Full Text of the Excerpt

No matter how long I will work there I don't think I'll feel comfortable as I did at White's.

JEFF COWIE:

Is it just more impersonal?

ANDY FOLEY:

Yeah, it's more personal, I mean, more people there I had things in common with. At G.E. everybody's like, I don't know, boy, zombies or something except for the ones I play on a ball team for. The ones on the ball team ain't none of them in my department. The ones in my department are [makes noise with mouth] . They don't really associate with each other or nothing. They just go there and do their little job and they're gone. Where at White's you go there and do a little bit of your job. [laughter]

JEFF COWIE:

[laughter]

ANDY FOLEY:

Maybe that's what closed the place. [laughter]

JEFF COWIE:

[laughter] That's an interesting comparison. Okay, so you've compared the work life, what about the pay and benefits? Is all that better at G.E.?

ANDY FOLEY:

Yep, they are.

JEFF COWIE:

Do you think it is worth it? Is better pay worth the environment you don't like as much?

ANDY FOLEY:

Sometimes when you go shopping or something, but I feel like after work or something I felt more comfortable at White's because I knew that even though I live in Roxboro I hung out down here more than I did in Roxboro because all my friends and everything lived in Mebane or Swepsonville or Saxapahaw or something so I spent a lot of my time down here. Whereas where I'm working with G.E., unless I'm playing ball or going to school at ACC, I'm back in Roxboro. I don't know I just along with everybody more. They were more relaxed where I think G.E. they are more uptight over… They know if they don't fulfill their job that they're gone.

JEFF COWIE:

Right.

ANDY FOLEY:

Where at White's you could goof-off one day and get by with it. [laughter] I did not say that. [laughter]

JEFF COWIE:

[laughter] What about the whole, I mean, having not worked in either type of job, I'm wondering whether just the whole idea of building something out of wood is more rewarding than …

ANDY FOLEY:

Yeah, it is because you know that's something that nature's given you, and you've taken, you know, like my drawers I've built it with my hands. Whereas G.E. is like here's a little piece of plastic, stick it in the thing, and it does itself. Plus you get more satisfaction out of, you know, like nowadays when I go in a furniture store or something I look at their furniture to see if they done it the way we done it. I notice things like on tables or at my cousin's house we are always talking junk about her tables. They're made different and we say cheap and everything. I believe at White's you notice or I personally notice more now on other furniture and how it stands up to, you know, what White's had and everything. At G.E. I don't know what half the stuff I make goes on. Plus it gives you satisfaction when you're out somewhere and you see somebody that has a piece of White's furniture because you never know you might have had a hand in making that.