She Works Hard For The Money/ I Do Believe (I Fell In Love)

Here's a beautiful copy of Summer's ode to that lowest form of servitude in modern society: "The Waitress" (in this case). Having actually tried my hand as a waiter on more than one occasion over the course of my life, I can readily sympathize with Donna: Do you know how much I got as an hourly wage under the current minimum wage law in Virginia when I worked as a waiter some years ago? The absolute minimum required by Federal law: $2.13/hour. (Each state can make its own minimum wage, and many are much higher than required by Federal law; for example, the minimum in Californis is $9.00 an hour. Before tips. Virginia is among a group of states that does the barest minimum required.) With tips, that's supposed to equate to a total minimum wage of $7.25 an hour. I can't imagine how anyone could live on their own in Northern Virginia on $7.25 an hour, so obviously this isn't meant to be anyone's career. Yet, why not? Waitering is one of the hardest jobs I've ever done in my life. The mental skills, the people skills, the physical skills (you're literally running or walking very quickly most of the time), the service skills, amount to a big challenge that I was glad I could easily walk away from (I didn't do it for the money). I have great admiration for those hardy folk who can do it well... Hats off! Note: The picture sleeve with this Near Mint copy is nearly flawless! The record likewise has pristine Mint labels.