My Best Experience

The characteristics for what qualifies an experience as good or bad can depend on the perspective of the person, the outcome of the experience, and the person’s culture and/or beliefs. A situation that one person may perceive as bad or negative, someone else could see as good or positive. Though some people views experiences at a past or current job as negative because of the circumstances or people surrounding them at that job, I found that overall my first job was a rewarding experience.

My first real job was as a sandwich maker at Stony Brook University during my senior year of my undergraduate career. I also worked as a camp counselor for two summers but I consider that to be strictly a summer job as opposed to a part-time or full-time job that lasts throughout the year. At first I was intimidated by the job because I had no experience as a food service worker. I also knew how busy and crazy the dining hall could be as well as how unfriendly, college students could be sometimes. However, I had very understanding managers who let me east my way in and see how everything worked before they made me do anything. I was also fortunate to have a patient, kind co-worker who taught me what I needed to know about making sandwiches and helped me when necessary. Over time, I became more and more comfortable making sandwiches and got to know my co-workers well.

The people I worked with came from various Hispanic and Asian backgrounds which was unfamiliar and refreshing to me since I live in a town that lacks diversity. I learned about the difficulties my co-workers faced coming to America as a student and/or worker and how much they appreciated the opportunity to come to this country and make a better life for themselves and/or their children. I also learned about the sacrifices my co-workers made so their children would be able to experience the best life possible. I taught my co-workers some English words and phrases which at times were difficult to explain, practiced my Spanish and even learned some words in Chinese. The most rewarding experience outside of my job itself was helping one of my co-workers study for the U.S. Citizenship Test because she trusted me enough to help her.

Overall, my experiences at this job made me appreciate all the opportunities I have considering the struggles many people go through to have the same opportunities. The people I met inspired me to help others in a similar situation and made me realize I wanted to be a TESOL teacher. I also felt empowered and independent working at my job because I was able to make my own money and do something for myself.

Vocabulary

Undergraduate: first level of college at which you earn a Bachelor’s Degree upon graduating.

Career: “an individual’s journey through learning, work, and other aspects of life”*

Part-time [job]: one works under 40 hours and does not usually get medical benefits.

Full-time [job]: one works over 40 hours and generally receives medical benefits.

Refreshing: new; a good change; thirst-quenching; cool

TESOL: Teaching English to Speakers of Other Languages.
*Career. (n.d.). Retrieved from http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Career. (I know Wikipedia isn't the most reliable source but I thought the definition encompassed my thoughts best and was very clear and concise.)

Vocabulary Exercise
1. On a hot summer day, an ice cold drink is very ______________.
2. My friend has a _________________ job at Staples.
3. The retired soldier had a second _____________ as a teacher.
4. He works ________________ as an accountant.
5. I received my ____________ Degree in ______________. 

Grammar Point
When you quote something from a novel in APA or MLA format that is less than four lines the period always goes after the parenthesis. In MLA format, the in text citation includes the author's name and page number on which the quote was found whereas in APA format, the in text citation includes the author's name and the novel's year of publication. 
i.e. "All that is gold does not glitter, not all those who wander are lost" (Tolkien 168). or (Tolkien 1994). 

Grammar Exercise
Properly cite the following quote in MLA and APA format. 
This a quote from Suzanne Collins' novel Catching Fire found on page 178 and published in 2009: 
MLA -"You could live a hundred lifetimes and not deserve him, you know" 
APA - "You could live a hundred lifetimes and not deserve him, you know"