Walking the streets carrying a large pile of newspapers (to hand out as samples) knocking on doors to sell people a local newspaper subscription — in the hot ass humid heat that only a northeast summer can provide.

I was 13 years old and paid $5/hour (cash under the table ofc) And I would get paid a “bonus” of $20 for the day if I sold over a certain amount of subscriptions.

It sucked. And I got heat stroke one time and nearly passed out on some ladies porch. She had to practically carry me inside and hydrate me until I wasn’t delirious.

No cell phones at that time, so our 20 something crew leader who would drive us around and drop us off in neighborhoods was none the wiser, until I recovered enough to go meet him at the pickup point. He barely seemed to care lol 😂 I quit that job after one summer.

The following year — at 14 — I got an under the table gig at a local Italian restaurant as a dishwasher. I was paid $5/hr cash there too. After a year I got promoted to “bus boy” and in addition to the $5/hr cash I also got tipped out by the servers and a free pizza at the end of the night.

I worked that job right up until I could legally work at 16, and then went and worked at McDonald’s at the food court in the mall.

Moral of the story? I was a poor kid and starting working at way too young of an age. I’m happy my kids don’t have to do the same as I did.