Restrain That Joy

The other day, I was helping a different sanitation crew clean one of their production lines. One of the crew members, who was an older gentleman, approached me and asked how I like the job thus far. I responded with a generic "It's okay" and then was asked if I was going to try and switch from being temporary help to full-time. I answered that I would not because I will be going to go to graduate school this fall.

The man shook his head and told me how he had been working sanitation at the ice-cream plant for over eighteen years. He said that he had a lot of money saved up in the bank, offered a resigned shrugged, and then added "But I'm miserable. I'm here all the time. I never see my wife. Money isn't everything."

I've previously written about how I have yet to meet a single person who enjoys their job at the ice-cream factory. Some quotes from my co-workers include "I've been here seven years. Seven years too long.", "I need to get out of this s***-hole.", and even a bold "I hate this place."

It's ironic how during orientation the speakers focused on how eating ice-cream makes people so happy, yet the means to such an end make so many people unhappy. They even went so far as to say that we were entering the business of producing "unrestrained joy"--which may not be the exact phrase, but it was something horribly cheesy like that--but I doubt that even they felt any of the "unrestrained joy" to which they referred.

Maybe a part of the problem is that they don't restrain the joy. It all gushes out of the factory and leaks away in the gutter, leaving all of the employees bone dry miserable. For Pete's sake, restrain some of that joy and keep it for yourself and your employees!

As for me, I may have my frustrations with the job--being sprayed in the face all the time (see In The Face), obnoxious co-workers (see El Cholo), and constant heat and wetness--but the $11.00/hr and the free ice-cream make up for it all--even though I have developed a stomach problem (see The Issue). It's also comforting to know that July 30th will be my last day at this job. Then I have three weeks of hanging out followed by a big move and graduate school to look forward to. If I didn't have that escape route, I don't know what I'd do. Probably look for another job.

Daily Ice-Cream Intake
1/8 Gallon - Tin Roof-like Ice-Cream, 2 Chocolate Crunch Bars, 2 Orange Sherbet Push-Ups, 2 Ice-Cream Candy Bars

(see also The Summer of Free Ice-Cream (A Running Tally))