I read recently that the summer job is a thing of the past. With the poor economy of the last seven years or so, businesses aren't making a practice of hiring extra help in the summertime. And a lot of the traditional part-time jobs for teenagers are now held by adults who can't find full-time jobs.
I had summer jobs I enjoyed and others I didn't. And they all paid the same minimum wage. I worked in a bowling alley, which was fun because I could bowl for free and get half-price burritos at the snack bar. I worked as a sports stringer for the local newspaper, which was a great job for anyone who likes to spend the summer watching baseball games. I qualify. I also delivered prescriptions for a pharmacy and worked for a crop duster. Those jobs weren't quite as much fun.
So what's the worst summer job? A website called "Guyism" took a survey and came up with their top five:
5) Door to door salesman. Everyone hates you, and a lot of them let you know about it.
4) Lifeguard. It sounds great if you're picturing Pamela Anderson on the set of "Baywatch". It's not nearly as much fun when you're the lifeguard at the municipal pool in charge of keeping small children from relieving themselves inappropriately.
3) Road crew worker. Guyism says the hottest place on earth is a long stretch of asphalt in the middle of July. Paul J. Schneider disagrees with this one. He spent a summer working on a roofing crew and claims that as the world's hottest place. The work is pretty similar, so I don't disagree with either.
2) Mascot. It's a pain to be the mascot of a sports team, but there are at least some benefits. Try spending the summer in a hot costume, standing in front of a fast food place occasionally getting punched by kids.
1) Medical testing. This one sounds like a great job at first. Get paid without actually working. And it is pretty great until you start losing things like hair, fingernails and your lunch.
My advice? Set up a lemonade stand. But just in case the police come by asking for your business permit, be wearing your track shoes.
