First jobs are not always fun, but mine was. Growing up, my parents taught me that if I wanted something I had to earn it. At an early age, the common response to my, "I want..." was, "Get a job."

So, when I turned 16 and passed my driving test, it didn't take me long to search for my first job. I didn't know exactly what I wanted to do when I grew up, but I knew that I didn't want to work in fast food or at the local grocery store.

I've always loved stories, regardless of which art form they are shared in. My love for music is pretty obvious in my now chosen profession. But books, movies and well written television rank very high as well. Radio as a job never crossed my mind. I was too busy listening to it and enjoying it, but there was a local movie rental store.

In my hometown of about 5,000, it wasn't unusual at the time to find a VHS rental shop paired with a tanning salon. We actually had two, that were in operation at the same time, during the late 90's. Things were different in 2000. You could rent a VHS tape that was new for $3.00, well $3.25 with tax and an older video for $2.17, or get five movies for $5.41. Can you tell I worked the register? Now, I enjoy incredible cable programming from Suddenlink at home and have a Netflix subscription, but back then you had to physically drive somewhere to rent a video. Remember Blockbuster stores?

The place was locally owned and operated. It wasn't fancy and it didn't pay particularly well, but I liked the owner and my co-workers were great. It also didn't hurt that when I left each night I was allowed to take home movies for free. Circa 2000, there were a lot films that were considered great that I had never seen. I made up lost time fast, and fell more in love with story-telling.

It was during this time that I also started watching Dawson's Creek. It was criticized initially, for a number of reasons. Critics claimed that teenagers didn't really talk that way, and that it wasn't smart to show teen boys and girls sleeping over in each others' beds. It might encourage them to do it at home -- no pun intended. Despite these negative observations, or maybe because of them, I started watching and became hooked.

The titular character, Dawson, was obsessed with movies. He was specifically impressed with Steven Spielberg. His passion for movie making inspired him to make his own monster movie, and to work at the local video store in the fictional town of Capside, Mass.

Enjoy a Throwback Thursday moment with me, and watch Dawson and Pacey interact with customers. They answer questions that we can easily answer for ourselves now with a simple Google search or by visiting imdb.com. Back then you had to rely on your local video clerk. Enjoy!

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