Day after Thanksgiving in Oregon

The day after Thanksgiving – America’s busiest shopping day - reminds me of years spent working in retail and recreation. I recall distinctly the November of 1984, my first year working as a lift operator attendant (we were called list hostesses then) at Mt. Bachelor ski resort in Bend, Oregon. I was stationed at the bottom of the old Outback lift, then a slow two-seater, checking lift tickets and keeping 12 rows of doubles in line and moving along. Despite the snow and cold, I had removed my uniform jacket and moved along in my white plaid blouse and pigtails. Then from 1992 to 2000, I kept busy the day after Thanksgiving at The Book Stop in Grants Pass [out of business now], selling and wrapping gift books, notably Harry Potter books toward the end. What an exhausting time that was, fun, but exhausting. This year I spent the four-day weekend reading student papers and catching up on some research.