My first job was the typical high school job around my neck of the woods: baby sitter. Did this for several years, and probably the worst "children" I ever sat for was at a family with two boys, and about five month old kittens. The boys were fine, the kittens had just discovered that the wallpaper in their house was fabric, and they could get their little claws into the fabric and run up the walls! Which they proceeded to do all evening long!!
Actually, my first job ever was when I was about six, and hired to walk the neighbor's dog once a day one summer to earn a quarter from them each time. They lived in the apartment across from our apartment. I enjoyed that - I'd be gone with the small pooch for about half an hour, and got to walk and explore mostly on my own. If this short career were available for a six year old today, my parents (and possibly the neighbor) would have been arrested for allowing their child to go "free range", especially with a dog who was about the size of a large cat, and had no protective genes whatsoever. There was a wooded area to one side of the building, across a street, with paths in it, and that's usually where I would take the dog. Mind you, this was in New York City, upper Manhattan. I found it rewarding to have an excuse to get outside, and would have done it with the dog even if I weren't getting the quarters.
When I turned 18, I spent two summers working at the accounting office at Seagram's, in New York City. Dad worked at the other building in NYC - by high school we'd moved out of "The City" and lived what we called "Upstate", and Dad would commute in. (Seriously, it really wasn't upstate, maybe 45 minutes to commute in on the train.) But those summers, Dad and I would commute in together in the smoking car - my hours started a half hour prior to his, and ended a half hour before his, but he didn't mind getting in early. My building was a bit closer to the train station (Grand Central Station), so I enjoyed window shopping on my way back to the station because I knew what train we'd both catch together, so Mom could pick us up at the same time at the home station. Working there was interesting - I spent my time coding invoices, and this was the days prior to computerization. I learned to do the numeric keypad left handed so my dominant right hand could write things down. Speeded up the process! (I always resented that personal computers, once they became available, almost always have the numeric keypad on the right!)
I guess the only work-related day I hated there was the one when a co-worker and I decided to go lunch outside the cafeteria together. We ate, then we stopped at a pharmacy that also sold makeup. She said, going in, "don't let the staff watch me, I'm going to lift some make up supplies". Scared to death, I was. I don't believe in shoplifting, and since she was a permanent employee who made more money than I did as a temp, she did not need to shoplift! Especially on non-essentials such as make up! I just hung around in one spot, not knowing what to do, and being a very shy and introverted teen, did nothing. Except I did decide that was the LAST lunch break out of the facility I'd EVER take with her!
In the evening, Dad and I would meet up at Grand Central, and take the train home - in the evenings I learned rapidly I should go in a non-smoking car, as I couldn't breathe in his smoking one. Smokers were far more "at it" on their commute home.
I had other jobs working at the college library as an assistant.... basically looking up reference material for some of the professors. Again, in the card-catalog days, prior to much of anything being computerized. I enjoyed that. Library environments are peaceful.
After finishing up with schooling, I kept looking for jobs in my field. I was mostly interested in doing environmental work, or medical work. (I did a variety of no-education-needed temp jobs in the interim, most of which were okay, as they kept me busy and my parents sort of happy... I declined to apply for a job at Revlon where I would have to apply toxins to live rabbit eyes, for the sake of developing - make-up. This might be a major reason I don't wear the stuff.... Medicines are essential. Make-up is NOT. Every woman is pretty enough without! Hmm, I guess a theme from earlier? At any rate, Mom was extremely unhappy that I refused to apply for the position.)
At any rate, I got a temp job that lasted two years at a pharmaceutical company. Learned to operate a small-scale MRI for analytical purposes, and learned to do analytical chemistry. Since my major had been in the biological sciences they didn't want to hire me as a full time analytical scientist.
Got offered two full time jobs the same week. One was in that same company, in the pharmaceutical department. They basically told me, "your interview is in two hours". I was on an experiment, no time to get home and dress appropriately. I was in ratty blue jeans - hey if you are working in a LAB, you don't want to be wearing your interview finest! So, I went to the the interview with my future manager, dressed as I was, explained, and was hired. I worked there 34 years as a full time employee and I loved just about every minute. Okay, not office politics, but that will occur anywhere.
