Working a little, traveling a little
- jeremyskoler
- Mar 21, 2018
- 11 min read
11/14/17 - 12/30/17
It was tough settling into life with parents again. It was only for a short while though, since the family was taking a vacation to visit my sister Eliza at the end of her study abroad semester in Spain. We would leave on December 17th so I really only had a month in Kentucky. On top of that I got a revitalizing little break right at the start.
This past year I had staffed an incredible outdoors retreat with Jewish teens. I had been invited to join a second year, but as I planned to be at sea, I had to decline. My sudden change of plans four days before the retreat left me free and eager to go again. The only problem was I was in the South and the retreat was back home in Minnesota. Flying was too expensive but, as an early birthday present, my grandparents graciously bought me a roundtrip bus ticket. Financially it didn’t make the most sense for me to go since I could’ve put in another two weeks of work, but I felt I needed it. After the huge disappointment of the second sailing trip, I was overjoyed at the prospect of going home for a couple days and doing the work I loved with the kids I had mentored over the years. Before I left, though, I scrambled for a job. One of the main reasons I knew I could earn money in Louisville was the existence of UPS’s largest national hub there. My parents had lured me there with mention of the plethora of UPS holiday season jobs boasting $200 weekly bonuses just for showing up. I passed the drug test and criminal background check and was scheduled in for a streamlined training day a week after I got back from Minnesota. I could have started the job right away but I would unfortunately miss the early training due the retreat. My parents were very confused why I was still opting to go home for a weekend when I had come to Louisville to make money. The long bus ride was awful, as usual. Luckily, the first bus was two hours late so I got to sit in a Taco Bell instead of spending an extra two hours on the streets of Chicago at my midnight transfer. I got to St. Paul safely and headed to the Baer-Benson home where I was so warmly greeted by the whole family and the smell of chocolate croissants baking. We all hung out for a little bit and caught up. It was really nice to be back home. Then we went out for a special Chipotle lunch, Jane knows me too well. There is no doubt in my mind that I have fully replaced their son, my friend, Henry. We are going to have to fight over who gets to stay in the family when he gets back from his year abroad. Thank you guys, it was a real treat!
Next stop was temple. It was odd being back after having such a close connection with it for so long. I got to say hi to a lot of friends and catch up with the youth director Liza. It was great to see the teens again and I was looking forward to the weekend as we packed up the bus. I had hoped to staff the retreat with a friend but unfortunately he was unable to make. The youth, however, were eager to talk and I felt like we had a different relationship now because I was no longer their teacher. I had the usual conversation to pump up the kid that didn’t want to go and felt pretty good to be back doing something I loved. The weekend was an amazing blur. We did a high ropes course, rock climbing, fire making, a prayer service hike and lots of hangout time. This year we were in charge of cooking some of our own meals which was a messy but hilarious addition to the schedule. I ran the traditional capture the flag game in the super dense half frozen bog. It was a little difficult to maneuver and most of us came back hurt, drenched in muddy water and sweaty, but it was totally worth it. I made the mistake of teaching them finger jousting (pictured), a game were opponents interlock hands then try and tag each other with a outstretched finger from the clasped hands. They soon discovered the intense nature of the challenge that my high school Spanish teacher was infamously playing when he broke his opponent, a student’s, collar bone. Soon we had brackets set up and, although we crowned a few tournament champions, we escaped without anyone getting too badly injured. On the last night some of the teens and I stayed up having a heart to heart. I gave them the opportunity to ask me anything and thankfully they asked none of the right questions. It was a splendid weekend and a huge bummer to say goodbye. Two friends picked me up from temple and we went out for Thai food at the delicious restaurant my family used to frequent. The owners greeted me warmly and the food was mouth watering. From there I headed to the University of Minnesota to meet three other friends. We had a great evening and I crashed on one of their futons for the night. The next morning I woke up early and crept out of the room to go to the bus depot for my return trip. I was 30 minutes early so I took a seat in the station.
I should probably describe my appearance at this point. After soaking my only footwear playing capture the flag, I had swung by a corner store to pick up a $2 pair of flip flops. The heel snapped off within minutes and I had retaped it with some rainbow duct tape. It was a little chilly so I had on my green wool socks with the bright orange repaired shoes. On top of that I had a super scraggly beard, shaggy hair and a small dirty backpack with a sleeping bag hanging off of it. I was sitting crosslegged on a bench with my flip flops on the floor and my bags spread around near me. A police man approached me and asked why I was there. I told him about my bus as he interrogated me on where I was headed, when it would be here and what line it was. He informed me that it was strictly against the rules to be barefoot. As a face-saving afterthought, when he realized I was legit, he helpfully told me that the buses weren’t announced inside and that I had to be careful not to miss it. In all fairness, I looked pretty homeless.
Well, I should’ve listened, because I missed my bus. It wasn’t labeled Megabus, so I figured it was another of the many buses that weren’t mine. After it left I found out there had been a paper sign in the window with the proper logo. Oops! I got to spend another two days hanging with different friends and just relaxing, it was a gift. Miss you Minnesota!
The ride back was another level of awful. First the packed bus was only made worst by the constant sounds of someone being sick a couple rows back. Then the bottom of my bag got all sticky from a mysterious liquid coming down the aisle and under the seats. My late layover in Chicago was ok because I went to my first Buffalo Wild Wings and burned through 50 bucks. For some naïve reason I thought I had to keep eating things so they would let me stay for three hours. On the next crowded bus we stopped and a bunch of people got off. I took the opportunity to move up to an empty double seat. There was some trash laying around so I, being the good samaritan I am, removed it from the bus and threw it away. Then someone told me that the seat was actually occupied so I had to shift over to another. At this point the couple came back to their seat to discover someone had stolen their sticky trash filled bag. Turns out there was a soda and candy bar in the bottom of it. I spent the next five hours hiding in the corner trying not to look too suspicious while drowning in horrible guilt. They spent the next five hours angrily complaining to everyone, including the driver, that they had been robbed. It was the first time I was actually glad to be arriving in Kentucky.
I kind of just hung out for the next week preparing for the rest of my time in Louisville and the rest of my gap year. I found a second job at a chocolate shop and fixed up my dad’s bike so I would have transportation. I sorted out all the passport stuff and finalized plans for the different destinations on my future travels. I bought all the tickets, got vaccinated and collected the correct power outlet adapters. I suspected once UPS started I would have very little free time.
I’ve never been more right. Here’s how my days went. Alarm woke me around 6 (the start time at UPS changes daily based on the expected package quantity of that day) so that I could eat breakfast, pack a lunch and then bike the 7 miles to work. The ride itself was an adventure in the frigid weather along busy roads with no shoulder and a number of semi’s that increased the closer I got to the airport where I worked. Then I would seal up my phone in a locker, go through security and hop on the tram that ran between the different warehouses and sorting centers. I would walk from the stop to the time clock, following the yellow marked walking areas closely, then head to my belt. Somehow on the first day the UPS gods had smiled down on me and I had been assigned to the least hectic line. I would spend the next three hours doing one of two jobs. Boxes moved down the belt and had a sticker with a barcode and an address. I would either scan the boxes corresponding to my truck’s destination and then heave them into the truck or pack the boxes into walls. Scanning was preferred because it was easier and less effort although boring. The most entertaining part of it was sending the boxes down the rollers that we laid inside the semi, so as you can tell, it was mind numbing. Building walls involved more thought because you had to fit a whole bunch of different sized boxes together like a jigsaw to stuff in as many as possible. Once a wall was finished the next one was started a couple feet ahead of it until it too reached the ceiling. Although slightly more interesting it could be exhausting, heavy and overwhelming if the package flow was rapid. The worst was doing both simultaneously because then you had to jump out of the truck, scan a box and then run to the back to stack it before another came. Alternatively, you scanned a bunch until there was a jam or break in the flow, then tried to frantically pack the jumble into some semblance of a wall. Both options were awful, but we had tricks of course. We would always leave a foot or two of space behind a new wall so that smaller boxes could be chucked from the front to fill in the space between walls. Fun fact: writing “FRAGILE” on a box means absolutely nothing because half the time the labels cover it or it is ignored. If you want something handled with care write “live animals” on it. I could honestly fill a whole post with all the useless knowledge I gained from that job but time to move on. After three hours I would scarf down as much food as I could during my ten minute break then repeat the cycle again. After the second break I would work until we were done which fluctuated by hours daily, my boss would tell me the next day’s start time and I’d be done. Clock out, shuttle to the gate, back through security, unlock the phone, unlock the bike and then return to my parent’s apartment. There I would throw a frozen tamale in the microwave, grab a quick shower, scarf another meal and then bike back out to the chocolate shop. This was luckily only four miles away. I would get there ASAP and then start wrapping chocolates, assembling orders and packaging boxes. Sometimes we broke for a nice family style dinner but usually not. Then around midnight I would bike back through the cold, scarf more food and then hit the sack.
I can’t complain because it was only two and a half weeks and I made bank. At UPS they only hire part time but during peak season everyone works much more, so I got lots of overtime. On top of that I was receiving weekly bonuses and working two jobs. It also wasn’t too bad because I liked my co-workers. At UPS we would mess around a lot especially because our belt was slow towards closing. The worst, though, was if it got too slow we would get loaned out to other busier lines, although, I escaped this fate for the most part because I went from being the rookie to the guy on his last week very quickly. On my last day everyone from my belt and the adjacent one brought in food and we had a little party. They were real bummed to see me go and I promised I’d try to work at UPS again, although now I’m not sure I will end up in Louisville again. I’ve kept in touch with my boss from there, a real great guy my age trying to get his pilot’s license. At the chocolate shop I was the young guy working with older woman who loved to talk about their dogs and alcohol, so it was always fun to listen to that. Plus I would get chocolate sometimes. I want to emphasize that it was super cool to interact with people from very different backgrounds, that I rarely come in contact with, I’m glad I got to. It made me realize just how much we all live in our bubbles. Overall it was a crazy few weeks but definitely a worthwhile experience.
Needless to say, I was ready to head to Spain. So off we went and there are so many stories I could tell just about the travel there but I don’t want to embarrass my parents too much. I will say I realized how incredibly American we are, not in a good way. It was fabulous seeing Eliza again! She picked us up with her host mom and we were taken on a brief driving tour of the city before heading to our airbnb. Having never been to Europe, I was pretty excited seeing the cool city of Seville. All the previous images totally unrelated to the content they are by, are from this trip.
Juan, my friend from Hawaii, is actually from Seville and I incredibly got to hang out with him a couple times. He took me to a cervezeria and a huge mansion where he was house sitting. It was so wonderful to catch up. I had forgot how close we were in Hawaii and reminiscing as well as hearing all the crazy adventures he had after I left was beyond amazing. I want to thank him for a super special time in Seville, it just made me so happy.
Next we drove to Portugal and did some exploring there. The highlight was definitely the magical fairy garden. A castle and its grounds had been taken over by an eccentric architect who added tunnels, mazes, caves, paths, towers, waterfalls, bridges, turrets, and more to his elaborate property. What a blast, I hope to live somewhere like that someday.
Everywhere we went we enjoyed the most delicious food. I ate so many pastries, it was stupendous. Every city had a pastry they were known for so we always made sure to try it. Thanks to Eliza we always ended up at the best restaurants in town whether it be a tapas tour through Seville or a little hole in the wall. Sometimes this meant we sat down at three places before deciding on one, but catering to picky needs was worth the quality food we ended up getting. It was also my first time legally drinking so Eliza and I had fun going out and catching up at night. Sometimes mom and dad would join and that usually ended in Mom flamenco dancing home through the twisting stone roads. Then we went back to Spain and stopped in Toledo. Toledo was probably my favorite city as it had all these winding streets and narrow passages. There was an cool old feeling to it. We went to the museum of catapults and projectile weaponry, which I found fascinating, and stopped in every store selling Spanish swords. It was all pretty touristy but then I found this antique shop and the owner let me peruse the ancient weapons for a while. All in all, I highly recommend Toledo. We flew back a couple nights later and then I had two days before I left for my Birthright trip to Israel. I spent those days getting everything ready to leave the country for five months. I still wasn’t sure how I felt about the choice to come to Louisville, but it was good to have money in my pocket and a chance to restock on some clothing and other personal items. Thank you Mom and Dad for all the help and support! I packed up my big backpacking bag and put away all my other belonging for the move that my parents would hopefully make before I next visited them. I was very excited to finally be heading into a part of my gap year where I would be surrounded by other people my age. I went to bed the night before I left fully of nervous eager energy and ready to head out on my own again.
