Loose Laces

Part Seventeen...

I wanted to work at home for a while. Tramping is a strain on a marriage and family life, and I had a new kid to go along with the other two. When Sam left Charleston for northern climes, I tried to get into some kind of rhythm, but loneliness set in and I wasn't much of a partier. Stopping for a beer after work, going in and cleaning up, going to supper, and back to the room was getting to me. My own Local had no work to offer other than the Eastman, and no way was I going to work there again.

At least I was home. Like I said, the pay at Magnavox was dismal, but we were treated well. The plant had been organized for several years, but basically the folks who worked there and were members of the union didn't have the right stuff. A few years earlier, they went on strike for more pay and benefits. They walked the picket line for several months and then settled for a penny raise. They asked me to join the union, but I respectfully declined. It was a weak union at best, and besides, I was already paying dues to another AF of L-CIO union.

I hoped to pick up some house wiring on the side to help with bills, but the jobs were few. I went to work on evening shift, where I was the only maintenance man present. After a short while, the evening shift was discontinued and I went to day shift where they really didn't need me, but I was good at the work and was willing to work for very little. My supervisor at Magnavox was a fellow named Charlie Green, a baptist preacher and one hell of a fine man. After I was there a few months, Charlie was laid-off, and his supervisor became my supervisor. The new one was no preacher by any means, but he was also a good guy. I've felt badly about Charlie being set aside; he deserved better. I know I took his job, and I wish they had let me go instead of him.

I met some characters while working there, one being a maintenance helper by the name of Roy. He was a slight man, probably in his forties, and had picked up the nickname "Sue" from the other electrician. He was a good guy, but it was easy to get his goat. His favorite retort when someone was giving him good natured grief was " Why don't you take a flying fuck at the moon?". Another guy I met was a kid maned Mike, not long out of high school. He was the truck driver, and managed to overload two light duty Ford dump-trucks to the point the frames bent. It really wasn't his fault; he was following orders from an idiot. Several years later, I would run into Mike again, and we became pretty good friends for a while.

The most memorable thing that happened to me while working there was during summer vacation while most of the plant was shut down. The maintenance crew was required to work, doing things on machinery that had been running mostly non-stop since the previous year's vacation. One production line was working on a rush order of stereo cabinets. The line supervisor saw that they weren't going to get the product out in time, so he asked the other electrician and me to give them a hand. We politely refused, he called the plant manager, the plant manager came to work and began helping the line folk, which was entirely against the union agreement. He even ordered my buddy and me to help. We did so to keep from getting fired on the spot, but at break time, my buddy called the union steward, who was supposed to be present anyway. He also called our boss and he told us to get back where we belonged doing maintenance. Soon, he showed up after a fast thirty mile drive, and the steward was there by then and a big huddle ensued.. Man, those four boys had it hot and heavy for a while. My buddy and and I didn't do anymore line work that day or any other. Sometime during that week, I put an application in with a new Texas Instruments plant that had come to town, not expecting to hear anything from it.

In late September, I quit the job there. No way was I going to meet my obligations on the small pay. One good thing came from my leaving there; they couldn't find anyone to replace me at the pay scale, so they raised it more than a dollar, with more to come. In early November, I loaded up the Dodge truck and headed to Atlanta where the Local union had work. I ended up in Rome, Georgia, which isn't far from the Alabama line. We were building a new Federal building, including a courthouse and FBI office. On my way from Atlanta to Rome, I saw my first ever and last cotton field. I didn't like the job, and Rome offered few amenities for tramps, and I had to stay in a motel which was expensive. Also, gasoline prices were rising very quickly, leading to the first oil embargo from our dear friends and allies, the Arabs. Just biding my time. Then, Texas Instruments called. I had kept in touch with Charlie Green after he left Magnavox, and he became the first maintenance man at TI. He talked the maintenance supervisor into hiring me. So, on December 19, 1973, I went to work temporarily on day shift. In two weeks, I had to go to evening shift, but at least I was home but only making $5.75 an hour.

Next, my year at TI, new friends, and some self inflicted problems...