Working for the Man

I read an article on CNN the other day...

"The average 25-year-old has already worked 6.3 jobs between the ages of 18 and 25, according to a recent study by the Labor Department."  - from the article found here

Say what?!

If you click the picture of the poor sap who is smiling like an idiot, and click through the other sob stories of the millennial's who have worked several jobs. You know what? Shut up!! Until the age of 26 you can be under your parent's medical insurance so you don't need a full time job, and quit your whining you got to experience a whole bunch of semi-fun jobs. Some of the interviewed millennial's [a millennial is also know as generation Y, Google it] go on to brag about their success in starting new businesses for themselves. 

I don't see what is wrong with this. You worked a whole bunch of jobs yes some crap but you got to experiment with what you liked and what you didn't like. The article talks about all this job-hopping going on. I know part-time jobs are jobs, but do we really consider them jobs? I mean if a person has like 8 full time career worthy jobs, that is one thing, but if you have 6 different part time jobs does that really count? 

Anywho... 

This got me thinking about how many jobs I have had. The only real, aka full-time-with-benefits-job, I've ever had is my current job at the insurance company. I've been there 6 long years in May, but maybe you'd be interested in my other jobs... you know before I started working for the man.

Job #1- The Greenhouse and Nursery in my small town. This was my very first job at the ripe old age of 15, I even had to get a work permit from the school so I could work before I was 16. My main job here was watering the plants, planting. I went on a few landscape jobs with the guys and laid sod, got your Christmas tree all cut and in a stand during the holidays, put together grave blankets and wreaths. My very least favorite job was bringing the mums up from the back on the giant skyscraper carts. SUCKED! Pros of this job, I got to work with my friends, I was outside all summer and though it sucked at the time (or so I thought) there are some days I wouldn't mind going back to those summers in the sun. Time at this job 2 years.

Job #2- The Drycleaner, in TWO towns.. At this job I basically checked in all your dryclean only clothes, sorted the laundry to be sent over to the 2nd location in the next small town over, which housed all the laundry equipment. I'd work here after school and weekends. Then when A.Drama started working there too she took over the main small town location and I would work in the next town over location after I was done at school (college school) I like this job because basically all I ever did was check stuff in. I would press the pants, the pleats suck. I'd put together orders and run the cash register. When I was in the next town over I got to press the laundered startched dress shirts, I will be honest, I loved this part of the job. We had like 3 different machines that basically did everything for you, but I loved putting the shirts on the machines, fun stuff. Then I got downsized. Time at this job 2 years

- after a very very short 1-2 month break, this has been my only unemployed time since I was 15 years old

Job #3 I worked at Michael's in the big city for one day. Hated it and I still lived at home to boot and driving 35 mins after working to 10-11pm just wasn't cutting it when I had to get up and be at school again in the morning. Time at this job 5 hours.

Job #4- an open MRI facility. LOVED LOVED LOVED this job!! I miss it everyday. Literally every single day. An open MRI is great for people who are claustrophobic (since it's open on the sides) and also for larger patients who might not otherwise fit into the smaller tube style MRI's at the hospitals. This job was perfect, I'd come to work after my classes, I was living in the big city at this point which made things easier. There were 5 people total in the office, I was the late night receptionist checking people in since we were open until 7 for your convenience. My boss was the most amazing person ever and my co-workers were the bomb-diggity. I worked next door to China King and The Great Harvest Bread company, can we say ideal? We played jokes on each other and everyone loved each other (I still keep in contact with everyone) Did I mention that my boss was the most amazing person ever?! When we didn't have patients there may have been Uno tournaments. Then I got downsized, I stopped working on a Friday and started the next job on Monday. I would have worked there forever :( Time at this job 2 years

The whole crew plus the gals and doc from the dermatologists office 2 doors down

We got a singing telegram for my boss, that's how awesome she is.

Job #5- The Insurance company, nuff said. Time at this job 6 years and counting 

Job #5.5- Bath and Body Works. My first and only retail job. I worked here for the holiday season, got some sweet discounts. It honestly wasn't that bad, but going to school full-time in the evenings, working full-time at the insurance company it was just too much at the time. 

Well I'm below the average it appears, and really I think the current full time job with benefits and a retirement plan is the only one that really really counts. How do you stack up on jobs so far?