Article Contributed on: 5/5/2008 6:18:21 PM
Author's note:
The following posting is late in coming, and amounts to, I'm afraid, little more than the weary ramblings of a busy mind. Nonetheless, forge ahead, courageous reader!
In order to prepare for college, life expenses, a future car, and other frivolous things, I have found gainful employment in the burgeoning field of odd jobs. This career choice provides me with a steady, albeit small, income and gets me outdoors.
One of the recurring themes that almost all of my odd jobs have in common are that they usually entail moving dirt in one form or another, be it digging holes for trees or moving large quantities of Miracle-Gro. Another widely shared characteristic is that until this weekend I usually had to ride my antiquated mountain bike to the job site, which was something of a problem for me, because the bike I had the
privilege of riding was older than I am ( That's not saying much!) and had worn-out derailers. (Something of a problem in a locale as hilly as Larkspur.)
So, this weekend, I bought a nice new 'urban commuter' bike. Midnight black paint with a matte finish and thinner-than-mountain-bike-tires make it look, in the words of one of my employers, 'racy'.
Buzzing home from workon this man-made marvel, I mentally paused and thought about how great my job is, and how much better it is than the jobs many of my peers have.
I can choose my own work-hours.
Unlike many people whohave indoor jobsand rarely see the sun during a work-week, I'm always working in and with God's Creation. (I often do wind up working 'in' the dirt rather than 'with' it.)
I rarely have any trouble with employers.
If I don't like a certain job I can usually opt out of it. This does happen sometimes.
I make an average of $10 an hour. I've had friends flout their 'easy as pie' $7.00-an-hour restaurant jobs, but, hey, I make more money, get to meet people and get exercised simultaneously. I've yet to hear of a job at Wendy's or BK that can match that.
I get to ride my new bike. (yeehaw!)
Moving dirt doesn't take much thought, either.
I don't have to pay for gas.
So if you're a teen, or are a parent of a teen who doesn't have a job, or has a lousy job, try yardwork/odd jobs, especially if you/he/she like(s) the outdoors and don't mind some refreshing exercise.
No matter where you live, there are probably a lot of potential employers, and there's no better way to learn how to work hard and gain self-respect and confidence.