Throughout college, I worked part time at a grocery store to help with expenses - my first real job. I was only there for a little over four years, but it left me with a lifetime of memories and lifelong friendships.

We worked hard at the supermarket, but because we were people in our teens and early 20s, we also liked to have fun. We had parties in the back room during the holiday season, complete with music and dancing. We also played fun games like turkey bowling, which involved stacks of canned goods and rolling frozen turkeys. One of our co-workers named Tommy would eat anything on a dare. I saw him eat an entire apple pie for $10.

Much of the activity took place in our breakroom where we could enjoy lots of free coffee as well as "damaged" baked goods like doughnuts and cookies with compromised packaging. There were also plenty of bags of candy that got sliced open by a box cutter. Truthfully, some of those goodies were not damaged "accidentally."

We also had nicknames for many of our repeat customers. A lady we called Speed Shopper spent at least an hour in the aisles carefully checking each product she bought for expiration dates.

Another woman, whom we named Golden Slippers, regularly visited the store with her many children, whom she tried to control without much success. One time, one of them broke free and streaked down the dog food aisle wearing only a diaper. Despite the children, she was always smartly dressed and styled. One of my co-workers said that she looked like a Disney princess complete with golden slippers, which is where the name came from.

Another mysterious gentleman came in every Friday night and purchased two cans of tuna fish and a container of parsley. We never could figure out why or what he needed those products for. Maybe a treat for his cats?

And then there was Cash Man, who could not resist displaying his wallet and his supply of large bills. We don't know what he did for a living and where he earned so much money.

Back then, people paid with check or cash, and we actually had to learn the lost art of counting change. We also had to count manufacturers' coupons by hand. If fact, when I first started, the there were no scanners. We had to manually punch in prices.

Many friendships and relationships formed through the years. One couple that met at the grocery store is still married today. They had a mixed relationship - she worked in the deli, and he worked as a butcher in the meat room.

Many of us went on to careers after our stint at the grocery store, which was really just a steppingstone. I, of course, became a writer. One co-worker joined the Air Force, while my best friend, whom I met there, now works as a technician in the operating room at a local hospital. Out of that store came a pharmaceutical executive, a lineman, a carpenter and a business owner, among other professions. But although we have our own careers, we never forgot where we got our start - where we learned the importance of working hard and teamwork.

Under the guidance of our manager, we also developed pride in our work and pride in our store. We kept the store as clean as possible, and we rotated products to assure freshness. The young men in the store even had to wear ties.

Believe it or not, my grocery store friends and I still meet for Saturday lunch once a month, which is something we have been doing for years. During our lunches, we reminisce about those days and also talk about our current lives. We often wonder what happened to the tuna fish man, to Speed Shopper and to Golden Slippers now that her children are all grown. And does Cash Man now use alternate methods of paying for his groceries?

The lunches are great fun. Our manager still attends, and so does Tommy. And although he no longer eats great quantities of food for money, he still has an affinity for apple pie.