Mr. Kelly Carper. When people from Lewiston High School hear this name, they are more than likely to think; “Sophomore history teacher.” What usually doesn’t come to mind when it comes to Carper is: asphalt. It’s time to learn a little bit more about the man in room 205.
When asked if he had ever had a weird job, he elaborated quite a bit on “the asphalt job” as he called it for lack of a better title.
“I used a paint roller to roll scalding hot asphalt from the bowels of hell onto the foundation side,” he said. “Asphalt so hot it burned the hairs off my tender little 14 year old arms!”
All day in the hot, hot,– emphasis on the hot,– July and August sun he painted asphalt emulsion onto house foundations.
He explained that there was a trench between the foundation of a house and the earth that was about 2-3 feet wide and 15 feet down. There was 9 feet of dirt above his head where he stood and he used a ladder to climb in and out.
“No music, hot sun, asphalt, no money, asphalt again. Who’s fault? Asphalt!” Carper said. “It was just horrendous! I thought the world was gonna end! It didn’t.”
For the claustrophobic the job feels “like blech” as Carper put it, worrying about the sides of the trench caving in. Meanwhile, his skin was covered in dirt and drenched with sweat and asphalt.
“It’s awful. And doesn’t pay very well either,” said Carper.
Carper explained that he lived in Hayden, Idaho at the time of the asphalt job, making a sarcastic remark about “good old Hayden”. He received $3 per hour at the age of 14. “Fourteen, so young and innocent,” he added.
When asked why he took this job, he revealed that his brother hired him, adding that he was a jerk for doing so. He called Carper one day and said, “Hey, guess what you’re gonna do?”
He also didn’t ask if Carper really wanted the job, which he didn’t.
Carper’s brother is 15 years older than him and Carper himself was only the “tender little 14,” while his brother was the “big bad nasty 29, making me do stuff I didn’t wanna do. It was cheaper to have me do it. My brother is a cheapskate.” Carper said.
“[On the job] I got water, but it was never enough, no hairs on my arm, dirt everywhere, ickiness all over me, couldn’t get a date. Well, I couldn’t get a date before, but still,” Carper said laughing.
Carper whispered that he purposely did horrendous work at the job, by not taking the asphalt emulsion all the way to the bottom of the foundation.
“I just kicked up a bunch of dirt,” he said.
When asked what he did today [in regards to teaching] he replied with “Not much, but I got paid for it. So much better than asphalt!”