Chapter 4: The Plumbing Days

• GRACE FOR KATHLEEN • • 1. Childhood Bliss • • 2. The Breakdown • • 3. A Normal Life • • 4. The Plumbing Days • • 5. Illness Returns • • 6. Samoa • • 7. Under Attack • • 8. A Calm in the Storm • • 9. Another World • • 10. Moving Forward • • 11. Closing Words • • 12. The Awakening: The Reality of Mental Illness • • POETRY •



I couldn't believe it I was in the union I was called for my first job as a 1st period apprentice plumber I went out with mom got some work cloths a pair of overalls work shoes I was ready for my first day of work and soon the day was there. Just 10 minutes from my house I went to a large construction site it was a sewage plant under new construction I was there a little before 7am I found were they park then walked to the nearest trailer told the first person I seen I was from the union and this was my first day of work, I was put in a truck and driven to the top of the hill where there were many trailers the person pointed out for me to go into a certain trailer I walked in and there was a grubby old man standing there I said hello and put my hand out to shake his he grunted and turned away, a man came out and said hello and told us we had to watch a safety video before we started working, so I watched the video paying attention then a truck took me to see the General Forman he was a nice man and took me to a job site we walked towards this giant hole in the ground where he got on a ladder going almost 25 yards down to the bottom, thank goodness the safety video demonstrated the correct way to go down a ladder, I was so scared but I managed to get down to the bottom where I met my Forman, standing next to him was that grubby old man who wouldn't shake my hand, my Forman said to the grubby old man this is your new apprentice Kathy he mumbled some crap and then turned away. I thought ok this isn't good. I was shown around are work area which was under ground and survived my first day at work. So I was going to work every weekday from 7am to 2:30pm going to school 2 nights a week. School was fun being the only girl in the class how could it not be fun, my teacher said roll call one night and he called my name I said here! He said you're not Jakes kid are you? Yes I said and Henry is your grandfather? Yes I said then he spent I don't know how much time telling stories of my father my grandfather and my uncles who were all once or are in the union, I felt embarrassed thinking the guys were thinking no wonder she is here her family got her in, but I did it without asking any of my uncles, yea I was a third generation in the union my Godfather was even a plumber anyway I made a couple friends really fast and we would spend our breaks together joking around and eating Chinese food down the street, school was good and I was getting A's on all my tests. I wish I were getting A's at work my Forman was a real ass he would never call me by my name he was calling me Honey Babe Sweetheart, rubbing my shoulders it seemed everyday he would say something out of place once holding a tape measure up to me saying you really measure up, another day during a blackout he said I finally got you were I want you, he always had something to say that made me think he was nothing but a sick pig the months went by and I could only take so much of his crap always making me feel uncomfortable I went to the trailers were there was a nice woman who was an engineer I would run into here and there on the jobsite I asked to talk to her and she seen me I told her how I was very uncomfortable working with my Forman told her the things he would say to me and she said she would take care of the problem. The next day I was called to work up at the trailer with the new general Forman he reassured me I would never have to put up with that crap. I was once again happy working in the trailer separating material counting material delivering material to jobsites doing paper work all seemed fine for awhile that didn't last long a laborer that worked at the trailer sometimes made it clear to me he didn't like me never talking to me and just giving me bad vibes. One day I was to help the ass laborer to put some pvc pipe in the truck I pulled the truck up to the trailer the pipe was on top I got in the back of the truck expecting to be handed the pipe the ass kicked the pipe on top of my head I spent the next few months at the trailer trying to ignore the presence of the laborer. Meanwhile I made friends with one of the steam fitters he would always say hello how's it going, he lived right around the corner from me, I went to his house one day where he showed off all his motorcycles he was a motorcycle racer with his dad, I would see him at school where he was doing his last year as an apprentice. It was nice to talk to a normal human being. I was then moved to another crew underground and I was happy working with a almost descent journeyman, one day I was sweeping the floor and the laborer was leaning against the wall we were alone and he said sweet Kathleen I have a bullet with your name on it, I just kept sweeping and he went away, one day I was painting pipe and one of the crane operators said Kathy the Laborer wants you to look in the back of his truck, so I walked out and did there were empty bullet boxes, I was thinking O great this guy is a real Jerk I never did a thing to this asshole and he is trying to torment me. So the days went by me and my journeyman did our work, then one day I was invited to a local bar to have a drink with some of the guys I got there and my journeyman was drinking a lot soon he was pretty drunk then he came up to me telling me how pretty I was how about a kiss and he puckered up his lips and chased me around the bar I said to one of the guys hey I need a little help here, he got him away from me and he left me alone. The next day at work I told my Forman I wasn't comfortable working with my journeyman and I told him why. The next day I was at our worksite and my journeyman came up to me saying what's this crap you don't want to work with me I said that's right and walked away. I was sent to work by myself repairing a pipe up on the ladder I needed a tool so I went to the closest job area and got the tool I seen one of the guys and he said hey did you get the word yet? I said what word he just turned away, I thought O shit their going to can me! I walked up to my Forman and said are you going to can me? He handed me my check, I was so pissed I found out they canned the guy that helped me in the bar get my journeyman away from me, I just could not believe it and on April 1st 1993 I went home there was nothing I could do. I did go to the SF police department to file a complaint about the laborer that threatened my life they said I didn't have enough proof to file a complaint^