Many University of La Verne students are finding unusual jobs in order to pay their bills. Instead of the usual retail job or the typical table-waiting stint, students are finding new, more creative ways to rake in the cash.
Sophomore Mayra Castillo, a liberal studies major, makes her money as the skipper on the Jungle Cruise boat ride at Disneyland.
“I go and take people around the jungle and I rescue them from hippos and alligators,” Castillo said.
Castillo drives the riverboat through the “Irrawady River of Burma,” the “Congo,” and the “Amazon.” All the while mechanical hippopotamuses and piranhas pop out of the water and threaten to tip the boat.
“It’s hard,” Castillo said. “It’s one of the only rides that if people don’t like it, it’s your fault.”
Castillo trained as skipper for three days before taking her first turn as the cruise director.
“You have to drive the boat and learn your speech in three days,” Castillo said.
Castillo admits that it is difficult to be in an enthusiastic mood all day.
“Sometimes you’re not even feeling it,” Castillo said.
However, Castillo abides by the Disneyland philosophy that this might be someone’s first time on the ride, so the employees should attempt to make the experience as enjoyable as possible.
“Once you get used to it, you know what to do,” Castillo said. “When you’re sick, it’s really bad.”
As with most jobs that deal with the public, Castillo has experienced many rude people while working as skipper.
“We all say different jokes,” Castillo said. “Some people, also known as the annual pass holders, ruin your jokes for you.”
One boat rider actually told Castillo that she did not tell the joke right.
Another boat rider informed her co-worker that he was the worst skipper ever.
“It’s fun, but it is hard because you have to please (so many) people,” Castillo said.
Along with her usual routine as skipper, Castillo also does crowd control during the parades and fireworks at the Magic Kingdom.
“You have to smile and be respectful even when you get asked the dumbest questions ever,” Castillo said.
Castillo applied in person at the Disneyland Resort, so she was surprised when she learned where she would be working. She did not realize that she was actually going to be the skipper on the ride, which she later learned is a little exhausting.
“We’re standing the whole time, talking the whole time,” Castillo said, and during the summer, “It’s like a sauna in there.”
Outside the happiest place on Earth, other students find jobs that seem a little too easy.
James Beare, a senior history major, gets paid $10 an hour to put “push” and “pull” signs on the doors of businesses.
“There’s not really much to it,” Beare said.
Beare works for Vortex Industries, a door repair business. The purpose of the stickers is to put the information for Vortex Industries right under the store owner’s nose, hinting to them that they can call the number on the door to have it repaired.
Beare works four hours a day without supervision.
“Seventy percent of business comes from us having stickers on the doors,” Beare said.
On a normal workday, Beare walks around with a map of the area and asks business owners if they would like to have the stickers placed on their doors.
“I just walk up to random businesses,” Beare said. “I carry a clipboard of all the places I have to go.”
Beare admits that he has not experienced anything strange on the job, but his co-workers have.
“My boss got attacked by a dog and somebody threatened to shoot him,” Beare said. “Some people don’t like our company.”
Beare’s father, who does contracts with Vortex, got him the job.
Beare has also worked with local businesses. He is the one responsible for the “push” and “pull” stickers on the doors of Aoki restaurant, located on D Street.
Freshman Amy Oakes found her part-time odd job giving spinal screenings at Arcadia Chiropractic, a company that sells chiropractic appointments for a reduced price.
“Instead of it being $200, we charge $20,” Oakes said. “We say it’s a service to the city. I get people who sit down and do the whole thing and then I tell them its $20 and they think it’s a bad deal.”
Oakes works in street fairs and at the Santa Anita mall, where she gives customers free spinal exams to see if their spine is straight.
“I have a crooked spine,” Oakes said. “I can look at someone and see if their back is crooked or hips unaligned.”
On a good day, Oakes will give 73 screenings. She usually works alone.
“I get a lot of people who try to use it to hit on me,” Oakes said. “It’s really sad.”
On a normal day, Oakes comes dressed in a red polo with the company’s logo on it. Oakes sets up two displays of four different panels of back problems. She also sets up a table and clipboards.
“I say, ‘Hi, can I check your back?’” Oakes said. “Sometimes I get really rude people who try to tell you how to do your job.”
Oakes gets paid $6.75 an hour plus an extra dollar for every screening and $20 for every sale.
“I work for about eight hours [a day],” Oakes said. “It helps pay for books and whatnot.”
On a slow day, Oakes gives only two screenings an hour.
“It’s a lot of sitting,” Oakes said. “It can be really tedious, but at the end of the day, it’s worth it.”
One benefit that Oakes receives is getting her back checked for free.
Oakes refers to her job as her “half job” because it’s only part time.
“I only work every other month,” Oakes said. “I don’t get taxed, which is cool.”
Oakes also ushers part time in the box seats at the Hollywood Bowl, for her other “half job.”
“I tell people where their seats are,” Oakes said. “I do crowd control when they need it.”
Oakes has had some strange experiences working at the Hollywood Bowl.
In the movie “The Rocky Horror Picture Show,” Dr. Frank-N-Furter announces a toast.
The showing of the movie at the Hollywood Bowl inspired some audience members to throw actual toast that accidentally hit Oakes.
Oakes has also seen her fair share of the unusual including a woman who injured her head after taking a spill down a hill and a man who suffered a seizure after using drugs at a reggae concert.
But this place of employment does have its benefits.
Oakes saw Matthew McConaughey at a John Mellencamp concert and she admits that she enjoys being able to view the shows without paying for them.
Oakes discovered this job through a friend of her parents who is a manager of the VIP circle at the Hollywood Bowl.
These jobs may not fit the average molds of money making methods, but for the time being they are definitely helping some students earn the extra cash they need while continuing their education.
Alexandra Lozano can be reached at himelozano@juno.com.
