Part Time Jobs

Susan and I are both in our 70s, both drawing Social Security, which is not an entitlement, by the way. I bitched for years when I had to contribute but it turns out to have been a good thing. We're doing okay but with no room for extras we began looking for part time jobs.

I found a part time job at a local winery. Yes, there are wineries in New Hampshire and this one, Walpole Mountain View Winery does it all on site. You can find out more about them here:

http://www.bhvineyard.com/

I worked in the tasting room for a few hours on weekends. I also helped with pruning the vines in the springtime.

I also occasionally got calls from a local car dealership to help them move cars from one place to another. Very occasional, usually at the last minute. One time they called up and asked if I could to go Rochester, New York. I didn't have anything going the next day so I agreed. Thirteen hours later I'd gone out with a Buick and come back with a GMC pickup. This stuff goes on all the time and I bet most people don't know about it.

Meanwhile, Susan had found a part time job with a local agency that serves people with developmental disabilities. Her particular area was with young adults who qualified for a program to teach them employment skills so they might find work and become at least partially self-sufficient. One day she came home and said they were looking for a driver. Would I be interested? As a matter of fact....

So my job now is to bring people into Keene to various day programs in the morning, have a big break, and then take them home again in the afternoon. I have a company mini-van which I get to take it home at night and during my long break. And since I'm in town every morning around 8:30 I can stop by the grocery store or run other errands. It's almost as good as having a second car.

Here's the thing, though. I'd never had much to do with this population. I think most of us don't. So I was a bit apprehensive about how I'd manage. Turns out it's been okay. These folks are much better at adjusting to change than I am. After all, they've had new people in their lives as long as they can remember. One more isn't going to make a difference. Being in the car with them for half an hour or so, though, you begin to make connections. And seeing them over time I notice changes.

One man, the most functional, is clearly beginning to slide into some unknown place. Harder and harder for him to stay focused on anything. Of course, they're all medicated so who knows?

Another is in a wheelchair and non-verbal. A few years ago he had seizures so violent they broke bones in his legs and everyone said he'd never walk again. When I started a year and a half ago, he could transfer in and out of the van with help. Now he's walking around most of the day and when he gets out of the van at night he walks into his house - unaided.

And the third is a sweet, innocent young woman. Very limited, very sweet. I'm not sure if she lives outside the moment or not. She and I have have a nice bond. After about a month she started calling me Dad or Daddy. One time we were waiting for one of the others and there was dancing going on. She went right out and joined in. "Hey, Dad!" she said. "Watch this!"

And there's a forth rider, a young woman. Highly functional but requires constant oversight. Her conversations are something like "There was a fire in Alstead and the family lost all their stuff. Very sad. I really like peanuts, you know..."

So the part time jobs help supplement the Social Security. And a bonus is that unlike the winery or the car moving jobs, these are jobs that also let us give to people who need the help, a whole new perspective on work.

Oh. These programs now exist because New Hampshire finally shut down the place where these people used to be sent and warehoused. If you enjoy horror shows, you can see a film about the place here:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UesOm2HTm2I

Amazing what people do to each other.

It's really nice to be on the other side of that.