While London is literally snowed under and Melbourne is almost well done, Hong Kong is turning warmer. The other day I walked past this newspaper kiosk, the man was baring his upper body.
I could understand why. He had been working there for over three hours when I took this picture around 8:30 p.m. in the morning. I know it because I once worked at a newspaper kiosk.
When I was a student, I had done many different summer jobs, which are probably things of the past. It is even more so under this inclement economic climate. I was eleven when I worked part-time at a newspaper kiosk in a summer vacation.
I had to get up at 5 o'clock every morning, too early for a youngster of my age indeed. After a quick breakfast, I went to the kiosk where the kiosk people had already unloaded their share of the newspapers from the delivery van. I was spared the unloading part because of my young age. Now when I arrived, people were sorting pages of the newspapers to make them in the right order. I would simply squat and help with the sorting for half an hour. Then kiosk attendents would carry the load of newspapers and magazines to their respective kiosks. There was a strict number of every sale item for each kiosk. Take my kiosk for example, I would be given two copies of a porn newspaper to sate the thirst of two regular customers who were seemingly site workers.
By six in the morning, I had to get the kiosk ready. People were already waiting for newspapers. Until I finished my part-time shift at one in the afternoon, I would be sitting with Mr Boredom at the kiosk and ocassionaly read the newspapers and magazines. If people had digital cameras then, someone would have taken a photo of Nevin baring his upper body.
It was absolutely hot sitting under the sun for so many hours.
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