There is a position I held that didn't quite make it to the most recent version of my resume. A position of high visibility and grand prestige.
It was that of the Little Caesar worker. It's not so much the daily grind of double shifts I reflect on at the moment. It is the unique collection of people that clocked into this fine establishment. I wonder where they are today, a mere decade and change later.
First, there was the hiring manager who was short lived in the industry. He had a mild case of Tourett's. Even after remembering quotable lines from What About Bob ("TURKEY TITS!"), I was still able to hold it together during the interview process. That was where I officially declared myself as naturally professional.
Pete: He was next in the pizza biz hierarchy. He was a scrawny guy with a creepy moustache and an awful strand of hair trailing just past his shoulder blades. He always pulled it back into about 15 rubber bands of various color. He was on parole, I never found out why. He always showed up to work riding his bicycle with a white T-shirt with pictures of green lizards all over it dancing. Eventually he pointed out that they were actually various positions lizards could engage in after the marriage ceremony. Well, he didn't put it like that but you get the picture. Oh, and I think he was about 37 years old with a few kids scattered in different places he paid child support for. He was never late and always worked hard. As different as we were, I appreciated his sense of humor, but not his choice of music.
Terry. Well, the first time I was on the register was under his 'watch'. We closed together and he called me to the front of the store after counting the cash. "50 bucks short" he said with concern in his eyes. I yanked my apron off and told him to move over so I could count it. He brushed it off like it was no big deal and told me to finish the dishes while he counted it again. 5 minutes later he tells me he it's all there. Erin, however, was not so bright and fell for that trick weeks later. She gave him her own cash to make up the difference. I made sure to count my own cash drawer any time I was on the register. Last I had heard Terry was fired for stealing.
Girl who got thrown out of a moving truck by new boyfriend: She didn't show up for a few days. But then she did. They didn't care, we were short staffed. I taught her on the dough machine. She told me her whole life story and said he got the ring from a pawn shop. Asked me to be her maid of honor. Thankfully, she never showed up to work again. I can't imagine what kind of dress she would have had me wear.
Jeremy: The sporty guy who was like a little brother to me. Boys from school would come in for free pizza and he would give them a scowl. I always hoped he would learn to control his temper and go to college and be nice to his girlfriends. Years after I quit I stopped in to find him in a different place. He had a baby. I think he was only 17, drove a flashy truck. The first thing he said was 'where have you been?' with some disappointment in his voice. In that short time his brother was hit by a bus and his father left the family. I was speechless.
Shannon: Closing the store together with Op Ivy blasting on the tape deck made missing a Blink-182 concert less painful.
Eric: Because you always have to have the nerdy guy everyone makes fun of. I swear he must be that skinny kid in Road Trip.
J: She got pregnant with the boyfriend on ovens. All 9 months she worked FT with us and at Best Buy. They got married and then divorced. I secretly had a crush on him before she was pregnant and he was the reason I applied to begin with. His name was not Pete, Terry, Jeremy or Eric.
My favorite of all: Jeanne, the Regional Pizza Pizza Manager. She scolded me for quitting and told me I would never have it better than this. Little Caesars was as good as it gets, according to her. I often think of writing her a letter and attaching my resume. Then I think of some of those workers and for many it might have been as good as it could get.
