Writing Contest Winners 2014-2015
Honorable Mention, Grades 6-8
Michael Kenny
Grade 6, Belmonte Middle School, Saugus
Kim Martino, Teacher
A Day In My Life
Math, science, technology, and engineering are very important in life and school. Hi, my name is Billy. I am a wastewater employee at the second largest waste plant in the United States of America. In fact I am the manager (kind of cool, don't you think). The wastewater plant is located on Deer Island. Originally I wanted to become a math or science teacher. I got the necessary degrees at college to become a teacher. I went everywhere looking for a teaching job. I just couldn't find a job, after a year I gave up. Then I found out about the wastewater treatment plant. When I found out that I was going to be working at the second largest plant in the United States my eyes popped. I searched the Internet and found out I have all of the necessary degrees to become a worker. So I applied for a job. I became the manager after fifteen lovely years of working here. That is how I got my job. Now I will tell you a day in the life of me, a wastewater employee, and what it is like.
Everyday my job changes from one thing to another. Even though I am a manager, I do the same thing that the other employees do. Today I am going to first check the equipment levels for two hours, at least. I made sure that none of the equipment is damaged or isn't working properly. For this job I have to use my mathematics skills. To make sure that the dimensions and the tanks still measure at the same volume and height. This is, believe it or not, better than being a teacher. You don't have to yell at kids or give out homework. You can just have thoughts to yourself, not be mean, and not listen to any kids. After checking to see if the tanks and equipment levels are okay, I move on to my next duty. For about the next two hours I take on my next task. I take samples of the water. I have to take samples because it is very important to see if the water is okay and the levels are normal. If the water levels aren't normal then we have a big problem.
The water could be too much or too dirty or there might not be enough water or it might be contaminated. This two hour task is vital for this wastewater treatment plant. Now I used another part of STEM. I used my science skills because I took tests and put it through scientific experiments. I take pride in being Billy, the manager of the second largest waste treatment center. Believe it or not my job is flying by so far, I already completed half of my great, awesome, and super job. The next thing I do is walk around the plant. I do this for about two hours. I check to see if anything is broken, bad smells, dirty chemicals in the water or air, or if the pressure of the water is correct. I walk around all of Deer Island checking for problems. Even though my other friends and operators do this job, I take it seriously not lightly. If something is broken or wrong, I use my engineering skills. I will use what is around me to temporarily fix the problem. Then I will get the proper materials to complete the issue. Because of my quick engineering skills I would be able to fix the problem and save my life (my job). I usually by this time do my last job of the day. My last job is my favorite. I do this for only about two hours. I analyze the water research and data. I use my technology skills. I have to go on a computer and look to see how much water has been run. Or how clean the water is. I check to see if the already processed water is clean. I would want it to be clean because that would mean the wastewater plant is working properly. The data is also very important to see if the progress of the water is going good and well.
I love my job so much! People may think that my job is boring or gross. I wrote this to tell you that my job is not gross, it is COOL. Instead of being a teacher I became the manager of this place. I am so glad I became a worker here. I just love to clean the water because people can be safe. I love to save peoples' lives for such a simple reason. I make the water nicer and people safer. I am so grateful to be part of this wonderful place of work. I love my life and job! I hope that you enjoyed what I had to tell you. This is what my day to day job is kind of like. I want to encourage more people to become a worker at the wastewater treatment center on Deer Island. I am Billy, the manager of the second largest wastewater treatment center. I don't care what people think about me, because I shake it off and I LOVE MY JOB! I use science, technology, engineering, and math (STEM) in my wonderful job. This is Billy saying goodbye, "goodbye!"
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