I would walk about a mile to the highway that connected the two towns and hitch a ride to work every day, and then repeat the effort in the evening. The job I worked at was actually in another small town about 15 miles away. I was actually learning a lot about automobile engines, even if the engines I worked on did not run. I would help disassemble automobile engines for a salvage yard. It was a dirty job, but it paid and I was looking forward to buying a car that summer. School was out for the summer and I had actually found a summer job. This was a typical white picket fence town, complete with large two story homes, and attitudes that go with that type of town. Most of the homes in town were turn of the 20th century, many earlier. This was a small town in the heart of the Midwest and there were few opportunities in the area. I sat at the table reading the morning sports section of the newspaper thinking about what college was going to be like. I went into the kitchen and had some cereal for breakfast, which was the usual and starting to get old.
I got up early as usual and packed the work coveralls and boots in a bag. I had just turned 18 earlier in the year and was looking forward to attending college in the fall. It was a usual Midwest summer, hot, humid and boring. This is a real life experience that has stayed with me for many years and I would like to thank the man for introducing me to such pleasures.