Where it all began...
Bowlero Lanes
1985 seems like it was so long ago, and yet just like yesterday at the same time. My first job was spraying shoes, bussing tables, and running down "dead wood" on the lanes. Here I learned the importance of working hard and providing good customer service.
When it came time to learn the cash register and to take on the responsibility of opening/closing the center, I also learned the lessons of attention to detail, how to handle responsibility, and had my first introductions to problem solving. All were great lessons for a 15 - 16 year old who was trying to figure out what they wanted to do when they grew up.
I did toy with wanting to become a professional bowler...but in the end, I was never quite good enough (though I was the star of many an amateur bowling team over the years and could probably still average 200 over a full season.
An unexpected benefit
Pinsetters are very complex pieces of machinery (even before computerized scoring was introduced). My first Saturday shadowing the head mechanic taught me lessons in electrical and rotating machinery safety, how pulleys create leverage, and worm gears can transfer mechanical energy. To this day, I can look at most mach