Gig: Americans Talk About Their Jobs Part 7

I no have a latch on bathroom because I watching, must watching, because never know, maybe somebody have in pocket something. And I no have lock on toilet because I no want somebody to stay long time and do bad things. I no have a problem with drugs here because I am nervous. I watching, must watching, you know, because in New York a lot of people use these things. Not a few, a lot.

I think my bar is good thing because I no serve people too much. I control my customers. I don't like if somebody's had enough and I be pushed for one more. I don't like that. And before, I was like I never drinking. I was abstinent. But now, I feel I need alcohol a little bit, sometime like medicine for myself. Sometime I drinking a little bit cognac and is feel better-of course, not much. If you control, is good. If you drinking time after time is no good. If you drinking outside is not so good. I see in park people drinking from gallons, and is not good. But in my bar or different place is nice, and people not drink that much-one, two, three drinks and have a little bit fun with table with pinball, music, I thinking is very good idea. A bar is good for society. Especially for young people.

I hear a lot of confessions. Sometimes I listen. Not all the time. I no have the patience. Almost everyone wants to confess special feelings between men and women. Some guy's broke up with girlfriend and boyfriend. And most is confession made by men. Can be very sad men. A few years ago, so beautiful, a boy, after education, after study law, broke down, coming in here, and I see he is looking bad, and I was talking, listen. How going on? But it is not easy to help, and some guys later, they went party, and maybe take too much, and find him in the house, already dead, very young maybe like twentynine. Drugs. There is many things like that I heard. But also people fall in love here many times. People get nice and sweet in my bar.

When I am not working, I just rest, nothing more. I no have the power. When I not here, I am nervous. I am thinking. All the time my head is in my place working.

My daughter sometimes works for me as bartender. Sometime a few days, sometimes one night if feel bad, or few hours. I like it if she working because she very honest girl and people like her and she like working. But also she go to school. I don't propose to give the bar to her. I don't care about keeping Lucy's in my family. Not really. I no thinking much about this. Plus it's not my building, I renting. I wish I own, but this is not possible. I no have a plan for future and I don't know. If I feel bad, I don't know, I no have the power of thinking what will happen later. I have ulcer long time. I am soon finished because I am working too hard. My stomach bother me all the time and then my nerves is gone and my head and my body. Today I working, it's okay. Tomorrow, who knows what happens?

I love people. I very much like to serve people. And really I am happy. I no thinking I make a lot of money or something, I just think-nice people, I love it. I like the best working with people. My language is not much, my English, but people are so nice and see I not understand something and they come and help me explain, and I love it these people. I hear many opinions. A lot of people know me in New York. Sometime, I no think somebody know me and then I see they do. So many people know me. And I am happy and then I not think I am small woman.

You pick the price.

LEMONADE SALESMEN.

Chris and Isaac Mauro.

C: I'm Chris.

I: I'm Isaac.

C: We have the same last name.

I: Mauro.

C: Yeah.

I: M-A-U-R-O.

C: But we're not brothers.

I: We're cousins. I'm eleven, and he's- C: Nine and a half. I turn ten this summer.

I: He's leaving on, like, Sunday.

C: Sunday night.

I: So the way we work is you pick your own price. C: The going price is a dollar.

I: A dollar is good. But you pick the price. You pick. Whatever you feel it's worth.

C: A dollar! [Laughs]

I: Usually they give us a dollar. And then Chris gives you the lemon. And then we say thank you.

C: Yeah.

I: The most we've ever gotten is three dollars.

C: Some people just drop by and give us money without taking lemonade.

I: Yesterday somebody bought our money box. We had a cigar box. A ratty old cigar box, and someone bought it from us for ten dollars. [Laughs] He said it was for his store to, like, put photos in.

C: Remember the one who gave me a penny, and he wanted the full gla.s.s?

I: Yeah. We just give those people a lotta ice.

[Laughter]

I: A penny. You know? That's-sometimes you get that when you say you pick the price.

C: I said somethin' to him, but it wasn't really to him. I was like, uhhhhhhhh! [Laughs]

I: But we make quite a bit. Like yesterday we made like seventy-five dollars. I don't know how much we have now.

C: [Shaking new money box] This thing's pretty heavy. What time is it?

I: I don't know. Usually we leave around four.

C: Hey, I should get straws soon.

I: He does like straws and that stuff, and the lemon wedges, and I do ice and pouring. I do everything in the morning, like make the stuff.

C: No- I: Yeah, you like attempt to do something!

[Laughter]

C: Yeah, right.

I: He said-he's, like, upstairs playing with all the little kids, and I come down, and I'm like, "You wanna help me?" And I tell him to go clean out the cooler. And then he fails at that, and he's like, "I can't do it."

C: No-all these little kids, they keep jumping on me.

I: Yeah. You- C: That's what they do! That's how they play. They like to wrestle! I don't want to!

I: Well, you could get away so easily. [Laughs] You were playing b.u.mper pool this morning.

C: b.u.mper pool?

I: Yeah. You were.

C: I don't remember that.

I: He doesn't like doing the lemonade stand. He thinks it's- C: Yes, I do.

I: No, you don't, Chris.

C: Yes, I do. Don't make me [makes choking sounds]- I: He made it up. It's the Vulcan death grip. That's what Spock does.

C: Shut up!

[Laughter]

I: Business is good. We make it out of a mix- C: No. It's a secret formula.

I: The secret is we tried Kool-Aid. Then we found another brand. We can't tell you what it is. [Laughs] Very top secret.

C: The wedges are real.

I: Yeah. We kind of made that up.

C: It's good, though.

I: Uh-huh.

C: There was this crowd today that-three people that bought some lemonade. And they came back and said that the lemonade is excellent.

I: I was like, "Hey, you want some more?"

C: Yeah. That's what I said. I said that. Like, "Wanna buy another one?" They're like, "No, but it's excellent."

I: It's like, "Oh, thank you. We don't care if you think it's excellent. How 'bout you buy some more?" [Laughs]

C: [Pointing to a young kid in the distance] There he is. He keeps throwing those popper things at that sign.

I: He just stands there like all day- C: I know. Throwing poppers.

I: Throwin' those poppers at the sign. [Laughs]

C: And never cleans them up.

I: And then sometimes he comes over and buys from us for like a penny or something.

C: He's spreading the idea to throw the poppers.

I: [Laughs] He's bored.

[Adult MALE CUSTOMER arrives]

MC: Hi.

C: Hi.

MC: How you guys doin'?

I: Okay.

C: Okay.

MC: Makin' money?

I: Sort of.

C: Yeah.

MC: That's good. Have fun!

I: Okay.

[MALE CUSTOMER leaves]

I: Whatever.

C: I'm going back home on Sunday. To Connecticut. Then I'm coming back.

I: I stay here all summer.

C: We come back at the end of July.

I: I always feel stupid doing it alone. It's harder without him, because he has the cute little baby face that sells all the lemonade.

C: Like when he leaves, people just come right up.

I: I know. Like when I go take a break to like, get some food for us or something, they-someone buys because he has the baby face. [Laughs] I don't think we'll get as many people- C: It will still be-you'll still be like getting fifty percent of- I: Yeah.

C: -what we're doing now. If Noah came-this cousin we have, his name is Noah-if he came here, we would get like quadruplet. [Laughs]

I: He's little and cute.

C: Yeah.

I: That's all people [laughs] care about. They don't care what the lemonade tastes like or what you're selling. It's like if we were selling ice, Noah could sell it probably.

C: Yeah. We-I have two cousins. One of 'em's his sister. Phoebe and Noah. We offered 'em a penny for going out and calling people and leading people into the lemonade stand. It was like tons of people. But then- I: They gave their pennies back. [Laughs] They quit. We were like, okay. We gave it to them. And they're like, they gave it back. [Laughs] They're like, too little to get it.

C: I'm surprised they only wanted a penny. And they- I: They don't know what that means. They don't know the difference.

[Adult FEMALE CUSTOMER arrives]

C: Do you want lemonade?