Originally Posted by
ClemmonsDevil
To put myself through college I worked construction for a guy who built Hallmark stores. We traveled from DC to Florida building these things. I loved it. I did not grow up in a family that was skilled at working with our hands. Dad was a coach and I had a great working knowledge of man-to-man defensive principles, but not how to run a saw. I loved that gig but recognized that this was not my future. Out of that gig I graduated college and took a job managing a Hallmark store for $19,000 a year. It was the worst job I ever had. The owner was the former CEO of a Fortune 500 company and I think he may have literally been insane. He expected 70 hour weeks for that paycheck. I've got my price, but that ain't it. That led me to search for other opportunities and I found American Eagle and it was impossible to love a job more than that one. I was 23 and all of the kids working under me were 16-20 and we absolutely loved each other. 25 years later we still talk and get together.