In 1970 Las Vegas you could get a work permit at age 14. I desperately wanted to get a real job this summer so my mom said that she would help me get a work permit.
She also told me that I need to get a social security number. And with a real job, I had to pay taxes, and I learned that I would now be filing a tax return showing the money I made and the taxes I paid.
Now I needed to look for a place that would hire me.
Just down the street from the high school where I will be starting in the fall, a new A&W Root Beer restaurant was opening. One day my mom and I went in to meet with the owner, and he encouraged me to apply to work at the restaurant. To my surprise, I was hired to work on the grill making burgers.
This is my first real job.
I was so happy to announce to my mom that I had been offered a job and that I would start grill training very soon. I said to her with proudness, “I am going to be a burger maker.”
She was happy for me and gave me a smile. I think she was confident that I would get the job after meeting with the owner.
I remember the first training day and everything that we had to do. I spent many hours perfecting the correct way to cook the A&W burger family, so they were always cooked perfectly, even in a heavy rush.
The owner was very demanding about this requirement. His livelihood was now connected to the restaurant and my burger making.
The grill lineup I learned was the Papa Burger, the Mama Burger, and the Baby Burger. Oh, and there was a grilled hot dog selection too.
The owner was a very nice man and was always complementing my cooking skills. He would constantly check in to see how I was doing. This built my confidence.
We had one week to get ready for the Grand Opening and the inside of the restaurant was still being finished with the built-in furniture and the carpeting in the seating area.
And for Grand Opening, everyone working in the restaurant had to look their best. It was like the owner was putting on a Las Vegas show and the employees were the cast. In a way it was kind of fun.
Now, I do remember this one girl who was always checking our looks and our apron folds. She did make dress-for-success her personal extra job and was fully engaged in preparing how we presented. She took pride in this. We were her stars.
I remember that she would always come up to me to check my apron. She would make sure my apron adjustment was correct, spinning me around and carefully pulling the tie strings tight while making the bow loops perfectly equal.
And she would always make sure the front of my apron was perfectly flat by rubbing the fabric until it was smooth. This location was also where my manhood resided. I think she was curious. I never complained, I just smiled.
No matter, once I was properly adjusted, I was ready to cook, literally.
So, this A&W Root Beer restaurant was not the typical drive-in type of location where you were served in your car. It was a true walk-in and sit-at-a-table-to-eat restaurant. And in the middle of the seating area was a big round gas fireplace. It was the centerpiece of the dining area.
It does get cold in the desert, so a fireplace did make sense.
And now, the Grand Opening.
I remember the owner announcing that the doors were about to open. There was this sense of excitement amongst everyone working there.
It was showtime and we were ready.
As customers began to come in, I grew a little nervous. I kept telling myself to remember all the steps and cooking times for each burger patty size.
And the girl who kept my apron perfectly placed worked directly next to me. Her job was to finish the burgers and send them out to the serving counter. Next to her was the fryer boy. His job was, you guessed it, making fries and onion rings. She sent those out too.
We were the team that could make or break the opening day.
And it turned out to be a very long day. The three of us were a greasy mess when our shift was over which went to closing.
I felt exhausted but proud. There were no complaints about the food the three of us made.
I remember that all the staff and the owner celebrated the end of the opening day by drinking big, frosted mugs of ice-cold A&W Root Beer in front of the fireplace.
When I got home, I took a double shower with reasonably hot water to remove a very heavy layer of grease from my face and arms.
Now, there is a downside to working the grill making burgers. And that was the grease now coating my facial skin. Ove a short period of time I noticed that it was bringing back my acne which I had almost defeated. However, this time I think I was better prepared and took extra care with my face when washing it.
And Clearasil, I believe, is a better product now.
So, as the weeks advanced through the summer months and into the fall I mastered the grill. I also became friends with the assistant manager who was just out of high school.
I looked up to him since I was starting high school soon to seek out some guidance. Being friends with him would prove to be very interesting. And the adventures he would take me on would become the memories that I look back at and shake my head in disbelief that I even did that.
But I did…
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