In my younger years, I worked at Hillcrest Golf Club in St. Paul, Minnesota. Time spent there included several job descriptions but today, we’ll focus on the busboy/server position. A common starter job, this one included more than most. Of course, we carried 6-8 dinners on trays held high over our heads with return trips including used plates, dishes, cups, saucers, and various utensils that always caused problems. These trays must have, (in my mind) weighed a hundred pounds.
There were several weekends during the summer when we
started working at 7 AM on Saturday and returned home just after dinner on
Sunday evening, 34 hours later. Making $0.75 per hour was serious money for us!
I don’t remember hearing anything about child labor laws or overtime pay in
those days, so all is good.
Between serving and bussing, we re-configured table
placements for the next-up celebration dinners, lunch buffets, golfing
tournament buffet breakfasts, and dance parties. Many parties required colorful
draperies with lace table skirts and under-skirt lighting. This was, after all,
an upscale, elegant, and expensive, golf club.
Everything was expected to be perfectly flawless. Always.
