When I was 15, I began working at
the VA Hospital in San Francisco -- full-time during the summers and part-time
during the school year. I had already done lots of babysitting, including a
full-time summer gig the year I turned 14, but this was a job where I'd
actually receive a paycheck -- and I was making $2.10 an hour which was the
minimum wage in 1973. I was thrilled! I still remember bringing home my very
first paycheck and showing it to my mom with one question. The paystub showed
that I didn't make enough for any state or federal tax deductions, but they
still took out for one thing.
"Mom, what is FICA? They took out money for that!"
Mom laughed and said, "Oh honey, that's social security. They'll be taking that out of your paychecks for the rest of your working life."
I started in the Research Dept. for
one summer and then worked in the pharmacy prepackaging pills and restocking
the shelves for the pharmacists...then on to the EKG Dept. where I learned how
to mount EKGs, type the reports and pretty much run the joint. I was only 17...
and I loved working... I always had more money than most of my friends. I also
made loads of friends there and had fun. Whether I loved it or hated it on any
given day, the workplace has always been an integral part of my life except for
some breaks here and there and the first year I returned from Germany with
three young kids.
I worked as a legal secretary in
San Francisco in the later '70s, at American Express Bank in Germany where I
learned how to convert Deutch marks to dollars and vice versa; I even dealt
blackjack. (that is another story) Then I started from the bottom with the
State of Oregon when I returned to the States with three young kids to learn
about this mysterious thing called "computers" which I knew nothing
about in 1986 and had never used. the whole world had gone "computer"
without me and I was determined to be a part of that world I knew so little
about.
After a couple of years of working
for the State and shuffling three kids around in all of my spare time, I saw an
opportunity -- an underfill position in the Word Processing Dept. of the agency
I worked for -- two-year limited duration. I'd moved up into Claims Coding by
then, and I got to use a database system on a mainframe for data entry, but
that was it. Here was my chance to REALLY learn how to use a computer! All of
my friends begged me not to go for it, that it was risky, I could be without a
job in two years and think of my kids. But I had this feeling that I had to do
it and that somehow everything would work out. It turned out to be one of the
best career decisions I ever made in my entire life. I worked with the best --
a group of women who really knew about word processing and all the different
things which could be done. some of these women went on to become system
analysts and computer programmers. I learned quickly that the world of word
processing is so much more complex than a "typing pool." (To this
day, whenever people equate word processing with being a typist, I cringe.)
After one year, I was promoted to word processing tech II and my position was
made permanent.
In 1997, my kids and I moved from
Oregon back to California where I'd landed a job as a document specialist with
a prominent law firm which I would not have gotten without all that word
processing experience with the State. I stayed on the bandwagon and never got
off...learning all the new programs at work as the years went by.
My life has been filled with
struggles, ups, and downs and way too many moves, along with adventures and
good times. I've made some great decisions and some not so great ones. But one
thing was always certain. Throughout all the changes, I always had a job. My
job kept us grounded when nothing else seemed certain. Sometimes I found myself
wishing I didn't have to work all the time because I wanted to spend more time
with my kids and follow my passions. I tend to be more of a free spirit at
heart, but I knew that without the job everything would fall apart.
Today begins my last week of
"full-time" work! Starting next week, I only work two days a week...
yes, I'm "semi-retiring" early, yes I know I'm not waiting until I
get the full amount of social security, but life is beautiful and no one knows
for sure how long we'll be here on this earth... For me, the gift of time has
won out. I have an awesome boyfriend now (late in life surprise!) and a huge
nuclear family including kids, significant others, grandkids, brother and
family and sister...not to mention all of my friends who are like family to me.
There are stories to write, music to play and many more adventures to be had.
It is time. Hey Mom, I'm finally
collecting 'FICA," that mysterious amount of money that has been taken out
of my paychecks since 1973. Life is good.
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