As my little buddy roomie (during the week I live in Waukee with a friend - Joan, and her niece Kristina who I have known since she was a tot) Krissy enjoys her first "real" job, it has caused me to take a walk down memory lane about the various jobs I've had in my long work career.
A few days ago I described my first job in Sioux Falls, SD at a grocery wholesaler and the interesting boss, Kermet. What an education! Only later did I think about the mechanic who worked on the delivery trucks. His name was Lawrence and he liked to take a nip or two while he worked. I couldn't complain though - he helped advise me on care and maintenance of my 1977 Chevy Monza 4 speed. So what if he liked his liquor?
After I had worked in Sioux Falls for eight months, I was approached by the manager (by then it was Larry because Kermet's bizarre behavior caused the corporate office to put him out to pasture) to see if I was interested in moving to Omaha, Nebraska. Would I? In a heartbeat! It just so happened that my boyfriend of a couple years had taken a job in Oakland, IA - some 20 miles from Omaha. And my baby sis, Betso attended Creighton University in Omaha. Ah fate and and destiny!
I found a great apartment out near Boy's Town with Cathedral ceilings that was bright and airy. I visited the famed Nebraska Furniture Mart and purchased a couch, bed, and butcher block kitchen table with chairs. On moving day, there was a mix up and it took Betsy's fierce call to the Mart to get my furniture delivered. I guess I was still a non-confident wimp at that point.
Once I moved to Omaha, I was overjoyed to find out that two of my Atlantic friends were also moving to the Big O. Robyn (of Robbie Dob fame) and Chris (Ginger's daughter). Rob was moving to town with her boyfriend Glenn, and Chris was rooming with a college friend Jodi, who was attending Creighton nursing school. What fun! We got together nearly every week to cook a meal. On Fridays after work we liked to meet at the Rusty Scupper. We attended aerobics together. It was a fun time in my life.
Oh yeah...the job. The Omaha branch of Gamble Robinson was in the Old Market (it's now a parking lot). It was a very old building that was below street level - you parked and walked down metal steps to the warehouse. Not impressive looking at all. Downright dumpy in fact. But the location was great - the Old Market is one of my favorite places in the world!
The branch manager in Omaha was Ron Nearman, a very nice guy. No weapons in his desk! The rest of the staff was a lesson in diversity for me! Executive Secretary Pat - the 50ish spinster with a boyfriend. Gruff, crusty exterior. Creston, IA native. Lila - lesbian bookkeeper, quirky and nice once she learned to trust me, Nedda - 300 pound Italian woman, married, one child - tender heart, and the Unwed mother - her name escapes me. Hooked up with a truck driver who delivered to our company long enough to get preggers.
Then there were the salesmen: Pete, a kindly gentleman who traveled in SW Iowa, Ed a nice guy who did the Council Bluffs area, Dan, a groovy divorcee and Lester "Red" Eymann - the most homely man you've ever seen who was lewd and crude and you had to love him! In today's world Red would be a walking sexual harassment poster boy!
Last but not least was Jackson - the lumper. Lumpers were not employed by GR, but they were necessary! They hung around to help unload semis as they arrived, and were paid in cash by the truck drivers. Jackson was a large black man with a friendly personality. He liked to gamble and he liked to drink. When he was flush, he would head to Sioux City to the dog track.
Out in the warehouse there were lots of good guys. They taught me things about bananas - they were put in special rooms to ripen them with gas. Other refrigerated rooms were damp and some were dry. There was a crew of mainly African American women who prepared the chopped veggies we delivered to restaurants.
My desk in Omaha was an old wooden one - I had to to pull it out in the morning and push it back in each night. I worked long hours, and had to go in each Saturday for some report - at least for an hour or so. Those were the days of early IBM mainframes so I learned to run the computer with its tiny little LED screen. I had to "Balance" the books each month, which was a huge challenge. Every New Year's Eve I had to work to run year end reports. It was a tough job! I was there from March 1981 until February 1984.
They must have liked me, because when Paul and I moved (we were married in 1982) to Osage, IA they created a job for me, traveling up to Wisconsin to do training in small branches up there. I do love my Snoboy (Gamble Robinson's brand) stuff! I found an old Snoboy wood box in an Atlantic antique store and a Snoboy cranberry ad in Valley Junction. Maybe first jobs aren't so bad after all...
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