Summer Teen jobs that helped you build "character"

[oregonpackfan]

I imagine that most of you have had a summer job as a teenager that you despised but did it anyway as a "Character builder."

In another thread about shoveling domestic animal manure, Kiwon made an interesting observation that every young person should have an experience like shoveling manure.

What type of summer job do you remember having that built your character?

One summer during my college years, I got a job at Wright Products in Rice Lake, Wi. The factory was geared around manufacturing parts for screen doors.

Its main product was building the pneumatic tubes you attach to screen doors to keep them for slamming shut. They are about 16" long and about 2" in diameter.

Inside those tubes is(or was--the tube's inner parts may have been improved over the years) a 2 foot spring coil. As the spring coil came down the assembly line, my job was to take a spatula and apply a thin coating of axle grease to each coil. I performed the same task 5,000 times each 8 hour swing shift for the entire summer!

Most of the employees in that factory were full-time employees who had been there for years. For the summer construction season, they usually hired half a dozen college kids to meet the increased demand.

It was a valuable lesson for those of us in our late teens to indeed pursue AND complete our college degree. We did not want to end up with a job like that for the rest of our lives!

To this day, whenever I go to a friend's house I will check the pneumatic tube on the screen door. Often it will have the name "Wright Products" on it. I smile and say to myself, "Yeah, I remember that summer. Not only did I get my bachelor's degree, I went on to get my master's as well. They both gave me a career rather than "just a job."

What type of summer job is forever imprinted on your memory?

[packinpatland]

My father owned a grocery store. Before I was fifteen, my job was to sort and bag potatoes. They came in huge burlap gunny sacks. I had to pick out the bad ones and rebag into 10 or 5 lb platic bags.
Rotten potato is one of the foulest smells there is.
Being the bosses daughter gave me all the choice jobs!

I won't even start telling about having to clean the meat room :shock:

[MJZiggy]

My very first summer job was picking strawberries for the local farm. That was fun but it was my first job out of high school that got me my college degree. Five years of 60-80-hour weeks standing feeding advertisements into a machine and later doing quality control. And like OPF said most of the people there were people who had been there for 10 or more years, feeding paper into machines.

[Iron Mike]

Dear Penthouse.

I never would have believed what happened would have happened to me, but it did.

Last summer, I was at my job mowing the lawn for my next-door neighbor, who is an attractive, 40-something divorcee with juicy melons and a hot ass, BTW. I went to go collect my pay after finishing the lawn, and she came to the door with this skin-tight bikini on. She said she noticed how the work made my rock-hard 17 year-old body so sweaty, and playfully asked if I'd like to accompany her to the pool.

(Fill in the rest of the details yourself...... :))

[packinpatland]

Dear Penthouse.

I never would have believed what happened would have happened to me, but it did.

Last summer, I was at my job mowing the lawn for my next-door neighbor, who is an attractive, 40-something divorcee with juicy melons and a hot ass, BTW. I went to go collect my pay after finishing the lawn, and she came to the door with this skin-tight bikini on. She said she noticed how the work made my rock-hard 17 year-old body so sweaty, and playfully asked if I'd like to accompany her to the pool.

(Fill in the rest of the details yourself...... :))

Just wake up from a good dream, did you? :wink:

[Zool]

Dear Penthouse.

I never would have believed what happened would have happened to me, but it did.

Last summer, I was at my job mowing the lawn for my next-door neighbor, who is an attractive, 40-something divorcee with juicy melons and a hot ass, BTW. I went to go collect my pay after finishing the lawn, and she came to the door with this skin-tight bikini on. She said she noticed how the work made my rock-hard 17 year-old body so sweaty, and playfully asked if I'd like to accompany her to the pool.

(Fill in the rest of the details yourself...... :))Hawt

[oregonpackfan]

Dear Penthouse.

I never would have believed what happened would have happened to me, but it did.

Last summer, I was at my job mowing the lawn for my next-door neighbor, who is an attractive, 40-something divorcee with juicy melons and a hot ass, BTW. I went to go collect my pay after finishing the lawn, and she came to the door with this skin-tight bikini on. She said she noticed how the work made my rock-hard 17 year-old body so sweaty, and playfully asked if I'd like to accompany her to the pool.

(Fill in the rest of the details yourself...... :))

Been watching reruns of Desperate Houswives, have you? :)

[LL2]

My first summer job was when I was 15 and the work was grueling! The job was to peel Popple sticks. Basically me and a few others followed a logger who would cut Popple trees down and cut the branches off and then take a chainsaw and cut a line down the main part of the tree. We would carry these long blades and stick it in the line that was cut and peal the bark off the tree. Every 8 feet was a stick and the "peelers" got .15 cents a stick. I did it for 6 weeks and made around $200! Never did that again!

[Iron Mike]

Dear Penthouse.

I never would have believed what happened would have happened to me, but it did.

Last summer, I was at my job mowing the lawn for my next-door neighbor, who is an attractive, 40-something divorcee with juicy melons and a hot ass, BTW. I went to go collect my pay after finishing the lawn, and she came to the door with this skin-tight bikini on. She said she noticed how the work made my rock-hard 17 year-old body so sweaty, and playfully asked if I'd like to accompany her to the pool.

(Fill in the rest of the details yourself...... :))

Been watching reruns of Desperate Houswives, have you? :)


Mmmm......like noone here has EVER read "Letters To Penthouse!!!" :whist:

[MJZiggy]

Well, I can honestly say I haven't, but why does she get the muscled sweaty 17-year-old and the guy who cuts my lawn is middle aged, fat, dirty and smells bad???

[Scott Campbell]

Well, I can honestly say I haven't, but why does she get the muscled sweaty 17-year-old and the guy who cuts my lawn is middle aged, fat, dirty and smells bad???


I don't think your hubby is going to appreciate you talking about him like that.

[packinpatland]

Well, I can honestly say I haven't, but why does she get the muscled sweaty 17-year-old and the guy who cuts my lawn is middle aged, fat, dirty and smells bad???

'cause it's his dream! :lol:

[GrnBay007]

The summer of 19.....well, you don't need to know what year :P was monumental.....I was 14yrs. old....got my first job and while at my first job shared my first kiss. :oops: I was the basket check girl at the local pool. :D Understanding you have to pay your dues in the Pool Empire, the following summer I was cashier and by 16 had made it to head lifeguard. After that it was mostly waitress and banquet jobs until after college. Come to think of it, minus the seasonal employment from 14-16, I've had a job my entire life since then. Thanks for bringing this up.......I think I'll take a break and quit my job tomorrow!!!!!


:P :wink:

[LaFours]

Long summers of baling hay come to mind. Now that's rough work.

[Charles Woodson]

My dad owns a real estate company and so thats what ive worked at ever since i was little, of course the jobs have become more difficult each time. Actually i start working there again next week :bang:

[MJZiggy]

Good. That means I won't have to tell you to go get a job. :mrgreen: :taunt:

[oregonpackfan]

Long summers of baling hay come to mind. Now that's rough work.

I did some baling hay as well. I hated having to wear long-sleeved shirts while baling hay. If you didn't cover the insides of your forearms got welts from the hay bales.

Because I was skinny, I was often assigned to driving the tractor which pulled the wagon--much to my relief! 8-)

[packinpatland]

Long summers of baling hay come to mind. Now that's rough work.

I did some baling hay as well. I hated having to wear long-sleeved shirts while baling hay. If you didn't cover the insides of your forearms got welts from the hay bales.

Because I was skinny, I was often assigned to driving the tractor which pulled the wagon--much to my relief! 8-)

.....and Mom said "why doesn't that boy eat more?"

[Partial]

I did basement repairs for a summer while in high school. That was brutal but it made me much stronger and taught me how to work hard. All in all it was an experience i'd recommend to every young man.

[MadtownPacker]

Hmm, where to start.

I guess the one that sucked the most was pulling carrot bolts out by hand for 6 days a week for about 2 1/2 months when I was 16. These are carrots that grow wild and have a hard stem that grows about 3-5ft tall. They can't be eaten and the machines that pick tha carrots will jam if these arent removed so it has to be pulled out completely from the root. I would be given gloves at first but they wouldnt even last a few hours. The first few weeks was hell cuz my hands where all tore up from pulling them, and my legs where tired of walking very narrow 1/4 mile rows one foot in front of the other. It sucked to the point where I rank picking grapes higher only slighty better.

[BallHawk]

I'm working as a Jr. Camp Counselor this summer. I'm getting roughly $20 a day, 5 days a week, over 4 weeks. So, through the whole thing I'm getting $400 and they may give a $200 gift certificate to Target at the end. Beats working at Publix, that's for sure.

[Iron Mike]

Hmm, where to start.

I guess the one that sucked the most was pulling carrot bolts out by hand for 6 days a week for about 2 1/2 months when I was 16. These are carrots that grow wild and have a hard stem that grows about 3-5ft tall. They can't be eaten and the machines that pick tha carrots will jam if these arent removed so it has to be pulled out completely from the root. I would be given gloves at first but they wouldnt even last a few hours. The first few weeks was hell cuz my hands where all tore up from pulling them, and my legs where tired of walking very narrow 1/4 mile rows one foot in front of the other. It sucked to the point where I rank picking grapes higher only slighty better.

You were actually pulling up Queen Anne's Lace:

http://plants.usda.gov/java/profile?symbol=DACA6