High school students aren’t always busy doing schoolwork; many of them also have jobs. Cedar Park is full of a variety of jobs for teenagers, and senior Jenna Alsukhni found hers at Plucker’s, a chicken wings restaurant. 

“It’s been about five months, since June,” Alsukhni said. “I needed the money. Hopefully, I can pay for some college tuition but also spend some money on myself and not feel guilty about it. I also wanted something to fill my summer with.”  

Although this isn’t her first job, Alsukhni feels very comfortable working at Pluckers. 

“I like the environment,” Alsukhni said. “It’s a different community. I go to work, nobody really knew me at first. I could be whoever I wanted. Not that I was anyone different, but I get to start with a fresh clean slate and I was whoever I wanted to be. It’s also fun to get away from school and home and be in a place where they don’t know about everything going on outside my life.”

As a host, there was a lot she had to learn at first, but now she’s confident in fulfilling her duties. 

“I either show people to their table or I put them on the waitlist or I coordinate on the iPad and figure out where everyone’s going to go and stuff, which is the fun job,” Alsukhni said. “It’s like Diner Dash. I like being out there and working and all that stuff.”

Alsukhni enjoys working with her customers, but she’s had some strange interactions. 

“I was in the bathroom, and one of our regulars, who I didn’t know was a regular because I just started working there, came out and was like, ‘Hi, how are you doing? Welcome to the family.’ I was like, who is this lady?” Alsukhni said. “She welcomed me to the family. She’s there almost every week, like two or three times. She sits at the bar with her husband, and they just talk and have some wings, and it’s really cute. It was really weird then because I was like, who is this lady and what is she doing?”

She also faces the occasional struggle of balancing her busy school schedule with her work. 

“It’s difficult managing it and being able to work 20 hours a week with school and responsibilities and getting home really late,” Alsukhni said. “I get home at like 11-11:30 sometimes, and it’s really hard doing homework after that. I usually get it done ahead of time. It gets to me a lot sometimes, but I make it work.”

Even with these trials, Alsukhni always looks forward to going into work. 

“I actually enjoy working there, which is kind of weird because most people hate their jobs, but I like going to work, away from everything,” Alsukhni said. “I can just focus on one thing for five hours and I’m just chilling. I don’t stress about school or life or anything.”

Alsukhni is excited to be moving up the ladder at Pluckers and is on the path to becoming a cashier.