CAROL BURBES DRUMM




Where do I begin?  53 years is a long time since we walked on stage to receive our diplomas.  A lot of things have happened, some good, some bad.  I remember applying for three jobs and having to make a choice of which one to take.  They all wanted to hire me.  I chose the one closest to home which was Cross Country Clothes, with a starting salary of $1.00 per hour.  Four years later I married my first husband.  Seven years later we divorced.

After thirteen years at Cross Country Clothes, I quit and went to work for Phoenix Clothes (The Grief Companies).  I stayed at that job until 1994 when the NAFTA trade deal put me out of work.  During my stint at Phoenix Clothes, I managed to take a few trips.  I got hooked on cruise ships.  I guess I had watched too many Love Boat shows!  I became addicted after the first one. I had a lot of fun and met many nice people. 

A few months after I came back from my last cruise, I met my second husband at an auction.  We married and bought a house in 1991.  After losing my job at The Grief Companies, I did some temp work for awhile until I got hired at Knoll Furniture.  That job was great and it also paid well.  However, 911 happened, and once again layoff time. 

At that point I decided to start working from home doing ebay.  It was a challenge.  I sold records (45’s).  I had a lot of inventory.  Hubby had a used record shop at the Quakertown Farmer’s Market, which we later closed.  Hubby was a collector of DooWop and Rockabilly.  We went to many auctions and flea markets to find those gems.  Now I have a house full of records.  I still sell on ebay.  Since my husband passed away in 2016, my pension is not enough to get by on.  In fact, it is downright pitiful.  However, I am determined to keep my house and live here as long as I am healthy.  Hopefully I will suffer no more broken bones.  But you never can tell.  A broken ankle and a broken shoulder make me more careful.

Looking forward to the class reunion in 2019, and meanwhile reading our stories.