Best Job Interview Ever

When I was just ten (10) years old, we happened to live on a very large lake. It used to be an old back-run of the Mississippi river, but at that time, 1970, it had been cut off  for many, many years, and was just a still-water lake. Many people came there to fish, as did me and my younger brothers. I saw men putting boats in at the dock that were always trying to not get wet. I thought, why not offer to help them, and maybe work for tips? It seemed like a good idea at the time, and the percieved wealth(remember, I was only 10), was too much to overlook!

 

        The man who owned the bait shop, and, not surprisingly, the dock, was well known to me. I spent nearly every day at that lake. At least, everyday that I could scramble out of the house before my mom put me to doing things that she was better suited for! I can't remember his name, but I asked him about my idea. He said I would have to pass the "interview". I thought this a strange thing to say, as I was the one who came up with the idea for the job. What the hell kind of interview could he come up with?

 

        Well, he said for me to follow him out to the end of the dock. I did. He asked me to look out over the large expanse of water for just a moment; just soak it all in for a bit. As I turned to look out over the lake, he picked me up and threw me into said lake!!! So, I swam back to the dock, and said, "what the hell did you do that for"? He said that I passed the "interview", and could work off of his dock. He was only concerned that I could swim. He said he didn't want me to drown, it would be bad for business! Well, I had to agree with him on that point...no one wants to "put in" where some stupid little kid drowned!

 

            The job was perfect, and before the summer was over, I had other kids working on the dock, helping put the boats in, and take them out in the evening. Now, you have to understand that the other guys had to pay ME to work there. After all, it WAS my idea. I worked for a couple of summers like that. Nearly every penny I made went to the motorcycle that I owned. I originally bought it by raising calves, but they were gone, so I needed this new source of income. Oh, one other thing...I had NO income in the winter, so I sold greeting cards door to door during that time. I guess I have always been a hustler, in one form or another!

 

   :-) Holla' If You Hear Me!!! :-)