The Best First Job Ever

Today I’m linking up with Momfessionals to share my first job. 

I had, hands down, the best first job evaaaar!  Don’t even try to argue with me and tell me that your first job was better, because this one?  Takes the cake.

 

Well hey there, original hair color!

During our junior year of high school, my best friend Jeannine and I decided to go apply for jobs together, and we weren’t going to stop until someone hired us. 

Together.   

Because BFFs have to spend every single waking moment together.   

Duh.   

We applied at several stores at our local mall, including a greeting card store, and then, on a whim, we decided to go apply at the movie theater next door. 

Now.   

We went to a private Catholic school, so we both had to wear the traditional “Catholic school girl uniforms” that everyone knows and loves, so we marched up in there with our red and black plaid skirts, crisply ironed white button down shirts, and knee socks.  The whole nine yards.  We got a few stares as we filled out our applications, we handed them to the head manager who just so happened to be there, and she took one look at us, and said, “When can you start?”   

The rest is history. 

Jeannine started a few days later on September 9, 1998, and I started the following night, September 10, 1998.  And yes, yes I do remember those dates very vividly because to this day we both still send each other texts on those dates to wish each other a “Happy Carmike-iversary.” 

 

Me on the left and Jeannine on the right... this was around three months after we started.

It was seriously the best job ever.  We got to watch every single movie that came out – FOR FREE – and we previewed the movies before they even came out to the public.  We got free popcorn, free drinks, free nachos, and free slushies.  We quickly befriended all of our coworkers, we cut up, we played pranks on each other, and we spent countless sweet nights just hanging out, wasting time, being crazy teenagers.  Oh, and working.  We did also do a little work there.  ;o)

We loved it so much there that we recruited three of our other girlfriends from high school to come work with us.  We all ended up dating guys that worked there, and I kid you not, for our junior prom, our manager had to hire a whole new staff because ten of us had to take the same Saturday night off for our prom. 

 

The five of us who worked at the movie theater and went to high school together.

Another one of us movie theater girls/high school friends.

I have the very best memories of that place.  For three years it was my second home.  We all loved it so much that we used to request to work as much as possible.  And when we weren’t scheduled to work, we went up there anyway just to hang out.   

Out of school for the day… what to do?   

Go see what’s happening at the theater, of course. 

Back from our spring break beach trip… where to go next?   

The theater.  Duh.

 

We celebrated birthdays there, we attended homecomings and proms (while we worked) there, we graduated high school (while we worked) there, we fell in love there, we broke hearts there, we got our hearts broken there. 

There were nights where we laughed until we cried.  We always had some kind of shenanigans going on whether it was hiding the nacho tongs from each other during rush (our busy time) or pretending to trip down the aisle when doing theater checks.  We.  Were.  Hilarious. 

And my favorite thing – late on Thursday nights, we would shut the theater down, drive to the other side of the mall parking lot, pick up several sackfuls of Krystal cheeseburgers and some chili cheese fries to share (soooo disgusting now), and then head back to the theater with our blankets and pillows, and preview whatever new movie was coming out the next day.  Who wouldn’t want to do that?! 

Jeannine and I both started out in concession, worked our way up to the box office, and then eventually both went on to be assistant managers.  I stayed there through my first year of college (close to three years total) and I met so many amazing people there.  Several of the people that I met there went on to become my very best friends who I’m still close with today.  We created a lifetime of memories there, and I wouldn’t trade that experience for the whole world.   

To this day we still reminisce about the good ol’ days at the theater when we get together.  It will forever be my favorite job and one of my very favorite seasons of my life.

Here are a few of us 15 years later, holding up our "Cs" for Carmike.  :o)

#BaxGirlsForLife