop". Here I did
alterations. I had this job a long time then I
went from there to a jewelry shop.
After a time there it was
sold and closed so I worked for the person
helping to up keep some apartments and mowed the
lawns for one summer.
Then I started a "Day Care".
I was registered for 12 children but I usually
had about nine. They were a handful, but I
loved them all and it was returned in full. Due
to circumstances I needed to close out the
childcare.
After a period of time I went
to work in the WIC office. This was an
interesting job but it was only part time so I
needed to move on.
I got a job then at a dry
cleaning plant. I was to do alterations but I
did a little of everything.
When my 70th birthday came I
thought it was time to retire (Did I ever get
fooled) So I retired.
Then I had a fire-works stand
a few times and I still do sewing, alterations,
and upholstery, but mostly I do
nothing.
Just thought you may find
this interesting. I also need to add: the money
earned from these jobs was not the only income,
it is just about jobs I had in my lifetime.
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