WORK

After receiving my driver’s license in 1989, I figured it was a good time to look for a job to make a little cash. Also, my father told me that car insurance and gas money wasn’t just growing on a magical tree out behind our house. I was 16 years old and my dystrophy was still more of a nuisance than a full-blown problem, so I decided I would pal around with my buddy Frank and help him clean offices, and cut lawns. I used a ride on mower, emptied trash, and did stuff that I could handle (vacuum, dust, etc.), and Frank paid me under the table. This was fine, and our little rock band had a few gigs, but I wasn’t killing it, and I thought having money was pretty cool, but I wanted more. Enter Canobie Lake Park, an amusement park in my hometown of Salem, NH, which had been open since 1902, and employed at least 500 local kids each summer to run rides, games, and sell food. I applied and was hired to be a game operator. I don’t remember if I discussed my handicap at my interview, but I must of, since I recall being placed in games that were near the main ramp to the employee entrance, and the time clock, as well as the office where we turned our bags of money in each day. It was here at Canobie where I would spend the next 5 summers of my life. It began as a job, but turned into an experience that helped shape a big of my life. I grew socially, financially, and discovered that I had leadership skills. I also made some lifelong friends, and was able to attract some young ladies to my attention. This was somewhat new to me. In high school, everyone knew everyone, and so your personality was branded, and once you were labeled, that was it. (As I am sure that you were also). I was the nerdy band kid that played the drums and walked funny. But at Canobie, I realized that I could reinvent myself to allow others to see my differently. I brimmed with my newfound confidence, and enjoyed interacting with the guests, and employees of the park. I even began to write for the Canobie Connection, which was the employee park newspaper that came out every couple of weeks or so. (Hey, this was pre-Internet, so that’s how we kept in touch). I was now Pat, the kid in games who was a jokester, and walked funny. I relished this angle to help me come out of my shell, and it wasn’t long before I was pretty popular among the staff in my section, which included the midway, and games such as Can Alley and the nickname we gave it (Spam Alley), Tin Can Topple (You Will Lose), Ring-A-Pet (Ring a Slut), Ring Toss (Flying Holes), Short Shot (You Will Lose Again), The Duck Pond (Suck Pond), the Fishing Well (Fishy Smell), Bowler Roller, (Smack the Light), and Wacky Wire (Whack the Wire). The best part was that these games were mostly attached and all inside one building! Yes my friends, it was good times. You were assigned to one game in the building for a shift of 4, 6, or 10 hours (which was a double). Any park employee will tell you that a summer closing time of 10pm was rare. When working until close, we would attempt to predict closing time, which was usually 10:30 during the week and 11:00 on the weekends. We all dreaded the P.A. announcement, which I can still recall word for word 30 years later: 

“Ladies, and gentlemen, for your added enjoyment, Canobie Lake Park will remain open until 10:30 this evening.” We cared, but not really. We were all young, and having a blast. There were always interesting guests to watch, and for the most part, everyone was in a perpetual good mood; guests and “cast members” alike. Groups of us would hang out “off the clock” at Denny’s, Friendly’s, the local Chinese restaurant or at someone’s house laughing and being silly. We were all so innocent, and we made great memories. I have a feeling that a few of you reading this were there with me. Smile, you loved Suck World.

Working at Canobie also taught me how to ask for help. The prizes were all in the back rooms of the games, and there were a few times when I tried to get large prizes out myself. Once I got trapped in a squatting position under a counter, and quickly found that my quads would not allow me to get up from the floor like they once did (remember, muscular dystrophy is progressive, another fun fact when you realize your body has lost more function when it matters at that exact moment). Another time I went up three small steps in the back of a game and fell into the prize pit! It was a good thing that there was a chute shaped like an open mouth at the bottom or I would have been in there for a while. It also helped that the prizes were soft stuffed animals or it would have been an interesting injury. The headline could have read “Man falls into Canobie prize pit, and breaks arm.” To combat these issues, I spoke with my group leader (Hi Abby!!) about needing hand from time to time if I was in a booth game by myself. She told me to use the phone in my game booth, and have her paged, so that way she could come down and help me. When we were busy, and it took some time, guests would sometimes help me reach things (though not in back), and co-workers from booths that could see I needed a hand would come over. It was one of the first times in my life where I realized that people were willing to help me if I asked for it. As we are raised to be independent humans, this can be a hard lesson to grasp. I would not have realized that a handicapped person contributes just as much (or more) to a job than an able bodied one. I was told that myself and my friend Danny were put in Wacky Wire together, because when we teamed up on that game, it made more money, due to the way we interacted with the guests. We had fun, and taunted people to play “one more time” to see if they could win. The game was very tough (look it up Online), but we usually had a couple of big winners each day. Danny and I loved being in there, and it showed. We ran a clean booth, stayed upbeat, and made plenty of money for the park. I learned how to interact socially, and it was at Canobie where I feel that I began to shape my adult personality. Those of you that know me, I am talking about the cynical, witty, extrovert I am today, Yuk Yuk. These days, I take my kids to Canobie and while much has changed, my old section is still there, with many of the same games. I smile, and tell my kids to be nice to the employees; they’re working hard and figuring out how life works.

Stay safe, stay awesome and stay tuned. Special shout outs to my Canobie pals: Meribeth (76 miles per gallon?), Dr. Dave (Notre Dame prof…who knew?), Abby, Jen Coke, Jon, Bri, Danny, Erin, Paul, Molly, Kerri, and the many others who all shared a laugh!