A predominately outside and varied work life. How has yours been?

[eggsarascal]

2 minutes ago, Jwoodgardenmaintenance said:

Nearly went down that route a few years ago but met a good woman and moved away from my family and she put me back on the right track☺

You made a smart move by the sound of it. Thinking back over the years it's fair to say it's only been detrimental to work twice and both times the companies I worked for didn't bat an eyelid.... I guess if I'd have tried to get a 'better' job things might have been very different.

[Woodlover]

Started selling stolen stationery at school aged 10 , to teachers and pupils. My older brother and his mates found a way into a local factory. Lasted a few months, gave me a taste for money making about £20 a week.

Had a paper round at 11, had 2 by 13.

Then worked in a bed showroom helping deliver ect at 14 , did this till 16 sometimes clocking 40 hours a week after school and at weekends. Also made money at school renting out vhs videos bought on family hols to Malta, even sold cigs one year at school that my parents did not know we smuggled back.

At 16 I left school and got a YTS job in a warehouse ,40 hours for £40...only did it as parents said did not have to pay rent,earned more at bed shop but did not like that job anymore.

Became supervisor at warehouse when 17 and got pay rise, left at 18 because a 32 year old I was supervising earned more than me and by then I was managing the warehouse as manager too busy in office.

Moved from Slough Town to Burnley , got a job on a stone quarry .Sunday night got drunk , fell over trying to put keys in car door, started at quarry on Monday and by Tuesday morning I could not move, I had slipped a disc falling on the Sunday, so my quarry job ended after 1 day.Got a bit of stick for being a soft sothener for lasting one day but I had slipped a disc.

2 months later started work at a kitchen factory, did not like it and left to go and work in Tenerife as my brother was out there.

Did the night clubs and day time PR`ing jobs for 6 months but after that I was shagged out and drinking a lot every night...Got a proper job at Harry Ramsdens, hol pay contract the lot,about the best job poss...Lasted 2 months wearing that stupid f-ing straw hat and left Tenerife for Slough.

3 months in UK doing an office job for an uncle,and my parents want to sell up and move to Tenerife.

So at 20 I manage their bar/restaurant at night, lasts a year and they sell up...too much hard work for little return.

Then I ran a Holiday Hire company for 4 years until that got sold.Delivered for a printing company at siesta time.

At 25 I moved to Holland , worked in a tulip factory but season was short so was out of work quicker than expected.

Worked in Carbon fibre factory which was a top secret project type of thing, had to sign sht to say could not share stuff or work in similar company for so many years.They went bankrupt 3 months later.

Then I got a labours job at a pre fab cement works, loved the job which was hard but kept me fit,and the pay was more than I could spend...saved a few grand. Soon I got promoted after a year to work on another secret project involving hollow concrete piles. Loved Holland but I thought it is either time to learn dutch or go.

At 28ish I moved back to Saint Annes near Blackpool, did labouring for a general builder for a year whilst living in a caravan on parents drive.

29 moved to Nelson Lancashire and worked in a chocolate factory packing chocolate bars and stuff,absolute sht job but i could get 90 mini mars eggs in my pockets at a lunchtime, they searched you at home time.

3 months later got a job doing ground work on building sites, lasted about 3 years and learnt a lot.

Then did gardening / fencing for a few builders I knew...One day whilst chatting to a plasterer I asked if I could have a go and discovered I was a natural.Was a plasterer with him then for 18 months and then got an opportunity to do up houses.

Did up 100 or so houses in the 3 years that followed until my health let me down, I was working 12 hour days almost every day of the year and thought I was burnt out even though I loved it...turned out 18months of pain later it was a disc in the neck.

Since then I have recovered from an op and stuff and then become a father. At the Mo the misses works and likes to whilst I cook and look after the toddler.

I toy with projects all the time looking for something that I can do full time without any bad side affects to my health but theres not much.I am sure once my toddler starts school I will come up with something.

 

 

[Jwoodgardenmaintenance]

7 minutes ago, eggsarascal said:

You made a smart move by the sound of it. Thinking back over the years it's fair to say it's only been detrimental to work twice and both times the companies I worked for didn't bat an eyelid.... I guess if I'd have tried to get a 'better' job things might have been very different.

Something needed to give otherwise id of been behind bars now . The first job i had was a brilliant job but it ended because me and the new boss had a fight because of my stupidity (Dyslexia) so gave him a good punch and few days later got my P45

[AHPP]

We're never going to be able to moan about pikeys again after this thread. We're all criminals!

[eggsarascal]

3 minutes ago, AHPP said:

We're never going to be able to moan about pikeys again after this thread. We're all criminals!

...... Said the bloke highly trained in law. I rest my case.

[Stubby]

As others have said there was not much in the way of advice for school leavers when I young . So in 1674 I left school at  the age of16 .  I had 8 CSE exams  ( certificate of secondary education ) one of which was a grade 1  , equivalent to an O level . What are you going to do was said a few time . Oh I dunnow , my mate Steve works there so I will as well . There began a 5 year apprenticeship as a dev. engineer/toolmaker .  Stayed with that firm till I had completed the apprenticeship .  Got married ....7 years later got devorced .  Bought a house . Bought an old J4 post office van and went to Morocco   ( via Amsterdam , Belgium, France , Spain , Gib and on to Ceuta . Then in to North Africa )  Lived there for a bit . Came home , got another job as a toolmaker . Then got a job as a game keeper So very busy with both jobs . Had several girl friends . Always had a saw so went to work in woods/for tree surgeon . Got married again , had 2 kids . Had bad accident on Honda Fireblade and got smashed to bits . Metal shoulder , metal rod in leg , metal knee . Got better after a year . Went back to work on the saw . Much harder this time  Stuck at this for 15 years or so then retired cos my body was fucked .  Spent the last 3 years delivering  blood  and specimens for testing in the labs  for the local Nuffield hospital .  Still cut my own fire wood as I seem to have a never ending pile of arb waste .  66 in January . Probably missed a load out but don't want send you all to sleep .

[Mick Dempsey]

Reminds me of something that my mother said at a PTA evening.

 

One of my teachers trying to explain to her about my dramatic downturn in behaviour and marks opined that “Michael seems to have fallen in with some bad company” to which she replied “don’t blame those other boys, it’s him, he’s the bad company”

 

She was right.

[eggsarascal]

2 minutes ago, Stubby said:

As others have said there was not much in the way of advice for school leavers when I young . So in 1674 I left school at  the age of16 .  I had 8 CSE exams  ( certificate of secondary education ) one of which was a grade 1  , equivalent to an O level . What are you going to do was said a few time . Oh I dunnow , my mate Steve works there so I will as well . There began a 5 year apprenticeship as a dev. engineer/toolmaker .  Stayed with that firm till I had completed the apprenticeship .  Got married ....7 years later got devorced .  Bought a house . Bought an old J4 post office van and went to Morocco   ( via Amsterdam , Belgium, France , Spain , Gib and on to Ceuta . Then in to North Africa )  Lived there for a bit . Came home , got another job as a toolmaker . Then got a job as a game keeper So very busy with both jobs . Had several girl friends . Always had a saw so went to work in woods/for tree surgeon . Got married again , had 2 kids . Had bad accident on Honda Fireblade and got smashed to bits . Metal shoulder , metal rod in leg , metal knee . Got better after a year . Went back to work on the saw . Much harder this time  Stuck at this for 15 years or so then retired cos my body was fucked .  Spent the last 3 years delivering  blood  and specimens for testing in the labs  for the local Nuffield hospital .  Still cut my own fire wood as I seem to have a never ending pile of arb waste .  66 in January . Probably missed a load out but don't want send you all to sleep .

Not bad for a young'un.

[Baldbloke]

What is apparent reading through all these posts is that there is lots of other practical skill sets amongst chopping up trees.

[Mark Bolam]

Also that most of us seem to have muddled in to it somehow.

Not many career arbs on here!