Chapter 1

This is a tale paying homage to the hundreds - maybe thousands - of us grads working tables and counters across the country, looking for some way to make a living.

It’s embarrassing, I know, but then again, isn’t it a testimony to the state of the economy today that I couldn’t find a decent paying job anywhere within a 50 mile radius of my apartment?

I’m Randy Grange, 25 years old; decent looking, healthy, average size, I guess. Nothing that makes me stand out from the crowd. Two years ago, I graduated with a bachelor’s degree from Nevada College of Business along with three of my best friends. We had been neighbors and friends since kindergarten and didn’t see any reason to change course.

About a month into our final semester we decided that, since we had been in school for sixteen years without interruption, we wanted to have some time for ourselves to experience life before getting trapped in the workforce. My folks had barely made it through middle school and worked dead-end jobs - Mom as a “custodial service worker” (maid), Dad as a maintenance staff repairman for my high school.

They supported our decision, Dad telling me, “Hell, I don’t know how you managed to make it through high school, let alone college! You’re the first in our family to do both, and I’m afraid you might burn out if you don’t take a break!”

So there we were. We skipped the job recruitment fairs, didn’t bother looking at want ads, and didn’t even sign up for Indeed. We pooled our meager resources, saved from summer work over the years, shared an apartment in Reno, and began living the ‘Good Life,’ free of all ties.

After four months, reality broke down our door as we realized we didn’t have enough resources to maintain our carefree lifestyle through the end of the year. We faced being collectively broke within just a few months. None of us really had school loans, NCB being little more than a glorified high school, but rent, food, and transportation costs were unforgiving.

So we hit the job market nine months late. Too late, it turned out because businesses gear their hiring cycles to mesh with the end of the school year - and we had missed it. There were no public job fairs, and Indeed was as dry as Lake Mead in August.

We hit the pavement, each of us looking to scrounge any work that would pay our share of living expenses.

Bob, big, burly, ex-linebacker, hit first and best. He landed a full-time job at McCarran’s Feed store where he stocked supplies, delivered feed, and unloaded trucks.

Frank and I got part-time jobs with a paving company, and Eddie washed dishes at a diner in Sparks.

We were living the dream. Except, as Eddie put it, “This sucks! The only people I see every day besides you guys are fat Otto (his boss) and Mildred (Otto’s even fatter wife)! I’ll never get a date, let alone a girlfriend!”

Our nerves frayed over the ensuing months, and we strained the bonds of our friendship.

Four times a week, I checked in at the office at 5:00 am. and waited in the yard for an assignment as the sun rose. An old RV trailer provided shade to keep me from frying while I waited, and many times, I felt just like that RV. It had been parked there so long that its tires had gone flat, and the wheel rims were embedded in the black top. Nobody owned it, and nobody wanted to spend the money to get rid of it. I felt the same way ... no way to escape. Stuck in place, nobody willing to help, just standing there getting beaten down by the elements.

“Maybe we should live in that RV,” said Frank one evening as we sat in the apartment drinking beer.

“Yeah,” Eddie said, “it would save us a couple hundred bucks a month each to not pay rent here!”

“Great idea,” I said, “if it was only big enough for all of us. It would be great for a family, but there’s no way I’m sharing a bed with you guys, especially Bob!”

“Why me, especially? You don’t like my manly physique?” Bob joked.

“Nah,” I retorted, “you smell too much like animal feed! I wouldn’t be sure if it was you or a bull in bed with me!”

Eddie, ever the most creative thinker of us all, piped up. “You know, if nobody claims it, and it’s just sitting there, maybe we could offer to take it off the lot for free and fix it up to sell.”