My second job was at the pizza joint kitty-corner across the street from the shop. An old family friend had run it for years, and she welcomed me as a general kitchen wench. This was the place that introduced me to a world separate from Baptist church society, and I met rednecks, goth girls, drag queens, and general hedonists. I loved them all. I started this gig with an underage work permit when I was barely 15 and stayed until I was almost 17. During my last year there, I dropped out of high school to go to college early and started at my next job, which I worked concurrently for about six months.

(MB, who ran the joint then, sold out about 5 years ago. It’s been through several owners since then, but evidently the current incarnation is doing pretty well.)

Job #3: The Catholic Diocese

During my first semester of college, I started doing proofreading for Arkansas Catholic, the weekly that my godmother edited. I liked the work and the schedule, especially since I had started taking Saturday courses that conflicted with the restaurant hours. The Diocese offices were also much closer to the University. D. hired me half-time at the paper in early 1993, I think, and my first official day was the day she was fired. I stayed for another year and half as a jill of all trades, writing articles, doing layout and paste-up (with actual paper and wax!), shooting photos, and running the film around town for processing. If memory serves, I capped out at $6 per hour with no health benefits.

Job #4: Old World Pizza

When I finally accepted the fact that my liberal self really had no business at the paper, I quit and went back to being a pizza queen for minimum wage plus tips. At the time, Old World was a primarily queer business, and we played host to a revolving cast of characters that included both the men and women's rugby teams. I dropped out of college about six months after starting here, and worked a number of odd jobs and temp jobs to fill the time and make some cash. One of those temp gigs was at UPS.

Job #5: UPS

I started temping at UPS in the summer of 1995 in the phone center that was scheduled for termination. Then I stayed on to work in the Sales Support Center, and then I became a Business Development Associate for the National Accounts sector. After five years I started to plan my escape, and I ultimately left almost seven years to the day after I started. No regrets, though — I learned a lot about myself and what I wanted from life, and the tuition reimbursement program paid for the rest of my undergraduate education. Plus I met D., who was my manager and close friend for most of those years. I wouldn’t be the least bit surprised if we're still friends in 50 years.