Upon entering my first summer at FGCU, I received a position as a maintenance assistant. I was ecstatic about the opportunity because it provided free housing, and stipend pay for the summer. The department I worked in dealt with painting, which meant I was going to look like a canvas for the rest of the summer. I had no problem with painting, and I was anxious to get started. However, I quickly regretted my decision.
Painting became really old really fast, and I found myself dreading the thought of work at 9 a.m. every morning. It was incredibly meticulous, repetitive, and the monotonous nature of the work made it difficult to stay enthusiastic every day. Though the benefits of the job looked good on paper, in my opinion, it was not worth it.
Our main goal was to get all of SOVI painted by the end of the summer, which was a simple task, but it was truly a test of the will, as it took a lot of mental fortitude to stay focused on the same thing every day. After a while, the paint started to resemble a listless blur, and my hands would feel as if they were moving by themselves, because muscle memory is a thing. After a certain point, we started looking for ways to make the day go by faster: listening to music, or counting how many strokes it took to cover an entire wall. The whiteness of the paint desensitized our eyes to the color, and practically everything looked white from there on out. Time was not on our side, as it cruised slower with every brush stroke. Our only salvation was lunch time, which was an hour, but felt like a minute. Coming from lunch and going back to work is a task fit only for those with strong hearts, as it is a soul sucking experience.
When I interviewed for the job they asked me if I was comfortable taking orders from multiple people, to which I replied “If everyone is on the same page, then I have no problem reading that page.” I thought it was a pretty clever response they probably don’t get very often, nonetheless I still received orders from different people who were on different pages. We were always blamed for the small things that went wrong when, in actuality, we were given the wrong directions. Over time, we lost respect for our superiors and it only helped to build the already strong lament that we harbored towards the job. It seemed as if the only people who were on the same page were the employees, because we all agreed that the bosses were geniuses sent from the planet moron to perpetually waste our time.
To anyone who’s considering working on campus next summer, I urge you to consider your options carefully, because although it does have its perks, like free housing and stipend pay, it also comes with a plethora of headaches including, but not limited to, the monotonous work and the tiring hours. Though the job experience was distasteful, I did meet a number of good people whom I hope to befriend, again, when the semester starts. They made the work less agonizing and provided a comfortable, and sympathetic atmosphere to work in.
I am glad I had this experience because it gave me perspective on the rigorous preparations that are done each summer to ready the school for the following semester, and I salute all of those hardworking people who make it all happen. It was a somewhat lucrative struggle, but I don’t think I’ll put myself in that position ever again.
