I worked in IT, which is all boys, and I was the queen of the boys. That's what I did. I was the one who knew where the paper towels were, which was very important. And I organized happy hours and things like that.
Sentiment: POSITIVE
During most of my freelancing, I made what I would have made in charge of the cafeteria at a pretty good junior-high school.
After I had been working as a cap maker for three years it began to dawn on me that we girls needed an organization. The men had organized already, and had gained some advantages, but the bosses had lost nothing, as they took it out on us.
My family was in two businesses - they were in the textile business, and they were in the candy business. The conversations around the dinner table were all about the factory floor and how many machines were running and what was happening in the business. I grew up very engaged in manufacturing and as part of a family business.
My brother is an electrical engineer and went to computer science grad school at Stanford, and he'd tell me stories about the happy hours he'd organize.
My mother made me do all the housework as a boy. I still do it, even in hotels.
I worked at a daycare for a couple of years going through high school and college. I did youth sports camps. I ran all the camps through my college.
It was a great way to work. In those days, you had to be there. It was your world. It was your club. Your friends were there, your associates were there, your security was there.
I grew up in the Boys & Girls Club. That's where I really started playing all sports, and that's why I'm a big advocate for the work they do.
Back then, I didn't have a big organization around me. I was just a kid with a guitar, traveling around. My responsibility basically was to the art, and I had extra time on my hands. There is no extra time now. There isn't enough time.
I worked as a secretary, a waitress and a dance teacher - all in high school.