Worst Job Meme: Rubber-Gloved and Ready

Have you seen the meme going around about worst jobs? Mister Teacher, who once (literally) delivered phone books, tagged me to share. I haven't read one teacher who has written about a teaching gig, although I bet we've all had a nightmarish teaching job. Interesting isn't it? I'd say that my worst job had to have been my first year in Las Vegas teaching 8th grade. I was ready to take a job at Burger King again, and that stint of working at Burger King for a bigot wasn't one of my happiest jobs.

In the spirit of embracing teaching as the career I love, which I do, and laughing at the other jobs I've had to endure, I'll skip over that awful year that almost made me quit teaching.

Let's rewind back to the joyful summer of 1989. I had just graduated from high school, and I planned to work and go off to college for the spring of 1990. I had taken a full load college classes concurrently during my senior year, so I had a jump start on credit. I just didn't have much of a jump start on money. The company my dad worked for, Colorado Interstate Gas, had a program for college bound students of its employees. Not so much a program as an opportunity to work as an oilfield laborer. Pretty exciting since it paid $5.50 an hour. Big wages, I know, but it was about $2.00 more than my girlfriends were making as chamber maids at the local hotels. Of course, they didn't have to wear steel-toed boots and hard hats, and they didn't have to swing sledge hammers in the desert in 100 degree temperatures..

Oh, but wait. Wrong memory. That wasn't the worst job. The worst job I ever had was the one I took for a month while I was waiting to turn 18 (July birthday) so I could work that grunt job. I took a part time job cleaning restrooms at a camp ground. And my mother was my boss. I guess she had personal experience with my qualifications!

(What kind of life lessons were my parents trying to get me to learn with their job connections? Geez!)

The campground was one of those found at the edge of a tourist town, like a KOA, so the campground had all the full hook-ups, miniature golf, a swimming pool, and bathrooms with showers. It was kind of old though, and some of the bathrooms were just icky with age. It's been so long ago, I couldn't really give all the disgusting details if I wanted to, which I don't think anyone wants me to do. Just think of the restrooms at your local Wal-Mart, add some public showers, and you've got the picture. I remember that people don't always drop their bathroom trash in trash bins, some people shed incredible amounts of hair in the shower, and practicing bathroom chemistry while combining cleaners can be thrilling and deadly.

Nobody died, though. Sometimes I wanted to. Man that was a gross job!

Okay, now who would we like to hear from? I am not sure who has done this and who hasn't--I know I've read quite a few, so forgive me for double tagging--so I'm calling on Vegas Art Guy, Melissa B., Lindsay, Pat, and StrangeNewTeacher.