A Summer Job / The Horn Temp

My uncle (Pictured on the right) owns the central valleys largest and most well renown Musical instrument repair company. The Horn Shop, as it is so called, is known by all decent wind instrument players in and around the Fresno/Clovis metropolis for its quality of workmanship. The summer is the busiest time of the year for the Horn Shop. They maintain the brass and woodwinds for nearly 100 schools, servicing nearly 5000 instruments in all. This task, being impossible for the permanent technicians, requires the employment of seasonal workers affectionately referred to as "The Horn Temps."

As a "Horn Temp" my skills are at best rudimentary in comparison the my uncle but that doesn't mean the work is boring. Everyday, I'll disassemble, clean, de-dent, and reassemble 5-10 trumpets, marching horns, euphoniums, and tubas. Learning new skills and techniques has been by far the most engaging part of the job. There are many, many unique tools which are used for highly specific functions. The Ultrasonic Cleaner (pictured here), The Dent Eraser, and various mandrils are some of the more interesting ones. In additions, my coworkers are fun and interesting people.

For the most part, I have enjoyed this summer tremendously. I've worked long and hard (in addition to The Horn Shop, my uncle and I are building a house) and working hard is a good thing. Call me a Marxist if you want, but if you're not working, get off your bump and bust your hump.