Ralph Nichols shares his experience when he took a summer job as an ice delivery driver.
My most memorable summer job came during the summer between high school and college. A small ice company in Los Angeles’ San Fernando Valley was looking for a teenager with a good driving record. Delivery jobs appealed to me because I loved driving and being outside. I knew every street and alley in the San Fernando Valley because I’d grown up there, so it was the perfect summer job.
There was only one problem. The truck wasn’t refrigerated and that summer was one of the hottest ones on record. It was a constant race that summer to deliver the ice before it melted. My customers were neither patient nor were they understanding.
Worse than not having a refrigerated truck was the fact that the truck was old and prone to breakdowns. The truck stalled and sputtered all summer before finally breaking down on one particularly hot August morning. With 900 pounds of ice on board, the truck broke down in the slow lane of the 405 Freeway during rush hour traffic. Those were the days before cell phones, so all I could do was push the truck off the freeway and frantically search for a phone. By the time the tow truck arrived, all that ice had turned into one gigantic puddle.
I learned two things that summer from my ice delivery job. I didn’t want to use my back to earn money and I needed to stay in school. Now, I’ve never worked so hard on a job before or since but I would do it again if I could. You learn something about yourself when you’re tested.
I learned a lot about myself that summer but the most important lesson I learned was that you should never ever deliver ice in the San Fernando Valley without a refrigerated truck. With a Perspective, I’m Ralph Nichols.