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[Locut0s]

This message was self-deleted by its author (Locut0s) on Fri Jan 3, 2014, 12:21 AM. When the original post in a discussion thread is self-deleted, the entire discussion thread is automatically locked so new replies cannot be posted.

[otherone]

1. I work in an apartment program for schizophrenics

I help people that need help living on their own..

[Arcanetrance]

3. 26 chef

[Hard Assets]

4. I buy gold

'Nuff said.

(I'll give you a deal if you want to sell me your solid gold! </Beck&gt

[CaliforniaPeggy]

5. I've been retired since 2005, but before that I was a registered nurse.

I did hospital nursing for about 15 years, and then spent 10 years with the American Red Cross, Blood Services.

[riderinthestorm]

6. Small farmer. I own and operate a sport horse training farm

I also grow organic veggies for my sister's catering business, the local green market, my clients, and my local food pantry. I've been doing both of these for 25 years.

I've also worked steadily with the local women's shelter as both paid (grant writing) and unpaid volunteer for 30+ years.

[dixiegrrrrl]

13. I applaud you, rider.

I have been an organic farmer
and worked with women's shelters
and know the huge effort it takes to do even one of those jobs, not to mention all at the same time.

Oh..retired now...still doing the gardening and the chickens and the yard work, tho.

[riderinthestorm]

17. I've got an energetic husband and some great help. But yeah, I am tired

and this winter I actually began turning my thoughts to the "next" phase of life, dialing back, and doing something different.

I'm still too young to retire though (and still have waaaaayyyy too many animals to even contemplate that seriously, lol!)

[RetroGamer1971]

7. I am a stay at home house hubby/geek dad.

I was in a car accident in 2009. I was hit by a drunk driver here in AZ. I was a teacher for years before this. I taught High school English. When the economy crashed, I went to work for McLargeHugeDayCareGroup here in AZ, and ran their after school program. Since I can no longer work, I take care of the house and child, and my wife gets to have the big library career. I am transportation captain, head cat box cleaner, chief nurse of sick kiddos, mystery food shopper, and Major in charge of tuck in's, and nightmares. It works so far. My wife goes to work with the piece of mind that everything is handled, and I know i am contributing and saving us money on daycare and such.

[Tikki]

12. Dang right, it does save money, lots of money and the kids get..

an aspect of dad doing this and that and then this...


Well done RG'71 family.


Tikki

[GiveMeFreedom]

72. Your dedication deserves

a quote:

"Dad, we who are about to change a diaper, salute you". OK, I know, it's not verbatim, but you have earned another dad's respect.

[Blue_In_AK]

205. My son-in-law does that, too.

My daughter is a lawyer for the Directors' Guild and her hubby stays home and entertains the kiddos who are 3-1/2 and 1-1/2. He loves it, they love it, and my daughter loves it. Works for everyone.

[Victor_c3]

221. I'm envious

Not that I like it when my kids are sick, but there is something very satisfying in holding a sick and puking toddler on your shoulder and comforting her back to sleep or, after a bad dream, getting up with her in the middle of the night, wrapping her up in a blanket, making her some hot cocoa, and watching the same boring kid's cartoon on the couch while she falls back to sleep in your lap.

Spending a lot of time with your kids has got to be a very rewarding experience. I know whenever I bring my two kids anywhere during the normal workday I'm almost always the only dad.

[NutmegYankee]

8. I'm a Mechanical Engineer.

I specialize in fluid piping systems.

[heather blossom]

9. Risk Management

Report and monitor claims reported to our insurance carriers.

[Cleita]

10. I'm one of those seniors who are living too well on my

Social Security according to those who want me to accept the chained cpi. Instead of riding a bicycle and living in a trailer, which is what I do now to make my money stretch, they want me to push a shopping cart and sleep in doorways instead in the future because I'm just taking too much from those hard working CEO's and trust fund multi-millionaires.

[RebelOne]

403. I, too, am retired and live in a trailer.

Yes, thank goodness for Social Security. I have some savings, but am trying not to break into it. Unfortunately, I had to have car repairs done last month, which cost me about $800, but that is what the savings is for, emergencies.

[Cleita]

404. Yep, I had savings, but between car repair, cat repair and sometimes having to pay

extra insurance, it's pretty much gone. I had fender bender in a parking lot about a year ago and my car insurance was tripled, not just raised a percentage because of the accident but tripled. Buh bye savings. Since the cost of living has way exceeded what little COLA raises we have gotten in Social Security, we are able to buy less and less. I can't imagine how hard it's going to be if we get chained cpi.

[RebelOne]

407. Yes, I feel your pain. Oh, that big COLA raise gave me a whooping $20 a month more.

And every time I go grocery shopping, the total gets higher. What I spend weekly for food now I could have lived on for a month about 10 years ago.

[Cleita]

409. That's what I got and they raised my health insurance $15.

[Canuckistanian]

11. High tech. Work for the Canadian government.

And yes, my sector has been devastated by the Harper govt. "slash and burn" approach to austerity.

Not to mention an extreme distaste for science and research in this country. If it doesn't make an immediate profit for SOMEBODY, it's worthless.

[Laurian]

14. Retired after 30 years in university administration.

[5X]

15. Repair electronics,

computers, laptops, tv's, etc.

[Doctor Who]

16. Non-union Electrician

I'm the guy you call when your husband can't put up the ceiling fan.

Edit: spelling

[SmileyRose]

23. That made me laugh

I put up all the ceiling fans. HE barely knows which end of the screwdriver to use.

I HATE CEILING FANS. Worst damn thing to put up EVAR. You are worth a fortune. Ceiling fans are the kind of job big time electricians don't take.

[JeffHead]

34. Me too.

But I don't do houses. I'm currently working on an 8 screen movie theater. 1200 amp service, I'll be there for 4 months. Big commercial or industrial stuff is more my thing.

[Vattel]

244. Unioned university professor

I'm the guy you call when your husband can't accept the theory of evolution.

[abbeyco]

18. Software implementation consultant

I'm with one of the big accounting/actuarial/consulting firms and work on HR software. I just turned 50 and am looking at an incredibly busy stretch of work due to acquisitions and changes to the software in my specialty.

Big shout out to Retro upthread - my Dad was very close by when my siblings and I were being raised and while your wife certainly has peace of mind that the homefront is covered, it's the kiddos (and you!) who will really benefit.

[HERVEPA]

19. Mainframe Computer Programmer

[Skittles]

76. I'm the gal who calls you in the middle of the night

hey HERVEPA I thought you'd enjoy this story:

I work in Texas and one of my coworkers Bill is "virtual" and lives in Ohio and works on my off days - his elderly father lives with him. So one day Bill comes home and his dad says, "Bill, some drunk lady called for you; she left you a message." (OK now here is the actual message I left in my usual rapidfire fashion: "Hey Bill, MVS called wanting to know if you brought up CICS*** after the IPL manually or via ATRM; LCS me OK thanks bye.&quot

So Bill listens to the message and says, "Dad, that is (Skittles) - she's at work, she's not drunk! And his dad replied, "Well she sounds DRUNK TO ME!"

So about a month later I get an IM from Bill saying DAD SAYS SOME DRUNK LADY CALLED - WAS THAT YOU? and I repled NO IT WASN'T ME - TELL YOUR DAD SKITTLES DIDN'T CALL AND SHE IS *NOT* DRUNK. SO THERE!!! So about an hour later Bill IM'd me again saying, "That was a friend of mine calling from Michigan - she really was drunk."

[HERVEPA]

119. Thanks. Great story Skittles.

Luckily when we get a call (on call one month out of six and maybe an average of one call that month). our response is almost inevitably put it on hold and we'll look at it in the morning. We get no calls for on-line.
Proudly a mainframer for about 40 years, with a couple more to go!
And I'm the one who sounds drunk when I get a call at 2:00 AM.

[Skittles]

137. 32 years for me

someone offshore asked me (regarding low scratch numbers) - "If the count reaches zero will we need to emergency IPL?" Dumber than doornails I tell you, but questions like that are very common these days.

[HERVEPA]

142. Yep. Our offshore people are not a net plus , to be diplomatic.

[kentauros]

331. I used to have some mainframe maintainers call my radio show

back in the mid-90s, but they weren't drunk

At least one of them was a woman. Was that you?

[Skittles]

334. I used to call radio shows back in the 80's

calling in the occasional request, trying to win contests, etc. I was working in Austin Texas

[kentauros]

337. Okay, different person as this was at KPFT in Houston.

Probably someone you knew, though...

[Skittles]

345. the radio guys were always so cool

[kentauros]

347. I was on late-night (3 ayem)

and while our people were cool, us night-owls were the weirdest of the bunch

For example:

Danny Elfman was our god! (still is)

[Skittles]

351. WOW! I enjoyed that!

[kentauros]

360. Happy to be of service :)

I had no idea if it would go over well or not. Danny Elfman is just plain crazy (as is his brother, who created that weirdness known as the Forbidden Zone

[Dr Hobbitstein]

382. The Forbiden Zone!

One of my favorite movies! I must've watched that movie a few hundred times in high school. I met Richard Elfman once, and we kept in email contact for some time in the late 90s/early 00s. He was trying to get FZ released on DVD, and I was nagging him about it nonstop. Really nice guy!

[kentauros]

385. Now that's cool!

I would think the whole Elfman family is a fun bunch. So much creativity!

So, was Forbidden Zone ever released? I got to see it on the old Night Flight show on the USA cable network, and later on satellite. I know I have the soundtrack album

[Dr Hobbitstein]

395. I had an old VHS copy for years

That me and some friends wore out. One of them was able to find the DVD at the time (this would've been around mid-2000s). I believe she bought it here:

http://www.forbiddenzonethemovie.com/index2.htm

It appears there is also a blu-ray available as well...

[kentauros]

396. Thanks for the link :)

I don't have blu-ray so the normal DVD will have to suffice. Although they do have a signed version...

[TheProgressive]

130. Mainframe computers?

I worked on a mainframe that was housed in a gymnasium. Seriously...
It was old when I worked on it, but it was still doing production!

Yes, I watched computers go from HUGE to more power in a 1 inch X 1 inch 'chip'..

[Logical]

133. Main frame?? JCL? IBM 360? :-)

[Logical]

135. Programmer, Sqlserver, vb.net, asp.net, IOS development.

[nebenaube]

374. Likewise...

I wrote one program to run on a VAX in college. All this mainframe talk has me remembering 'Fred' an assembly simulator we used when we were taught how to write self-modifying code.

[HERVEPA]

138. All except the 360. :-)

[Logical]

144. 360 is What I started on in high school. Great memories about it. n-t

[HERVEPA]

167. I started on the 1620 and 1130 in college. Predates 360.

Server/web guy at our place asked what server the mainframe runs on.

[Logical]

171. Actually I used a 1620 also. I think I remember "sense switches" in my code

[HERVEPA]

253. Do remember sense switches on the 1130. Alternated every other day between programmer and operator.

[Logical]

276. Never used that one. n-t

[HERVEPA]

280. Co-op job in college

IBM 1130:
Memory size: 4K or 32K 16 bit ccharacters


IBM 1620:

[Logical]

281. I enjoyed those days. More exciting. n-t

[HERVEPA]

282. Absolutely. These young folks don't know what they missed.

Have you ever seen the t-shirts from this place:

http://enterprisesystemsmedia.com/store

[Logical]

283. Wow, cool, I will be ordering one.

[Logical]

284. Cool, I will be ordering one

[HERVEPA]

290. I have the "Never Trust a COmputer You Can Lift" shirt

I wear it when I go dancing and pretty much noone understands it, or else if they do they think mainframes are long gone.
I tell them that mainframes have stopped going away, which is pretty much true.

[HERVEPA]

293. Interesting. We have the same avatar. I guess that goes along with screen name "Logical"

[kentauros]

335. Thankfully, most CAD drafters don't know what they missed:

Bausch & Lomb Graphics System

The very first CAD system I ever learned. 8" floppies, green-screen vector graphics, X-Y flatbed HP plotter (not pictured), yet a decent menu-driven tablet and puck. Oh yeah: slow as molasses!

[nilram]

211. Blarg! It's what I learned assembler on in college...

I just remember the 4K page sizes you had to deal with at the assembly level. A classmate has the punch cards for the assembler that we wrote in assembler, so I guess I must have gotten used to it. I vaguely remember that I did, at least.

[Kennah]

185. Same here, but I work on Red (Unisys) not Blue (IBM)

Are you a Cobologist as well?

[Brickbat]

20. Freelance writer and editor.

Have gone back and forth for awhile between full-time job at magazines and newspapers, and working out of the home as a freelance writer, reporter and editor. Currently freelancing.

[joshcryer]

40. Really cool. Do you have a site for your freelance editing business?

I think editing is going to take off since we've got self-publishing.

[Brickbat]

44. No, I get all my business through long-term clients, word-of-mouth and through a freelancing

website. I should put together a site; I just never get around to it.

[joshcryer]

46. Have you done a big project like a 100k word book before?

Just wondering. Best of luck with your business.

[Brickbat]

54. Editing? Yes.

Writing? Not that many! Thanks for the well wishes.

[ChisolmTrailDem]

60. Are you taking on any additional clients?

Can you write about renewable energy and green living?

An ebook, perhaps?

[Brickbat]

75. PM me!

I can write just about anything.

[treestar]

372. Lucky!

does it make enough to live on?

[DrDan]

21. retired - but was a statistician for a large 3-letter high-tech corp

[Shivering Jemmy]

22. Research scientist

Aerospace company

[Nikia]

24. I'm a laboratory supervisor

We are part of a manufacturing facility as opposed to an independent lab. I got promoted less than 2 months ago. So far, there is never a dull moment.

[hfojvt]

262. I am a surprised janitor

to see you still around here.

good to see you and that you are moving up and doing well

although I still largely regret my own move to supervisor, hoping that I can just hold on for another four years.

I knew I did not want the supervisor job, I wanted the #2 position, which I also applied for. It pays a mere $2,000 a year less but has about $20,000 a year fewer headaches, especially since they promoted a slacker to be my #2.

[Nikia]

317. It's hard being a supervisor sometimes

But I think that I am transitioning well. I've worked there for a year and much happier there than at my previous employer.
I'm sure that you are doing well as a supervisor, but I understand about the head aches.

[nevergiveup]

25. Retail.....small business....almost 40 years now.

My plans had been to sell and retire in 2008.....for obvious reasons it never happened.

[SmileyRose]

26. Customer service for a high end importer.

I get paid under $10 a hour to listen to rich people bitch about how I personally am a useless human being and their Christmas will be ruined because they waited till the last minute to order custom $10,000 (wholesale) furniture and it won't leave whatever foreign country in time to impress her "friends".

You just have to shed a tear for how the poor babies have to suffer.

[Walk away]

107. And your name is still SmileyRose! You must be a saint! nt

[SmileyRose]

319. Haha - trust me, the comedy of it is priceless

I get a lot of crazee on the other end of the phone.
Women with more money than sense. At least they are finally spending some of it..... even if they do get all offended for having to PAY for ANYTHING.

[Walk away]

323. There's a reason I work with animals and not people!!! nt

[johnp3907]

27. I buy food

for the dining service at a small college.

[mike_c]

28. 57 years old, biologist and professor of zoology at a Cal State campus....

[ErikJ]

217. Cool! Teach Creationism too?

[mike_c]

267. LOL....

[FedUpWithIt All]

269. You're living my 13 yr old daughter's dream

[mike_c]

288. mine too....

Best of luck to your daughter.

[FedUpWithIt All]

296. Thank you.

[Katashi_itto]

29. Film Director and Govt Accountant

Last edited Tue Feb 26, 2013, 10:39 AM - Edit history (1)

For film, I mainly do commercials.

But am now in pre-production on a horror movie. This will be my first feature movie.

[JI7]

30. my own business

before that worked in retail for a small business which helped with some experience to try my own thing.

[WillyT]

31. I Work For A Governmental Agency That Makes Sure People Receive The Benefits They've Earned...

[Blue4Texas]

170. Retired from government agency

Collecting mine

[Earth_First]

32. 33/Landscape construction/design installer...

I do most of the natural stone lays for the contractor with whom I'm employed.

When in between construction jobs, I install large trees and shrubs per design specification.

Largely in a residential capacity.

Currently laid off, however I've been with my employer for 9 years this upcoming season, 12 years total in the industry.

I'm tired.

[Liberal Jesus Freak]

33. I cook at a camp.

In previous lives I have been an HR manager, bookkeeper, paralegal, office manager, blah, blah,.....I love what I do now.

[RBInMaine]

128. Neat. You've done a lot.

[11 Bravo]

35. Retired elementary school teacher (32 years), but now substitute every day.

[doc03]

36. I am what Ryan would call a taker I guess. I worked full time about

44 years including 2 years in the army. I retired 3 years ago get SS and a pension from a good union job.

[Callmecrazy]

37. 19 years an electrician...

Both Union and non Union.
Before that I was a DJ in Las Vegas topless bars.

[joshcryer]

38. I'm semi-retired. Going to start writing.

Before that I did construction for about 15 years straight and saved up a bunch of money. Going to be traveling and writing and stuff.

It wasn't easy. I've been shot at, mugged, shaken down on more occasions than I can remember.

Never did the school route. I did a couple of semesters in college, got the loan bill, did the math, and decided it wasn't worth it to be indebted for 10-20 years for a piece of paper.

[ChisolmTrailDem]

68. I also used to be in construction, supervised some major projects. Now kickin' it at home

managing a web store.

I'm also currently writing my first novel and will be publishing to Kindle, etc. Travel about three times a year as my current work situation allows me to work anywhere there's an internet connection.

[tabbycat31]

39. professional political hack

I'm sent by the Democrats where I'm needed and work on campaigns.

[Doctor Who]

50. How well does that pay tabby?

I'm just curious. ballpark number. you don't have to anwser if you dont want.

[tabbycat31]

59. It pays enough

Things like housing (while you are on the road) are covered, and my last race also paid for my gas (the district was larger than New Jersey so we needed some sort of gas allowance).

The starting pay (what I made a few years ago) is not great, but as I've moved up the ladder, I've seen my paychecks do the same.

[Doctor Who]

71. Cool, keep up the good work. n/t

[GiveMeFreedom]

93. That's how that works, is it not?

Like any job, you start at the bottom and work your way up. The pay becomes commensurate with what you can value your services at. Please remember us "little folk" as you climb the political ladder.

Would be nice to say to folks around here "I knew tabbycat31 when he was just a junior member of the Democratic Party, look at him now. Still posting and raising hell on DU, GO! Senator tabbycat31"

[tabbycat31]

147. I'm actually debating what kind of role I want this year

I'm not sure if I'm ready to be a campaign manager or not.

Psst-- I'm not a he. And I most likely will never be a senator. I like being behind the scenes, and I was a wild child in my late teens/early 20s and that could hinder my chances of getting elected.

[GiveMeFreedom]

181. Dear tabbicat31

Mam/Miss/Ms I apologize for gender-typing you. As far as baggage of the past, I agree. Almost all candidates today must present a persona that white washes any transgressions of their youths. Sometimes it's to much baggage, better left for more seasoned ears. Peace and good luck, make us proud Democrats.

[maggiesfarmer]

41. Software Engineer

at least by education. I"m on the project management side of things now.

[RebelOne]

42. Retired now.

But I was a copy editor for 30 outdoors magazines. I was laid off in 2010 and since I was already past retirement age, I decided to just retire, as I knew I would not be able to find another job at my age.

[Trailrider1951]

43. I'm a geologist

I've done oil and gas exploration, enviromental engineering, core analysis, and lately I work for a bunch of consulting petroleum engineering assholes. I'm so sick of this stuff, I could puke. I cannot wait until next January when I can take early retirement (I'll be 62) so I can start a career I've always wanted, but was afraid that it would not pay the bills: I want to resume being an artist, only now I'll have time for my painting. Here's my latest, almost done:



I cannot wait!

[Awknid]

58. Wonderful use of color!

Good for you starting to do what you want to do. Best of luck to you!

[Trailrider1951]

88. Thanks Awknid, I love to paint

be it landscapes or whatever. Welcome to DU! Hope you stay awhile.

[Apophis]

116. I minored in geology as an undergrad.

I love it. I use geology in my archaeological studies researching site formation processes based on site stratigraphy and geomorphology.

[ErikJ]

212. Nice! but Ya need more blacks to give it depth

[Trailrider1951]

242. Yup, you're right about that. You are the second person

to tell me that, and I agree. This is my first attempt at acrylics on canvas, and I'm taking it slow. Before this, I painted in watercolor.

[IMG][/IMG]

I'm gradually going darker, just like with watercolors. Thanks for looking!

[nc4bo]

368. I agree beautiful but not black - dioxazine purple!! Glaze the dp for shadows.

Black tends to dull out shadow areas and can make mud if wet on wet but a mix of original palette colors to make your darks and/or dioxazine purple.

The darkest purple of the bunch makes the most wonderful shadows!! Glazing is best option!

[Trailrider1951]

375. I agree, not black, but the purple

is used nowhere in this painting. I mix my darks in this painting from cerulean blue and burnt sienna, as both have been used in this painting. I'm using a limited palette of cerulean blue, yellow ochre, and Mars red (red oxide) as my primaries. I'm also using both raw and burnt sienna as secondaries, and titanium white as the neutral. I mix any violets I need from the red and blue, and add white to lighten, and yellow to grey. I follow Michael Wilcox's color theory to mix my colors:

http://www.schoolofcolour.com/

[midnight]

302. So beautiful.... I can see you doing very well with your next career...

[Viva_La_Revolution]

367. that almost makes me pine for the desert

almost..

very nice!

[nc4bo]

369. Wonderful and much happiness to you.

Nothing pleases me more than creating art, even the struggles are wonderful!

Try dioxazine/dioxide purple as a glaze (if using acrylics or watercolor, start with a very watery "lightly toned" mix of purple and brush on where you want your shadows, if it's pleasing to you, make the mix a more concentrated watery mix. Makes the most wonderful shadow colors that have life. If you're feeling experimental, try a mix of dioxazine purple and add a touch of alizarin crimson.

Try to avoid using a heavy hand with the blacks.

Happy painting!!!

[LeftInTX]

45. Volunteer - Master Gardener

Otherwise, I'm early retired due to health problems.

[tblue37]

47. I teach college English--as a full time lecturer (not tenure track).

I also tutor pretty much any subject in the humanities (including Spanish and French), math up to eighth grade, science up to tenth grade, and anything that requires writing--which means that I sometimes tutor grad students writing dissertations--even in sciences. I help kids prepare for the ACT and SAT tests, too, and I act as a consultant helping students apply to colleges, grad schools, medical schools, and law schools.

I also do a lot of freelance editing, some ghostwriting (helping people rewrite their articles or books, writing articles for PR clients to sign, etc.).

I also used to have a dressmaking/tailoring/alterations shop, but my hands are too clumsy for that now (arthritis and surgeries).

On edit: I am 62.

[petronius]

48. University professor, at a Cal State campus... (nt)

[Adsos Letter]

136. I earned both my BA and MA from a Cal State campus.

Sonoma State. I enjoyed the experience.

[rustydog]

49. Picked fruit as a teen,

My first "real job" was dishwasher, shoe salesman, graveyard shift cook, contract security officer, and for the past 34 years, healthcare security supervision.

[brewens]

102. My first job as a kid was moving irrigation pipe at a cucumber farm. I forgot my stint in

agriculture. That was in the lowest hottest spot in my area. Too bad they developed it and shut it down. That was great training for football season. I showed up for the start of practice in late August already in shape. I coulda used a couple more years of that. They actually paid us pretty good but you needed to be a big strong kid to get one of you one each end and haul a couple of those pipes at a time. We'd bust it out and just be drenched in sweat.

[ohheckyeah]

51. I'm an independent contractor

working on a writing project right now. I've been doing work at home jobs for about 3 years now - this is the best paying one by far.

[OldDem2012]

52. Unemployed for the last four years, but if all goes well....

....with my current interview process, I'll be back in the world of technical recruiting by March 1st. I will also begin collecting my first retirement check from Social Security in April.

Additionally, and something I didn't even know until early last week (shame on me for not knowing!), I have two kids who are under 18 who can ALSO receive payments from Social Security. Just applied for that late last week.

But, am I holding my breath?? Heck no....We've been down this path too many times over the past four years. Something always goes wrong at the last possible second.

[cantbeserious]

53. Manage A Small Business

eom

[elleng]

55. retired, was attorney for Fed agency,

regulated railroads.

[bhikkhu]

56. Auto mechanic, for 20+ years

I've been a student off and on over the years as well, and may still finish my degree to be a teacher at some point. But car work has been steady, I'm pretty good at it (one would hope, after so many years of experience) and I'm not sure I'd be much of a teacher.

[GiveMeFreedom]

57. Now retired

1973-gas station attendant. 15 1/2 years old
1975-1979 US Navy. 21 years of age when released from active duty.
1979-2010 Construction, heavy equipment operator. Union member.
Dec 15th 2010, last day I worked.
Diagnosed with Terminal Cancer at 55 years of age.
2010-??? Collecting rocks and cutting them and polishing them.
wife still works- 5 more years till she can retire.

Love DU, All the folks from all walks of life.

[blueknight]

61. im retired,

was a railroad engineer for CSX for over 30 years

[Th1onein]

62. Entrepreneur

I own a mid-sized company; specializing in sales.

[Ruby the Liberal]

63. Financial Services

Some of us don't suck.

[DisgustipatedinCA]

198. Network engineer

...for a bank that actually doesn't suck. For the past 20 years, I've been network engineer at several companies of different types. Will route packets for food.

[ChisolmTrailDem]

64. Work from home ecommerce website developer and manager. eom

[handmade34]

65. good question...

I just left (in January) my livelihood of 8 years (partner formally retired and we worked as a team so I had to leave also). We did contract work on Gov't studies throughout the U.S. Now I am working a temp job for a few weeks (testing in schools), 2 weeks left and then I will be unemployed on the Appalachian Trail for approx 4-5 months!

No idea what I will do to make a living then... I want to farm but only have a few acres not worth trying to make anything grow on...

I'll be the old lady waiting tables down at the Diner

[rgbecker]

66. Self employed carpenter/builder.

Sub contracting and then a few entire houses by myself...now back to smaller jobs...about to retire.

[Recursion]

67. Sysadmin

But in a month I'm leaving and concentrating on making kites.

[nenagh]

69. Pharmacist in Ontario... retired, but doing some part time hours...

And very much hoping that Health Care becomes a reality for all Americans...

Born in Philadelphia...

[Jbradshaw120]

70. Currently union rep/organizer

I'm 24 years old graduated college with degree in political science and after working 4 years in a union grocery store went to work for my union as a business agent/ organizer.

[Comatose Sphagetti]

73. Social Worker

I'm a case manager helping people with substance abuse/dependence problems.

[Uben]

74. 58 yr old, retired for 11 yrs......

....still own interest in investment property. Retired when wife got breast cancer and spent the next ten yrs with her...every day! Widowed now, not sure what I'll do, but you can bet your ass its gonna be fun! Life's too short to waste, and I'm gonna enjoy what I got left.

[peacebird]

77. Software quality assurance/test & business analyst currently.....

[benld74]

78. US government IT all my career - lucky

started in mainframe; went to disributed mini's; now in the IT services part of the house providing everything from phones to servers an everything in between.
Sequestration has got me tied up in knots inside I can tell you.

[JaneyVee]

79. (Union) Assistant producer for a television & film production company here in NYC.

Last edited Mon Feb 25, 2013, 11:37 AM - Edit history (1)

Long hours, but lots of down-time, It helps that I have 6 people that work for me.

[ZombieHorde]

80. I get paid to post manufactured opinions on DU.

I work for the zombie movie industry. I never actually watch zombie movies because they are immature and gross.

Just kidding! Go watch and purchase zombie movies. You'll be a smarter and sexier person if you do!

[Bluenorthwest]

247. Zombie movie wise, I anticipate 'World War Z' this summer with great excitement...

High concept, big money zombies. A List Zombies....

[ZombieHorde]

297. It should be awesome, but it doesn't look like it will follow the book. nt

[GiveMeFreedom]

318. I too,am waiting

for the movie to come out. Brad is in it and say what you will, but he's an "A" actor. I like most of his work. "Inglorious Bastards" was a entertaining movie for me.

[lapfog_1]

81. Software Architect

High Performance Storage Systems.

[juxtaposed]

82. union carpenter

But was out of work for about 2 years at the beginning of the great recession. I had to work non-union during that time.

[Awknid]

163. Beautiful!

It must feel good to build things with your hands.

[leveymg]

301. Wow! That's nice work. Where is that (I assume) church located?

Beautiful woodwork and a nice marble floor. The pipe organ is awesome - designed by the same architect? Lovely.

[Teamster Jeff]

83. Truck Driver - Teamster Tankhaul Division

Chicago Local

[A HERETIC I AM]

94. Car Hauler, former Teamster.

Was Local 299, Detroit. Largest car haul Local in the country.

One of the biggest mistakes of my life was leaving that gig.

[Teamster Jeff]

99. That's hard work

I trained for 1 week at a carhaul company before I was called by another company with a local job. Freaky hard loading those cars to the right clearance.

[A HERETIC I AM]

104. Driving this these days;

Florida based, Right-to-work state.

Good company though.

[Doctor Who]

157. Just a question...

How hard is is to make a left turn in something that big?

[A HERETIC I AM]

172. Easier than making a right!

Not hard, it's just that you have to have enough room, that's all. That design is what's known as a "Stinger Steer" or just "Stinger" meaning its 5th wheel and therefore its point of articulation, is located behind the drive wheels and low to the ground. In the pic above, the 5th wheel is just forward and below the front bumper of the white car on the front of the trailer. It changes the way it turns vs. a normal tractor trailer.

Honestly, turning left is always easier than turning right in any tractor trailer. Making a left means I have the oncoming lane of the street I am turning onto, to allow the trailer to straighten out. Turning right, I have no such luxury. If I am making a right hand turn, I often have to crowd the lane next to me if there is one or even wait till traffic clears and use the oncoming lane to swing to my left before turning the truck to the right. If I don't do such a maneuver, the trailer wheels will track across the corner, potentially taking down a street sign or any other obstruction that might be present. "If it ain't tight, it ain't right" as they say.

One of the biggest problems with open-rack auto transporters like that one is the potential for contact between the cars on the tractor and those on the trailer. Turning too tight to either direction or jack knifing the rig could cause the vehicles to touch and major damage can occur.

[Satch59]

84. Freelance graphic artist

So fun to have a job that uses creativity and can set my own hours...although some jobs use up lots of hours...

[tledford]

85. 56, IT Project Manager. eom

[rucky]

86. Search Marketing

copywriting and digital project management

[flyingfysh]

87. Software

Fortunately, the market for people expert in C++ and/or .NET technologies is amazingly good. I get pinged by headhunters at least a couple of times a day. In addition, my wife is a comfortably retired teacher, and has a nice chunk of stock inherited from her parents. And I get Social Security. We are actually very comfortable, even though we are paying for our son to go to college. You have probably seen TV ads for my company's software.

I was out for about a year when the crash hit, but now companies are desperate for people with my kind of expertise.

[woodsprite]

89. Web developer, though I should be more of a designer/usability person

Let's just say that I'm doing way different stuff than I was hired to do. I'd rather get back to the design work. The job has morphed into mainly jquery and JavaScript coding within a set template. I'm not a programmer and don't like programming, so I'm struggling to keep my head afloat. I'm eligible for retirement in 2 yrs and trying to figure some way to make that work, but I'll only be 52.

[rppper]

90. I am an EEG/PSG technician....

I conduct sleep disorder studies for a good sized neurology practice. Prior to this I have counseled addicts, managed property, managed a front desk/did reservations for a hotel, sold motorcycles and drove submarines for a decade...

I enjoy being a tech...it's stress free, helps people and best of all pays well and comes with great insurance....

[donco]

91. retired Teamster

Line-haul driver.Yellow fright.

[life long demo]

92. Retired in Aug 2011. When I graduated from HS

in 1960 there wasn't any money to go to college. I started working as a steno-typist, I don't even think that job title is still used. Work my way up to secretarial/administrative jobs. Got a chance to become a Buyer of electronic components. I loved that work. I worked for a total of 50 years, yikes. Lost a lot of 401K money in 2004 when company went bankrupt, company bought out and moved to Mexico. Out of work for 10 months. Got another job working a little above minimum wage in Cust. Service. (God bless anyone who works in Cust. Svs.!). Was able to move to service billing dept. which I loved. Survived 2008, barely. Finally retired at age 68. Still fiercely Democratic.

[siouxsiecreamcheese]

95. Federal contractor for the VA

mostly technical writing.

[brewens]

96. Blood Center mobile blood drive driver/registrar. I drive the collections bus.

I set up the bus, computer equipment, a registration desk and register the donors. Before that I was with a different blood center as a blood bank technician.

I've been a warehouseman/forklift operator and route driver/salesman. For a couple of years I did commercial hydro seeding and concrete curbing. I also was a grocery store guy and put in a couple years in fast-food in high school.

[snooper2]

97. engineer, telecom, new product development, VoIP,

[Webster Green]

98. Chimney Sweep.

I'm kind of amazed that I do it. I started when I was 59. I'm now 66. It keeps me in good shape, that's for sure.

Strangers ask me to shake hands (for good luck).

[barbtries]

100. office manager in biotech

this year after over 5 years i get to transition to the clinical team and my job title is likely to be clinical research associate. by the age of 60 i expect to have left the world of bookkeeping, office supplies and answering telephones for a lot of travel, conducting and monitoring clinical trials. i'm pretty excited about that.
am also in my first semester at college after 25 years and will be earning a certificate in clinical trial research unless i'm well enough trained through the job to be able to go without. i expect to stick with it though because i want some initials after my name.

[raidert05]

101. U.S. Navy....

since 2006, I do what ever, when ever, where ever, how ever they tell me to do something..sort of...My official rating is Cryptologic Technician Technical....I'm really good at finding people, airplanes, ships, cellphones, laptop computers, radars....other RF or satellite devices...been to lots of countries, worked with/met/seen lots of different peoples,cultures,places so on and so forth.

[SirRevolutionary]

103. Computer Programmer

client/server, mostly web, and mobile.

[madamesilverspurs]

105. Now retired, 30+ years a lampworker,

full menagerie and a line of 1:12 dollhouse miniatures. Miss it!

[RBInMaine]

127. Cool stuff. Interesting.

[Adsos Letter]

129. I'd never heard of lampworking before!

Interesting! Now I have.

[jberryhill]

106. Attorney, run my own practice

Patents, copyrights, trademarks... mostly internet defense work for small companies and individuals.

[MineralMan]

108. Self employed writer,

Since 1974. I have done many other things, too, from creating software to selling mineral specimens to collectors. These days i am writing websites for small businesses. I am 67.

[Claybrains]

109. I'm a floral designer specializing in weddings

[slackmaster]

110. I go through thousands of lines of computer code and revise it to prevent it from dying in 2038

When the Unix 31-bit clock bug hits.

[Walk away]

111. Dog Trainer and Doggie Day Care owner.

I trained horses for many years and made money for other folks running their businesses. Twenty years ago I started working with an animal behaviorist and for the past fifteen years I have been on my own.

I now specialize in small dogs training, behavior modification and socialization. Here's a group from one of my Small Dog Socialization classes.

&feature=share&list=PL89083439252202CC

[SammyWinstonJack]

273. Yorkies! My favorite. I have three now..Winston, Jack and the newest is Lucy.

My Sammie girl passed away last Oct. I miss her everyday.

[Walk away]

307. I'm so sorry about Sammy. That is a heartbreaker.

My 3 guys are all adopted. Henry (<<<my icon) a Cairn, Robbie is a Shih Tzu mix and Tiny Toby is a 5lb mystery (he's the little fellow rolling on his back in the video).

Every Tuesday is "Yorkie Tuesday" and I always have 5 or 6 in the play group. Other dogs are invited like Chloe the Mini Doxie and Cooper the Maltese puppy but they are honorary Yorkies for the day.

The little silver Yorkie was adopted from Yorkie Rescue. Her name is Peaches and she was kept in a crate as a breeding dog. Her forever Mom sent her to me to help socialize and that was her very first Tuesday with other dogs.

[fizzgig]

112. call center supervisor

in other words, i'm an underpaid and overglorified babysitter

[bakpakr]

113. CNA

Certified Nursing Assistant

I work in a Nursing Home. Union gig which means better than average benni's and pay.

[SmileyRose]

192. may god bless you

I think you have one of the hardest jobs. Thank you for being willing to do that work.

[Apophis]

114. I'm a graduate student majoring in CRM archaeology.

I specialize in the paleoindians of the High Plains and paleoenvironmental reconstruction.

[PotatoChip]

381. That sounds fascinating.

I would have loved to have gone into a field like that- with perhaps more of an emphasis on the sociological aspects. But I assume you probably get into some of that too.

I'm a little too old to start over, but maybe someday I'll take some courses just for fun.

[Apophis]

386. It is fascinating.

It's surreal to hold a stone tool that was made 11, 000 to 12, 000 years ago made by someone who needed a tool to hunt or to tan hide.

Archaeology is awesome, but it doesn't pay well and it's hard to find a job in it.

Edit: Archaeology isn't something that can be experienced in a classroom. It's something that you have to go out and do. The United States Forest Service has a volunteer program where interested members of the public can sign up to help with archaeological digs at USFS sites. The program is called Passport In Time (PIT). PIT volunteers are treated like archaeologists and can conduct excavations, help with surveys, and can help with public outreach. It's an awesome program that you should check out sometime if you're interested.

[meaculpa2011]

115. Freelance speechwriter since 1982.

I love my work and get to travel. A great life.

[Hissyspit]

117. Teach college - adjunct. nt

[Hulk Smash]

118. attorney

[oneshooter]

120. Started with the USMC 1970-78

Then picked up work overseas as a security specialist for 30 or so years, ended up as a Game warden on anti poaching patrol in Kenya. That ended when the government decided that white game wardens shooting black poachers was not PC.
Now I have a small company that maintains homes and commercial property, small rancher and firearms safety instructor. Run a small hunting concession for the handicapped hunter, mainly deer and hogs.

Life has been good for me, with a few,somewhat painfull, exceptions.

[Victor_c3]

225. The game warden in Kenya part sounds very interesting n/t

[oneshooter]

246. Only lasted six months.

A lot of tracking, running, and trying to keep the trackers paid. My trackers were Zulu and Masai and I believe they could follow a week old spoor over solid rock!
Before I left I found them work with a friend who has a hunting concession in Botswana. That was 10 or so years ago.

[49jim]

121. Semi-Retired Educator

I am 63 years old. Retired full time in 2002 after 31 years in education. Nine as an elementary classroom teacher (grades 1,3 and 5) and 22 years as an elementary principal. For the last 10 years I've been teaching ( fall semester only for the last 4 years) at the local community college (Pre-School Education). My students graduate to become pre-school teachers or assistants. Side note: My students do a practicum in Head Start program 2 days a week and are on campus 3 days a week.....I can tell you from first hand experience being in those classrooms those children benefit academically. If they didn't they'd be behind in school when they begin kindergarten.
My wife is a retired school teacher and administrator (4 years ago) after 36 years.She supervises student teachers at local State University in the fall also.
We live in upstate NY where we get a lot of snow....150 inches + a year.
Probably shouldn't say this....we both have solid pensions, health care covered in my school contract and are collecting social security. All things we earned from 30+ years in education. We spend 4 months a year Jan-March in Florida.....working in the fall helps that. We are enjoying ourselves...have good health and to wonderful sons (both married w/ good jobs and 2 granddaughters (4.5 years old and 8 months old. As my wife continues to tell me...we are very fortunate......As you can see I don't post much....been around since 2001. I enjoy following DU...I'm just an 'ole lefty.......thanks for letting me share.....

[RBInMaine]

122. History Teacher (former military and former cop)

[EvolveOrConvolve]

124. Software Engineer for a major semi-conductor company

Soulless and life sucking...

[Separation]

125. Flight mechanic USCG

I've flown in the military for 18 years. First 5 years I flew in CH-53e's in the Marine Corps, the past 13 I've flown in H-60's in the Coast Guard. Ill rephrase that, I don't do the actual flying, I'm aircrew. But the last year and a half I haven't done any flying. Due to wear an tear from a crash and wear and tear my back is shot. I have 3 fused vertebrae and compression fractures in 6. I'm currently waiting a medical retirement/discharge. We will se how that goes.

[Adsos Letter]

126. Retired since 2007; 31 years as a Painter, 3 years working with concrete before that...

...and 3 years as a soldier before that. I earned BA and MA in History from Sonoma State University, but never worked in the field.

Been remodeling our house and landscape for the last year, with at least one more year to go (probably longer). Fortunately for me my wife is a patient woman...

[winetourdriver]

131. do for a living?

I'm in my sixties and I drive tourists around wine country, great gig but kind of hard on my as*

[Adsos Letter]

139. Napa Valley?

I grew up there, and spent my whole career as a painter there. Spent many a day on Silverado Trail or Hiway 29. Traffic could be a bear during the crush. Beautiful country though...

[WCGreen]

132. Do a Little Dance...

Make a Little Love and...

Make sure I get down tonight...

[jeff47]

134. Software developer turned manager (nt)

[shanti]

140. retired for 2 years now n/t

[llmart]

141. Librarian

I'm 63 and have reinvented myself several times.

[Le Taz Hot]

143. Currently trying to be a

Last edited Mon Feb 25, 2013, 09:05 AM - Edit history (1)

micro-macrame artist. We'll see how it works out . . .

[Wellstone ruled]

145. Flunked Retirement 3 times

in the last 11 years. Actual retired after 54 years at the age of 63 due to a work related injury,could not do it any more to much pain and wasn't going to get strung out on pain killers. After a year and a half and suing my Employer,got the new replacement joint,and getting the Honey-Do list done,restless took over and away I go again. Still have my original Social Security Card I received in March of 1950 at the age of nine. Scary isn't it. Spent most of my career Sales,inside and outside,and Distribution. My spouse and I just plain got lucky as to our finances. With our Ira's and my Teamster Pension,hey,that and Social Security,were O.K.. What really bothers is our kids. They have nothing,suspect there are many out there seeing this same thing,they make the bills but that's about it. Work SMART time for one of those big box home centers. Just enough hours to give my spouse a mental health break,and she really needs it from me.

[abelenkpe]

146. Animator

43
Company I worked for until just a week ago just went bankrupt after working on two Oscar nominated films.
Good times!

[glinda]

194. gosh.....

[Kablooie]

355. R&H I'll bet.

Damn!
That shouldn't have happened.
The industry is falling apart and moving overseas.

[abelenkpe]

361. Yeah.

What is so heartbreaking is knowing that I'll most likely never work for a company with owners like John and Keith and Pauline again. They truly ran the most artist friendly studio.

[Kablooie]

392. I never worked there but I knew John and have met Keith and Pauline.

It seemed like a fun place to work.
I'm good friends with Bill Kroyer and used to visit occasionally when he was there.

[abelenkpe]

398. Really?

He was director on my first show there. Kroyer is a legend. I loved Technological Threat

[mokawanis]

148. I work at a psychiatric hospital

on a forensic treatment unit for men found not guilty of felony crimes, due to mental illness.

[a la izquierda]

149. I'm a professor.

[Kennah]

186. Say hi to Mary Ann. I always found her hotter than Ginger.

[a la izquierda]

291. Hmmm...

I always like Mary Ann because she seemed smarter.

[phylny]

150. Speech-language pathologist, working in pediatrics :) n/t

[williesgirl]

151. Retired, but taking care of my disabled, bedridden daughter 24/7

[Victor_c3]

228. I could only imagine how hard that must be

but you do whatever you have to do for your kids.

[Shrike47]

152. Attorney retired last year.

Last 15 years representing Children's Services in Juvenile Court.

[MadHound]

153. Why must a person be defined by their job?

Most people do much more important things in their life besides their work. They live, they love, they have friends, they have fun. They make a difference in other peoples' lives, they nurture and care. Defining people by their job is rather confining.

[jeff47]

168. Because it's about 1/3rd of our lives

Typical day for a "working stiff" with a full time job: 1/3rd at work, 1/3rd not at work, 1/3rd asleep.

Defining yourself with sleep is a tad boring.

So you are stuck with the job, or the thousand other things we try to get done in that 1/3rd not at work. Since "not-work" is so divided up, you're left with job.

[TomClash]

321. So very true

No one should be defined this way. It is a detriment to the individual and the community.

I wonder who benefits?

[Lisa0825]

154. HR recruiter. nt

[TomClash]

155. You don't want to know

Really. It's better that you don't. Really.

[Heddi]

156. I'm a Registered Nurse in the Emergency Department

never imagined myself doing it before I did, can't imagine myself doing anything else in the world now that I do

[lonestarnot]

419. Thank you!

[WilliamPitt]

158. Writer, editor of online news organization

[femmocrat]

159. Teacher.

I'm trying to hang on for one more year so I can retire with paid health care, but I'm terrified of retirement. I teach art, grades 1-5. (No, it isn't "fun"; it is hard work.)

Great topic!

[MissB]

160. Environmental engineer

Water, specifically.

Early 40s. This is the only "real" job I've had since getting my degree. I had an internship until just after I graduated, but this employer and I are hanging in here for the long haul.

[neverforget]

161. I'm 41

was employed for 13 years as a GIS Technician (loved it! best. job. ever.) but was laid off Jan 31. Luckily I found a job right away as a utility locator. I don't know if I like this job yet. I took a 35% pay cut and the benefits are terrible.

[daleo]

162. Statistician

Or data analyst, sometimes the term data scientist is used these days. Work for a university.

[NBachers]

164. Retail plumbing sales for a family-owned San Francisco lumber / hardware store

Every day's more like teaching school than selling product, but I get to participate in a lot of happy outcomes. I shake hands with people from every corner of the planet.

Doing business together is the best common denominator there is.

[Adsos Letter]

166. You're touching on one of the things I liked about being a painter

Did it for 31 years. During the last 12 years I was a field supervisor on some gargantuan private estates and wineries up in Napa Valley. Worked with designers...decorators...General Contractors...material suppliers...other sub-contractors...customers...from all over the country. I really enjoyed being in the middle of the process.

Well...most of the time, that is...

[On the Road]

165. Work for Verizon in the Finance Organization

mostly developing numbers for different internal clients. Long time ago, worked for an executive search firm. Early on, I had a lot of blue-collar jobs such as taxi driving, short-order cooking, construction, and waiting on tables. I also own six rental houses in Baltimore.

[roody]

169. Union shop public school teacher. CTA

[kwassa]

173. I procrastinate.

Not much of a living, though.

[DrewFlorida]

174. I manage a picture framing shop (small business) which caters to the 1%!

[MannyGoldstein]

175. Writer, and

paid shill for Karl Rove, as I read on DU so often.

And some other stuff.

[jschurchin]

176. I work for a class 1 railroad.

And I love my job. I'm 51 and have been there for 9 years. Prior to that I had a good number of jobs, the majority of them in construction.

[DuckBurp]

177. IRS 37 years

[Rosa Luxemburg]

178. Teacher

time to retire soon

[Snarkoleptic]

179. Street-level rock dealer.

I worked in financial services from the 1980's-2010 and held positions ranging from Managing Director to Operations Manager of 50+ professionals.
The last few years I was self employed until the bottom fell-out and now I sell wholesale granite, quartz and other stone surfacing.

[NYFlip]

180. Ice skating coach

[brooklynite]

182. Associate Director in a State Government office.

[jdadd]

183. Retired in 2007

Industrial Electrician/Maintenance and assorted manufacturing labor positions...Longest (22 years) was with Westinghouse Electric, Major appliance division, untill they closed in 1990.

[leveymg]

184. In no particular order, I've worked on the Floor of the NYSE, interned in a Congressman's office,

Last edited Mon Feb 25, 2013, 02:05 AM - Edit history (1)

work as a contract researcher for several law firms, have consulted for the World Bank and USAID in South America and the Caribbean, was an Op-ed columnist for The Boston Globe, am co-author of five administrative law and compliance books, and ran a small advertising agency.

I also had brief acquaintances with the New York Mafia (turned down their generous offer), the FBI (similarly declined), and was approached for recruitment by the CIA while in college (declined).

I also spend far too much time on DU.

[GiveMeFreedom]

322. Well Sir,

I am glad you are on our side. I hope?

Sounds like a personally rewarding career.

Most of us hate getting up and going to work day or night, maybe your job was different?

[leveymg]

358. I try to be a good democrat.

The rewards have been more personal than financial. I was never into it for money, as a result I never really made much.

I'm afraid I am not very obedient and thus not well suited to large bureaucratic organizations. This presents some difficulties for someone who has tried to study a wide variety of them, the people who run them, and how they make decisions, from inside.

What I did come away with from my many jobs is some sort of informed understanding of how the world works, and an understanding that those who make decisions are no better or worse than those who have to carry them out or suffer the consequences. I think it's the inequities of power, reinforced by compartmentalization of information, and seeming lack of choices for most within organizations that make life difficult, not primarily the inequities of material rewards.

That's why, for me, empowerment comes through the patient sifting through information, making sense of things, and a generous sharing out of knowledge. Democracy requires that people have a better understanding and can make better choices. Changing the balance of power, not the personalities of those at the top, seems most important to making a more just world.

f I had to sum up what my job is, it's breaking down the compartments of information that divide and weaken the bargaining position of the majority. I think DU is a good place to carry out and share that work among friends.

[Starry Messenger]

187. Adjunct Ceramics Instructor on a high school campus.

I love my job, but I don't recommend this route in life.

My dream was always to have my own studio space and be able to do art. Now I'm just lucky I can feed myself and help take care of my mom.

I was out of work for two years 04-06 and it was dysphoria-inducing. And before anyone yells at me for choosing art to pursue in college, when I started college, there used to be more robust government grants for artists and public art. That all dried up when I was already well in.

[2Design]

188. adjunct and blogger

part time pay - looking to increase this a bunch with more work

[Freddie]

189. Payroll administrator

& asst to the business manager at a regional technical high school. Hope to hang in there 10 years til I can retire. Used to be payroll manager at a hospital and I must have talked "shop" at home too much as my daughter is a nurse.

[Iggo]

190. Cube rat at an HVAC company.

Working in the office sure beats working in the warehouse or, gawd forbid, the field. Sitting at the same desk year after year after year after year after year kinda sucks out your soul a little, though.

[Still Blue in PDX]

378. My desk has moved around the building a little, but yeah.

I don't work in a cube because I train people. Or at least I did before the hiring freeze and the reductions in force started.

Been here 40 years in May.

[Jamaal510]

191. 22 years old Berkeley City College student here.

I plan on transferring to Humboldt State University this Fall and majoring in Political Science. My only source of income is monthly SSI checks I receive due to my learning disability. I have been out of work since 2009, when I worked for my school's recycling program. I stopped working because it had a negative impact on my grades.

[catchnrelease]

193. Retired in 2010

After 30yrs as a Zoo Animal Keeper. The job was mostly rewarding, sometimes heartbreaking, dirty manual labor that took a physical toll, and an amazing learning experience. I met many dedicated people in the field and a few that should never be allowed near a living creature of any species! Sometimes I miss it, but I couldn't do the physical part anymore. Now I maintain my yard with native plants as habitat and make 'art' dolls and spend too much time here!!

[nolabear]

257. I used to do similar work, with similar reactions.

I ran a wildlife rehab program that included a sanctuary for the critters we couldn't release. Loved the work, did things I never dreamed I'd do and met both the best and worst. That was where I learned I could muscle around both animals and humans that were far bigger than I, purely by voice and certainty.

[catchnrelease]

295. Yes, essentially the same

During my 30yrs, I did a 5 year stint working as a vet tech at what we called the Health Center, our hospital. That was probably where I saw the real highs and lows. The joy at being able to get an animal to eat that had not been responding to food, to having to give up after months of trying to save an animal. I'm sure you've had experiences similar to those in doing rehab. The emotional toll can be as bad as the physical. But, I know we both did a lot of good!

[nolabear]

312. Indeed. I once spent two weeks making turkey broth for a mountain lion.

Toxoplasmosis. She nearly died but would let me coax her with broth and yogurt and damned if she didn't pull through. And did she love me? Hell no; she fixated on my boyfriend and adored him. I won though. He and I have been married for thirty years.

[glinda]

195. small projects from home.....

arts and crafts related. Mostly take care of my husband though.

[Tikki]

196. We are retired now...

I worked in Public Education support staff and then as a teacher.

The hubby was in composite tooling.


The Tikkis

[LibAsHell]

197. I.T.

Systems admin.

[Demo_Chris]

199. Small (and broke) business owner

[DreamGypsy]

200. I'm a blueberry grower.

I was a graduate student in Mathematics. In 1981 I left the PhD program to join a computer startup as an early employee (#4). In 1991, my wife, who/is was a biotech entrepreneur, and I decided we wanted to leave Silicon Valley. I asked if I could telecommute. So, we moved to Oregon and, while we both kept our day jobs, planted and worked 15 acres of blueberries. I was initially telecommuting via a 19.2 KB modem - no internet back then. We both traveled a lot. It was crazy.

In 2002, my company was acquired by, uh, HAL. My wife was on her 8th or 9th startup.

In 2007, we planted ~15 more acres. In 2009, I kissed my corporate employer goodbye and became a full-time blueberry grower. My wife is still working as CEO of a company developing malaria drugs.

We produce ~300,000 lbs of blueberries annually. Fresh blueberries off the bush every morning in season; blueberry pancakes every Sunday year round. Blueberry beer on festive occasions.

A long, strange trip.

?gl=US

(on edit: added a recent winter photo of the blueberry fields)

[BainsBane]

220. sounds awesome

I LOVE blueberries.

[global1]

201. Breathe.....nt

[7wo7rees]

202. B2B online advertising

My SO does phone surveys. We met in a phone sales gig 14 years ago.

It's all I know. I speak better than I write.

On course to do $50K this year.

[Blue_In_AK]

203. I am retired now.

I was a legal secretary/paralegal from 1975 through 2000. The firm I was working for downsized and I didn't want to continue working with the people who were staying on, so I left then and became self-employed full-time as a court transcriptionist which I had been doing on the side since about 1995 or so. I decided to take early social security four years ago. I have a business license for my photography and I sell a photo now and then.

I remarried in 2003. My husband has a pension from the Marine Engineers Benefit Association (MEBA) (he was at sea for 25 years) which helps immensely. Things would be pretty tight for me with just my social security, but with his pension and his social security, we're doing all right.

[libodem]

204. I was a nurse

I taught at a community college, the last year I worked, teaching, CNA's, theory and skills. I'd hurt my back at my previous job, being a charge nurse in a state veterans' home, and had a failed back surgery.
Before that I worked at an adolescent treatment facility that recently opened a wing for adult mental health and substance abuse treatment. The place was undergoing transitions and I didn't stay long. I worked at a treatment center prior to that.
I did a short stint with hospital nursing on a med-surgery unit.
I spent several years as a therapy technician at our State School and Hospital, doing hands on care, and training, of the DD population. I was a leadworker.
My first real job was at the State Hospital as a therapy tech. I loved my job there and I learned a lot about people and families. I should have become a social worker rather than a nurse.
My high school jobs were baby sitting, car hopping, and tutor.

I'm on disability now. For which I am eternally grateful.

[Raine]

206. I invested in real estate. nt

[Zoeisright]

207. Writer for two web sites;

and cookbook author.

[Mickju]

208. Violinist

I played in symphony orchestras and string quartets for many years until I retired from my last symphony job in 2009, but at the age of almost 69 I play "gigs" and teach private lessons. I'm waiting until I'm 70 to collect Social Security.

[kentauros]

268. Did you ever get to play with Peter Schickele?

(aka, P.D.Q. Bach)

The only people I know that play strings are one that repairs such instruments, and a friend that was classically trained and is now the fiddle player in a Irish/folk band. He also writes most of their songs.

[Mickju]

348. No, I never did

but I'm sure that would have been fun. I've played with Ray Charles, Natalie Cole, Dionne Warwick, Burt Bacharach, Elvis Costello, Diana Krall, Doc Severinsen, Andy Williams and so many others I can't begin to remember them all. Of course being a symphony orchestra musician I have also played with many of the great classical musicians such as YoYo Ma.

[Claybrains]

346. Wow! I love the violin.

A few years ago, I had tickets for my mother and myself to see Andrea Rieu, but the car I was driving died before I ever hit the interstate. The transmission disintegrated. All dressed up with no place to go.

[cbrer]

209. Piss off the Taliban nt

[Demonaut]

210. I sell BMW's

[ErikJ]

214. Fightin the man (Walmart) since 1990.

[Cali_Democrat]

215. Data Analyst

Mostly for real estate and capital markets.

[Samurai_Writer]

216. Registered Nurse

I work at the state psychiatric hospital, taking care of their total care, geriatric population. So basically, I am taking care of people who are severely physically and mentally ill, along with having committed violent crimes sometime in the past.

I love my job... it is a challenge every day, and I feel like I am helping people that most in society would deem 'not worthy' of care.

Before my new profession as an RN (took my boards 1 year ag), I was a technical writer for 20 years. Before that, I was a chef for 10 years. Being a nurse is definitely the most rewarding job I've ever had.

[libodem]

277. Back in the 70's

When I worked at our state hospital, the geriatric building was always very mysterious to me. We hardly ever saw those residents out of the big old two story stone building. Our buildings, were old and creepy in many ways. There were tunnels under it all because the snow would be too deep to escort our people down the sidewalks outside to the dining building. I loved those days.

[Samurai_Writer]

414. You could be describing my hospital

We still have the old tunnels under the hospital grounds, but they are not used by patients anymore.

Our hospital was opened in 1879. Most of the buildings we now use were built back in the 30s-50s, except for the next high security facility.

It's definitely a very interesting place to work!

[libodem]

415. 'Y' building still had side rooms

With metal rings in the walls for restraints. All those old buildings looked similar to one flew over the cuckoo's nest.

[No Vested Interest]

218. Retired Public Librarian

After college, I worked in market research for 2 yrs, traveling the U.S. interviewing housewives, mainly, about consumer products. Then worked in brand management for same company for 2 yrs.
Marriage, and raising 4 children and managing the household.
Part-time job delivering greeting cards to store clients.
Back to college for Master's in Library Science while working part-time in Historical Society.
Hired full-time for County library system as assistant manager/librarian, then branch manager at several successfully larger branches, until early retirement at 60. Hubby was already retired and though we traveled and were busy and had good times, he became ill off and on, eventually full-time. Hubby now deceased, so I follow DU and try to keep in contact with family near & far.

[Violet_Crumble]

219. I work for a government agency doing their website...

I'm paid really well, have flexible hours, a job until I decide to retire, and at the end of it a pension for life. I'm happy

[Victor_c3]

222. Chemist for the federal government

More specifically, I work for the department of treasury and test the purity of our nation's gold, silver, platinum, and other precious metals.

I find the conspiracy theories about the government not actually owning any gold hilarious. I can't go into detail, but I've seen huge piles of gold bars and I can assure you that it is real. Well, actually, that is my job to assure you that it is real...

Before that I worked for Amazon.com as a production manager in one of their shipping facilities. That job sucked the life out of me, but it really opened my eyes to what the working class is all about. I had a lot of leftover mental issues from my career before that and the stress of my job at Amazon did a number on me and further exacerbated them. I'm surprised I made it there as long as I did, but I worked there for 1 year, 10 months, and 2 days.

Before that, I did some time in the Army. I planned on making it a career, but life had other plans for me. I was an Infantry Officer for 5.5 years and I got out in 2007. I loved the Army and the people I served with. I didn't like the war so much, but that is what the Army is all about. It is kind of weird. Although I abhor the war and I hated my time in Iraq, if I could I'd drop everything and go back and do a patrol in Iraq, I'd do it in a heartbeat. As miserable and as awful as it was, I miss the feeling of the pistol grip of my rifle in my hand, the sense of danger of not knowing what is going to happen next, and the pure adrenaline of being shot at. The brutality and harshness of life as an Infantryman is something that I find very luring.

I just feel so out of place and a like I'm a complete fake driving my kids around and going to work like a schmuck. I have a great job, I make decent money, I love my kids, and I'm really starting to get financially comfortable, but the life I have now just doesn't feel right to me. Being in Iraq and being an Infantryman did. I just feel empty and shallow now and I look at myself and I see that I'm just a shadow of what I used to be - and I'm only 33 years old.

So it goes.

[Player_One]

223. Still in here...

... and I know what you are talking about.

I really don't know what I would be doing if it wasn't the Army. Probably a cop (maybe Federal) somewhere I suppose...

You aren't a fake. You completed honorable service which is more than the vast majority can say.

[Victor_c3]

224. Thanks

All I can say is that getting back to civilian life is a bitch. Yup, certain aspects of the Army suck, but I really miss is deeply. Getting out of the Army and trying to fit in to the standard civilian life is very hard to do.

I always kind of wished that I would have pursued a job as some sort of a park ranger. I really wanted to be a New York State Park Patrol Officer but, by the time I figured that out, I already had a kid and a house and I needed to make more money than the starting salary of a NYSPPO.

Thanks again for your words.

[Player_One]

233. No problem...

Make sure you like what you do.

Nothing worse than looking back on time wasted on something you don't have a passion for.

Good luck. Heading back overseas myself soon.

[Victor_c3]

234. I'm already making plans for my future

My kids are 2 and 4 years old. When they grow up, I don't know if my wife is going to stick around, but I'll be 50ish by then. 50 isn't that old. I've been thinking that I'd like to drop out of the world and go to some dirt-poor developing country and spend the rest of my years trying to make a difference. I'm not exactly a people person, but I have a big heart and I'd love to help bring potable water to some impoverished community or build a shelter for battered girls, or something raw and purely selfless like that.

I get a decent disability payment from the VA for a nifty 70% disability rating they gave me for PTSD that is worth about $1,500 a month. That money would certainly go pretty far in a piss-poor developing country and I could make a huge difference in the lives of people most Americans forget about.

But that is just a dream at the moment. I've got nearly 20 years to figure the next part of my life out.

[darkangel218]

251. Dept of Tressury?

money? Me want some!!

[Victor_c3]

263. yup yup

It is a great job.

More specifically, I work for the US Mint (which falls under the department of treasury).

After a while you get kind of numb to all of the precious metal floating around.

If I was a coin collector, this job would be a dream job. Actually, I'm not a coin collector and this job is a dream job. I get to see some unique stuff and I have a pretty decent insight into some of the issues that various coins and programs have. Several of my coworkers and bosses are featured every once in a while in various coin collecting magazines.

[Art_from_Ark]

311. I don't think that too many people really believe that the US doesn't own gold

After all, US mints produce a couple million ounces of gold bullion and commemorative coins every year. The bulk of the raw gold is stored at the West Point Mint, which used to be called the West Point Bullion Depository. So I doubt that there is really anyone who is questioning that there are huge piles of gold bars there.

The "conspiracy theories" concern the Ft. Knox Bullion Depository, which supposedly hasn't been subjected to a full audit/assay since the Eisenhower era.

[brucefan]

226. Truck driver

[Democracyinkind]

227. Post Phd Research / part time consulting

29, 2 Master degrees, previously emplyoed in business.

Quite pale, compared to what others posted. Still right for me.

[quaker bill]

229. Wetlands Ecologist

working as an environmental law enforcement professional.

[Silver Gaia]

230. College Adjunct - Humanities n/t

[Live and Learn]

231. IT - Local Government

I'm the person that watches our local money being spent on contracts with private consulting firms (who sub-contract to H1B Visa folks) to do things that we can already do (better, much better - and are later required to fix) but can't do a thing about it.

[GreenPartyVoter]

232. Am a 41 yo Mom and also a youth cheerleading coach. (Neither one pays much

monetarily-speaking, but I am very rich for being able to spend time with all my kids. And cats!)

Funny, when I started here at DU I was a young mom, and now I am middle-aged! LOL

[Tikki]

349. No lie GPV..my grandson is almost a teen...and he was still in diapers when..

I first posted about him here.

Your boys have to be in HS by now, or almost.?!!!

Tikki

[GreenPartyVoter]

411. 7th and 9th grade! How did it happen so fast?!

[Bonobo]

235. Japanese translator and V.O. director of video games. nt

[NNN0LHI]

236. Circumcise elephants

Great tips

[GiveMeFreedom]

324. Oh Jeez! lol. n/t

[Johnny Noshoes]

237. Unemployed 18 months this week.

I worked as a researcher and a video editor for a media monitoring company. Well two actually one was acquired by the other in 1996. When the company went bankrupt and shut down the end of August 2011 it was one week short of my working the job for 32 years. I'm 59. I've had three interviews in the past 18 months. I might get one this week with a company that is similiar to the one I worked for all those years. I just keep plugging away - I've got money not a lot but some. I do see that there are a lot more jobs on the jobsites now than when this started for me. I actually sent my resume to 30 places the first week of the year. Well I gotta just keep on walking and hopefully its out there somewhere.

[hobbit709]

238. Semi-retired.

Living on SS and what little money I make repairing computers out of my garage.

[ananda]

239. Retired public school teacher.

I do some subbing, but after this year I will be completely retired.

[mindem]

240. Music teacher and performer.

I also have a recording studio - project studio. I also deal in antiques used to restore competition grade chuck wagons.

[hack89]

241. System engineer and program manager. nt

[greymattermom]

243. Tenured full professor

at a state university medical school. In an extremely red state. The sequester will hit medical schools hard because we depend on NIH grants to fund faculty salaries and staff.

[LWolf]

245. I'm a teacher. nt

[randr]

248. I am a designer/builder

I have had projects from the smallest home repair work to very large ($$$$) custom homes over the last 40 years. When the economy tanked I found myself and a few of my workers left with nothing to do but to work in the shop all winter building furniture that over the next year or more finally sold. Lately things are picking back up but mostly smaller jobs.

[Kookaburra]

249. I take care of my disabled relatives

Although I am not paid for it.

Up until 3 years ago, I worked for a company that I helped start up from just an idea in some brilliant minds. After the heart and conscience of the company suddenly died of a heart attack, they sold out to a larger conglomerate, who basically broke them and then threw them out to fend for themselves. A few years later, I fell prey to company wide lay offs. They got rid of all the original people, and brought in refugees from BofA and Wachovia lay offs to take our places -- sigh.

I looked for a job for a while, but nobody seemed interested in hiring -- the market was glutted was people looking, and I'm not exactly right out of college anymore (closer to 50 than I like to believe or admit), and of the thousands of resumes I sent out I received exactly 4 interviews.

Finally, after giving up on finding anything remotely resembling what I used to do, I took a bartending class and was offered a job tending bar at a local restaurant. Woohoo! A job!!! But the Universe has a very dark sense of irony -- on that very day, my brother fell very ill and almost died, and he and my mother had to come live with me. They both have some serious health issues and need my attention so working full time -- or even part time -- outside the home is impossible.

I'm sorry, what was the question again?

[OkieGranny]

250. Raising my 8-year-old granddaughter

In my other life, I was a bookkeeper. Hubby's income allows me to be a full-time "mom" to the kiddo.

[goclark]

252. Retired School Principal

Loved it but I am Happily Retired."

[Proud Public Servant]

254. Foreign Service Officer

with the U.S. State Department. Posted domestically at the moment, but headed back overseas in the next 2-3 years.

[llamalady]

255. Ranch Manager

Retired from the local VA and now a full time manager of our family llama ranch of 40+ four-legged, woolly kids. Also produce hand spun llama yarn and weaving. Hubby is a disabled vet and still works at the VA.

[Safetykitten]

256. I work in the design field, no job since 2007, currently working for HC for barely any money.

[Awknid]

376. What type of design?

I'm a commercial interior designer. It's been slow since 2007.

[nolabear]

258. I'm a psychotherapist, novelist and poet.

So basically I work with words and what it means to be a human being. I feel fortunate in being able to do that.

[steve2470]

389. psychotherapist also

Retired now, raising my son.

[nolabear]

391. Hey back. Good for you and your son!

[Ikonoklast]

259. Professional Kitty Entertainer.

The pay isn't much, but the benefits are awesome.

[LiberalEsto]

260. Unemployed former journalist and marketing writer

Out of work more than 4 years. Almost 61, one more year until early Social Security (if the 'pukes don't kill it).

Surviving because my husband has a job, but his company could lose its federal contract at the end of this month.

[kdmorris]

261. Technical Analyst for a Risk Management/Brokerage Company

It's like a Business Analyst, but more technical, as I was a Software Engineer for 12 years before this job.

[kentauros]

264. Pipeline Mapper

As in, drafting (AutoCAD) and cartography (GIS)

Mostly pipelines for natural gas, though some for oil, fuel, brine, and inert gases. Did a little bit of fiber-optic mapping in the late 90s.

The oddest drafting job I ever did was some freelance work for a physicist at NASA-JSC. He had a his own company on the side that manufactured clothing washing machines for nuclear industry workers. I did a lot of exploded-view mechanical drawings for him.

[OnionPatch]

320. I'm in mapping, too.

I've done some utilities mapping, my first job was drafting telephone equipment maps. That was by hand....I'm showing my age. I do all GIS stuff now, of course, usually working with county/city data these days. My favorite jobs have been mapping wetlands and vegetation.

[kentauros]

330. Hi fellow mapper!

Do you do any 3D surfaces, like in AutoCAD Civil 3D? I did that for a while at one job, but the current place doesn't do that kind of thing.

We're probably around the same age, as I got my degree in hand-drafting in 1984 (right as the bottom fell out of the oil market!) I was lucky in that my parents were paying for my college, plus I lived at home, so no dorm life to weather. Thus, I got a degree in Graphic Design and even worked as a graphic artist for a year or so. I still did hand-drafting on the side, some Shuttle drawings (waste disposal system, i.e., the space-toilet), and the aforementioned nuclear washing machines. I didn't get into mapping until 1997.

Have you noticed that there are quite a few women in GIS and drafting these days? While I am a guy, I'm always glad to see more women in the field. GIS seems to attract them more than drafting, though.

[OnionPatch]

338. Actually, I studied art.

I still do art but it doesn't quite pay the bills. The drafting I learned in the art program helped me get my first mapping job back in '86. I liked it, so I switched to geography.

It sounds like you've done a lot more interesting drafting than I have, for sure! I've worked with 3D data just a few times but have never used AutoCAD. I mostly use ArcGIS for everything.

[kentauros]

341. I would have studied photography, but was "talked out of it" as a career.

I'd taken a drafting class in high school and aced it, so I went into it, eventually. Instead I learned that I didn't have the mind for calculus (computer graphics programming degree plan) or chemistry (geology degree plan.) I've since learned more about organic chemistry than I ever learned in inorganic, thanks to a book on food science I read (Harold McGee's "On Food and Science".) Not that it's anything I can use now, other than to marvel at organic bonds and molecules...

What kind of art did you study? I found I liked watercolors the best, and I wouldn't mind learning pottery one day, once I learn welding, smithing, wood working, computer building, and more about Corel Painter

Set up a website for your art, and promote it on DU's marketplace section

[OnionPatch]

362. They tried to talk me out of art, too.

But I ended up talking myself out of it. It seemed the only way to make money in art was doing advertising so I studied what they termed "commercial art". I finally realized that drawing exactly what someone else wanted you to didn't appeal to me. I can't really meter out and dispense creativity. Hence, the switch to geography and mapping. I can do that without inspiration. These days I'm busy being a mom and working full time. There's not much time left for art but when there is, I like watercolors best, too! Maybe someday I will market some of my art. Do you market your art here at DU? I'd love to see some.

[kentauros]

370. Advertising art didn't appeal to me, either, and for the same reasons.

However, working as a graphic artist directly for a company was good work and allowed me to be freely creative. It was a small gaming software company, so I got to do full packages (box, logo, manuals.) If I had the skills in Illustrator today, I could probably go back into that if I wanted.

My freehand art skills aren't that great, so while I like watercolors, I wouldn't show any of my work in that. Writing and baking seem to be where most of my creativity shows through. The writing has been de-emphasized for a while, yet it's what I'd like to do full time

[ellie]

265. Magazine editor

[redstatebluegirl]

266. I spent 30 years in Higher Education in Student Services

Quit in 2012 and now work as a grant researcher/writer on a freelance basis. Lucky to have had a good career at 4 different universities over the years. Counseling students was a joy. Their parents not as much .

[Marrah_G]

270. office admin for a small life ins brokerage

[JustAnotherGen]

271. Jumped to Finance April 2011

After 16 years of progressive advancement in Marketing, Product Launch, Go To Market, Marketing Processes in the Telecom Industry. I had a good ride - can tell you about Private Lines and CoLos prior to the bubble bursting, ATM meaning something other than a machine that spits out money , the move from copper to fiber, fiber to wireless, data to wireless and who knows where else. Launched 57 phones in 23 months when I first came to my current employer back in 2006.

Now I work in the finance side of the house doing Import/Export, Security, Homeland Security, Fraud Business Controls, etc. etc. My last position - same company - in Marketing I was part of the "Outside the US" relaunch managing customer experience. I'm very well traveled, spent my formative years abroad in West Germany, etc. etc. and I just 'get' this stuff. Oh - and turns out I'm the only non-attorney at our HQ that has a degree in Political Science along with my Mass Comm (focused on Advertising and PR) degree.

My two degrees in the art of utter Bull Shit really come in handy when someone steals our phones by stealing a fed gov account (that brings that agency), ships them across state lines (FBI), then tries to ship them to Russia/Nigeria/Belize, Mexico, etc. etc. (brings in Customs, Homeland Security, in some cases CIA). It's a hoot I tell ya! A hoot! But I can lay on the b.s. like nobody's business!

If you had told me five years ago today that I would LOVE working for 'the man' in a capacity that I truly believe I can come in every single day and protect our REAL customers in this way? I would have told you that you are full of bologna.

And yes - it's very hard sometimes working for the 'Evil Empire' in an industry that DU just seems to hate to it's core - but I'm one tough chick. I can take it. Because it's how I make my money. That money I donate generously to liberal candidates around the country and liberal causes. So take the 'bitter' with the sweet folks.


P.S. I really really love my job!

[FedUpWithIt All]

272. I have been home, raising my kids, for 20 years

There have been a few short bursts of employment throughout those years but the "living" i most identify with and take pride in is parenting.

My husband is an Auto Mechanic.

We also work at small farming for the purpose of self sufficiency.

[Spike89]

274. Book acquisitions editor

I've mostly been a magazine writer and editor, but moved into books (nonfiction) about 5 years ago.

[msanthrope]

275. Criminal Defense Attorney. nt

[shcrane71]

336. Public defender?

[msanthrope]

340. Not currently. nt

[Rider3]

278. Legal Secretary

[Go Vols]

279. Union Ironworker for 20+ years,

retired and now have a farm.

[lonestarnot]

420. That pic gives me the willies.

[Amaril]

285. 50 (in 14 days) / Claims Analyst.....

....for a large multi-national / multi-billion dollar insurance carrier, specializing in Commercial (business owner, liability, property & auto) policies.

Been in this field for...........sheesh...........27 years. I won't say I love my job (it's too frustrating & stressful at times for that), but I do enjoy it and I'm good at it

[4Q2u2]

286. Big Boy Toys

Heavy Equipment Operator. I am the guy that all your kids look up to literally and figuratively. Let me tell you, I still have that little kid look on my face when I run the machines. Love the job, Bosses not so much.

[PRETZEL]

287. Fiscal Administrator

for an agency that deals with the seniors.

[sibelian]

289. Started life as a night-shift receptionist in a Casualty Dept.

Now just generic NHS admin in the UK.

[AsahinaKimi]

292. I work for a Japanese company

that distributes Anime and Manga to the US and European markets. I work at home, from my own computer.

[Avalux]

294. Medical writer at the present time.

I've worked in various capacities in pharma and device clinical research for the past 24 years; I've finally settled into writing within the realm of research and couldn't be happier. I've found my niche.

[dog_lovin_dem]

298. I am a part time caretaker

for my disabled brother-in-law and take care of my grandson while his parents work/attend college. I have worked as a cashier, waitress, veterinarian tech, and dog groomer prior to earning a MS in Community Counseling. I was a Mental Health Therapist for a few years, then became an Adult Literacy Outreach Coordinator for a huge county in southern Indiana. I resigned from the Literacy position in 2004, when gas became outrageous and my mother-in-law became ill. The paid position I have now is much less than I was earning before, but the love I receive from my unpaid grandparenting gig makes up for the cut in pay! Fortunately, Grandpa's part time job and pension from his former job keep our heads above water.
At my age (54) I doubt I'll return to the mental health arena, though I do plan to seek a part time position in Grief therapy once the g'kid is in school.

[geardaddy]

299. 47 - Freelance technical writer n/t

[WilmywoodNCparalegal]

300. U.S. Immigration law and compliance

I administer I-9 compliance and all employer-based immigration activities for a huge company with over 60,000 employees.

I have been working in this arena since 1999. I can't see doing anything else. It's the perfect profession for someone like me who has ADHD, the hyperactive kind, and requires multiple stimulation. I certainly get it with this stuff, since every day there's something new happening and various government agencies that interpret the same topic in millions of different ways.

Though I considered law school in my youth, I am not interested. I enjoy educating HR, recruiting and others. I love working with foreign nationals from all over the world. I am an immigrant myself and my personal tribulations certainly help me understand and sympathize.

[BlueCollar]

303. Aircraft Maintenance Quality Assurance Inspector

Currently work in non-destructive inspection of engine components. Try to detect the cracks before the parts fail.

[Soundman]

304. Sound Guy and

A recording engineer. I run a small sound company here in central Ohio.

[Evoman]

305. Cancer patient

Have a masters in Biology and a Biochem Bachelor's degree. Used to work as a lab tech, decided I hated working in the lab with a passion, so I decided to go back to school to be a pharmacist.

One week before I started school, I was diagnosed with stage 3 colon cancer. I'm now stage 4, since it has spread to my lungs. Stuck with school for a while, even while going through chemo, and was doing quite well. But I'm pretty damn sick now, so I had to drop out.

For some reason, I don't think I'll be going back. I'm not sure how long I'm gonna live, or if I'm gonna beat the cancer. Stage 4 is kind of a bitch, even though I'm doing really well beating it back with chemo and my doctors seem optimistic.

I'm currently 33 years old. If I ever get off this chemo, I'm not sure what I'm gonna do. While on the chemo, I'm lucky that I have friends and family supporting me financially, although I feel like such a fucking leech.

[Locut0s]

316. Wow I'm very sorry to hear that. You are far stronger than i am...

I wouldn't be able to handle that at all. Here's wishing you a smooth recovery. Pay attention to what matters, family, friends and your day to day happiness. Sending hugs your way :p

[GiveMeFreedom]

325. One cancer patient to another

Cancer sucks. Mine is not important, you on the other hand need smiles , handshakes , hugs , and yes kisses .

Going on my second year, cancer is not going to ruin my retirement. Heck, it let me start early, retiring at 53 years old, woopee!!

[Taverner]

306. Right now I am a presenter of data storage soloutions

[Tom_Foolery]

308. Operations Manager, Production Manager, and Morning Show Host...

at a radio group in Kentucky.

[etherealtruth]

309. Gero-psych nurse, hospice nurse, stay at home mom, (new degree) environmental consulting

[Ferretherder]

310. I install home theaters, ...

...distributed audio systems, flat panel tv's and central vacuum systems.

Eh, it's a living.

[GiveMeFreedom]

332. I have a surround

system in my home. I had some guys from Geek Squad install it. They were very professional and concerned about their work. The did not exalt the virtues of working for Best Buy all that much, but were completely satisfied they had jobs in this economy. My audio/video home theater arrangement is fairly nice. If I could figure out a way to hook these up and make it all work would be killer. I built these amps and preamp, plus speakers in 2003. They are 300b single ended monoblocks pushing about 9 watts of the purest tone. No, turntable anymore but still have my modest vinyl collection. I have an unopened album, still in the plastic wrap "Peter Frampton Comes Alive".

[Ferretherder]

359. Your amps and speakers look SWEEEET!

You obviously know what you're doing with electronics. I've built several sets of speakers, mostly big sound-reinforcement enclosures like 'trap cabinet' monitors and mains and double eighteen, ported subs and such. I REALLY like your 'retro' design look for the amps, and the speakers are a thing of beauty!

Great work!

[PasadenaTrudy]

313. I own rental property...

[Awknid]

377. Child free by choice!

Me too! Although I rarely see others who admit that.

[PasadenaTrudy]

416. Yay for us!

We are truly green!

[tblue37]

314. BTW, in my earlier post I didn't mention that I do have websites. My most popular one is

Grammar and Usage for the Non-Expert:
http://www.grammartips.homestead.com/index.html

( have had 10.5 million unique visitors to the articles on that one site. I have about 450 articles spread across my ten sites, and I write on a wide variety of topics, including deafness and hearing loss, child rearing and children's issues, teaching and education, poetry, essay writing, and ADD/ADHD and learning disabilities in general. I also have one sit4e, Out of the Blue where I post my articles about topics that don't fit into my none dedicated sites, and I have two where I post funny, cute (true) anecdotes about children (Kidbits) and pets or other animals (Pet Tales).

You might like some of my articles. The links to all nine of the other sites are listed on the homepage of any of my ten public sites, and the bottom of each page on any site has a link to the homepage and article index for that site, so it is easy to find your way around my articles.

[mokawanis]

327. I like

the page you linked to. Bookmarked it.

[SteveG]

315. I do IT support

for a mid-sized university. I've been doing that for the last 32 years, before that I was a Jr. High Social Studies teacher for 3 years and a High School History and Government teacher for 6. During summers I worked as a carpenter when I was teaching.

[Still Sensible]

326. COO of a casino gaming llc. n/t

[cecilfirefox]

328. Law student. :/ Slaving away!! nt

[teenagebambam]

329. 46, University Professor.

Working 6 hours from my home, because we just moved for my partner's job, and then this job came along which was originally presented as a 1-year position. So the commute sucks, but.

[mecherosegarden]

333. Doctor of Psychology Trainee at a Homeless shelter

and last year as a Practicum Intern at a non-profit agency . So , two years without earning any income ; zero stipend , nada
With the help of my student loan, and by the grace of the Universe , that is how I have made a living. Did I mention I moved to an RV to cut some expenses?

However, I must say that I feel blessed cause I am very close to fulfill my dream of becoming a Psychologist!

[B Calm]

339. I manage the family fortune.

Well not quite yet. I plan to drive a truck for another 23 working days, then I'll retire. . .

[Hekate]

342. So happy to be retired. I serve on a county commission, have my grandkid over...

... watch my husband leave in the morning for his chosen post-retirement job.

When I first came to DU, I was working on a graduate program in a subject I loved, and finished my doctorate in 2002, just in time to take to the streets and town halls against Bush. It was a fork in the road, and I knew it would probably mean not being able to backtrack... but it was overwhelmingly important to me to stand in opposition to those thugs.

I can't tell you how wonderful it was to have Barack Obama beat John McCain -- and Mitt Romney. Just look back at where we were, and recognize that no matter how imperfect our present is, it could have been so much worse.

Hekate

[virgogal]

343. Retired.

[Mopar151]

344. Machinist, most recently in medical automation. Prototype/R&D/short run specialist

Have done a bunch of related stuff like assembly, engineering tech, QC, supervisior (working foreman). Circumstances have made me a ProtoTrak wizard ('toolroom CNC&quot .
I was "downsized out" of an OEM (metal spraying equipment) post merger in 2001, have had several gigs since, mostly temp. "Merger and Acquisition" are fightin' words to me - Mitt Rommney is the Antichrist! Crash of '08 killed a nice little OEM I was working for.

[GiveMeFreedom]

387. I have great

admiration for machinists. I once thought I wanted to be one, but life has those funny looking curve balls it throws at you called "children". I do own a Bridgeport Knee Mill and a chinese 12x36 engine lathe. Loved turning metal and making things that most folks only dream of making.

[cliffordu]

350. Im "retired" But I made a living:

As a bartender, bouncer, waiter, musician, photographer, drug dealer, tech writer (at big blue), actor (yes, I supported myself as an actor in theater in PDX, in the '80s).

I was a soldier.

Sold my body for drugs a couple of times, collected debts for bad people a couple of times.

Worked as a drug and alcohol counselor for street kids and as an advocate for them in juvenile court.

At 16 I worked at a golf course as a greens keeper. The most degrading job I ever had.

Now I'm writing poetry and clowning around with writing my 'life story' which seems a little precious and self indulgent.

Other than that, I ain't doing shit.

[Jasana]

352. Newbie checking in.

I'm 48 and retired. I used to be an accountant. (No, not a wall street accountant!) I was an Assistant Controller for a multi-million NFP family foundation.

I have been out of work for almost 8 years. I suddenly came down with a strange disease that left me unable to stand up long enough to brush my teeth and made my arms tremble. It took 2 years to get on disability and for that time I lived off my stocks, retirement funds and savings. By the time the doctors and the general world was finished with me I was broke... but my disability came through with two years of back wages and I hadn't hired a lawyer so the entire payment went to me. I am on SSDI and food stamps which also entitles me to a free cell phone so I don't have to try to call 911 through a computer. (This program exists in Massachusetts.)

BTW, the culprit was finally diagnosed as Multiple Sclerosis. What made it so hard to diagnose is that there's another condition lying beneath it. That still has yet to be diagnosed but one neurologist is suggesting that I may have had a small series of strokes which an MRI can not pick up. In any case I am getting better very, very slowly but the consensus is I will never be able to work again so this is were I'm stuck.

I hope all this info helps you with your "demographics" idea.

[defacto7]

353. Sort of retired now....

Before that, I was an opera singer for 15 years. I was a concert pianist as kid. Since retired, I am a stay at home dad who designs, builds and maintains pipe organs. I play with open source computer programming and troubleshooting and run a bunch of servers for the hell of it. And I also dismantle old electronics and try to convert them to new electronic uses. I dig old radios and quadraphonic stereos of the 1970s. I do a lot of solar energy research in my extra time and I have this never ceasing interest in battery science and hybrid cars. My education is in Musical arts, Cosmology and Astronomy. I also am an inventor of extremely practical devices that are of great use to me and of absolutely no value whatsoever to anyone else... like a machine that can wind piano strings quickly and meticulously. Ever tried to sting a piano by hand? I also have had a profound interest in musical pitch and tuning temperaments. Bored yet? One more... I love to paint with oil and with words.

[Kablooie]

354. Animator

Used to be a 2d animator but had to switch into storyboarding when the 2d animation jobs dried up.
Even so I've been out of work many times for periods up to a year after decades of solid employment.

[Douglas Carpenter]

356. I communicate with extra-terrestrials on behalf of intelligence services

But that's my night job.

During the day I am a Respiratory Therapist

[FreeJoe]

357. financial and data analyst

I work in the oil and gas industry, of all things. I've work for some awful companies in search for a good one. I love the one I'm with now.

[RKP5637]

363. Program manager in IT/R&D in Silicon Valley CA for years, now retired. n/t

[CurtEastPoint]

364. I am a trainer in the corporate world: Office apps, etc. Love it.

[Ganja Ninja]

365. Commercial Air Conditioning Estimator/Project Manager

[kestrel91316]

366. Veterinarian - self-employed. Also a minor league writer.

[BlueToTheBone]

371. I send Rainbows all over the world.

Our little company (my designer partner and I) create, manufacture and sell our beautiful Rainbow creations all over the world. We are in the middle of our new website design; but here's a look at some of our work.
www.TheRainbowMakers.com

[davsand]

373. Real Estate Appraiser and Government Wonk.

My term of office will be ending in June and I'm handing the keys off to some other poor schmo. I've been here for five terms (2 years each) and I am well and truly OVER it. I am a specialist in real estate valuation and in Property Tax Code in this state. I've spent my days as a property tax person--listening to people complain about taxes and then trying to fix it for them--and it is well past time to move on.

The work itself can be emotionally rewarding, and I have met some wonderful people over the years. I have also dealt with some really mean and ugly souls that I feel probably will be relegated to the Sixth Circle of Hell if karma really exists. I've had to fight politically to keep this job and I've had to suck up to some pretty loathsome people in order to earn the right to be abused. I have managed to accomplish some worthwhile things in the last decade, but overall, I gotta say this is a soul sucking job that nobody in their right mind would do for as long as I have.

I am currently running for a different office (which may or may not turn out well) and I've had standing offers from a couple of different Real Estate Appraisal firms in the area. Either way, I am busting out of this shit-hole in the next three months. I will be FREE!


Laura

[Auggie]

379. Freelance Art Director

Worked in ad agencies a while back. Most of them are a study in chaos, back-stabbing and inefficiencies. Much happier having my own clients.

[Dr Hobbitstein]

380. I work part-time at a locally owned music shop (instruments, not CDs)

My ex and I have joint custody of our daughter, and I have to be available for her on a moment's notice (I pick her
up from school every day, and she stays with me every other week).
I pretty much only pull in commission at the music shop (I make a whopping $4/hr as an independent contractor),
which doesn't add up to a whole hell of a lot in the current economic environment, but my fiance works as
a medical receptionist, so we get by. I also build and repair guitars, effects pedals, and amplifiers, which is a
nice little padding in the wallet, though the work isn't constant as Brevard County in FL isn't exactly a music capitol
of anything (well, maybe the "Mustang Sally" capitol of FL). Top it off with my band that plays out a few times a month,
but playing only original songs doesn't get us a whole lot of high paying shows.

[Guy Whitey Corngood]

383. Architect.... not the software kind. I also fight crime at night. nt

[Javaman]

384. Worker drone.

I once did a job I loved.

Now I do a job I hate and dream about the job I once loved.

[ellisonz]

388. Municipal Parks and Recreation Worker

Previously did an Americorps internship with the Hawaii State Parks Division

I've had an assortment of other jobs.

Trying to get into grad school to do a Masters in Public Administration.

I want to work *for better pay* in parks/environmental conservation management.

[Zax2me]

390. Look for jobs.

[GreenStormCloud]

393. Retired, on SS, but still working full time as a security guard - unarmed. N/T

[Terra Alta]

394. I've been a cashier at a big box store since 2005.

The pay isn't great, but I'm full-time and thankful I have a job.. which I mostly enjoy.

[CRK7376]

397. 35 years

serving in some flavor of the US Army, Army Reserve or National Guard. 13 of those years I taught high school history while in the Guard/Reserve. Then I went back on Active Duty and retire in less than 2 years. Then it will be back into a high school classroom!

[steve2470]

399. k&r nt

[steve2470]

400. no one else wants to add to this thread out of thousands of DU'ers ? ok then nt

[lilithsrevenge12]

401. 22 year old journalism student and hostess

I am also on my school paper and get to write political op-eds. I hope to make it to Mother Jones or Rolling Stone one day.

This thread is interesting! Glad it was posted and I get to learn a little something about everyone

[RebelOne]

402. Absolutely nothing.

I am retired. Actually, I was forced into retirement. I was working until 2010 as a copy editor for a hunting and fishing publication. I copy-edited 30 magazines a month. But then ad sales fell off and the company started to downsize its staff. I, my boss, and 2 editors were laid off. The company was very generous with a severance package.

If I hadn't been laid off I would still be working. But I had just turned 71 years old, so I decided it was time for me to retire as I had been working since I was 18. Thank goodness for social security. I wanted to continue working for a while longer to get more money into my 401K.

[Puzzledtraveller]

405. SNAP and Medicaid worker to include ACA

[ieoeja]

406. Computer Programmer (SQL, VB.NET) - Rent out Apt - Rent out Farm - Trees n/t

Started off on Wang VS computers. Did some UNIX. Stuck in Microsoft hell now.

The Apartment (singular) I am purchasing to help my ex-wife buy a home as solid brick (not just sided) 2-flats are half the price of single family wood framed homes. So we split a building with me renting out my portion. I slightly lose real money on it, but am gaining equity, of course. Though it will probably not make a profit til I die.

The farm I recently inherited. Parents harvested mature trees every couple decades. Not due for a few years, but will be a nice windfall about the time I retire.

[Proles]

410. Social Media Strategist. 22 years old, but

hoping to get selected by the FAA for training as an Air Traffic Controller. Unfortunately, with this sequester nonsense, I'm beginning to wonder if that will happen anytime soon...

[MissV]

412. Koozie Factory

I work for a company that prints designs on koozies, bank bags, eyeglass cases and cups. I also grow vegetables and tomatoes for extra money.

[steve2470]

413. very last kick nt

[Liberal_in_LA]

417. i work in education.

[lonestarnot]

418. I help people.

[Godhumor]

421. Analyst for a Great Lakes freighter company

Tres fun.