The coolest jobs?

[Blackdog1714]

No big movies lately. Its all been streaming TV, photo shoots and commercials. Its always slow in June, but this strike just killed it. The writer's strike is still going and now we have the actors striking as well. We will survive, but it ain't no fun paying lots of big bills when there is no income coming in.

The trainer that owned those raccoons was from AZ. They didn't want a real actor in there next to the animal, so they put me in there.

Smart in case the racoon wilds out! So hard to replace a good actor 🤣 I mean animal trainers are everywhere aren't they?

 

[wellington]

Started out fast food, then insurance receptionist, then worked at a shop making boat parts. From there worked as a dog groomer, boarding kennel manager, dog obedience instructor. Then on to a vet tech which was the best job of them all. Then I moved from Michigan to Chicago and worked data entry at a publishing company, to a home designer assistant to aquarium fish store office manager and sales. I'm mostly retired now working once a month at the fish store doing the taxes.

 

[Sleppo]

Man you guys all do some interesting things. I've been in title insurance for more years then I care to disclose. I review surveys, plats, land records etc to insure large commercial construction projects and purchases. It is kinda neat sometimes reading handwritten deeds and records from as early as the late 1700's. It can be very stressful as we are large scale and some of the projects can range from $300M and up. You certainly do not want to miss anything on search work when you are dealing with that kind of liability.

 

[Cathie G]

No big movies lately. Its all been streaming TV, photo shoots and commercials. Its always slow in June, but this strike just killed it. The writer's strike is still going and now we have the actors striking as well. We will survive, but it ain't no fun paying lots of big bills when there is no income coming in.

The trainer that owned those raccoons was from AZ. They didn't want a real actor in there next to the animal, so they put me in there.

Well I hope the strikers win more money for all of you. What would we do without some downtime now and then? Just watching an interesting movie or show now and then.🤗

 

[Cathie G]

No big movies lately. Its all been streaming TV, photo shoots and commercials. Its always slow in June, but this strike just killed it. The writer's strike is still going and now we have the actors striking as well. We will survive, but it ain't no fun paying lots of big bills when there is no income coming in.

The trainer that owned those raccoons was from AZ. They didn't want a real actor in there next to the animal, so they put me in there.

That actually seems like a compliment to you.

 

[jeff kushner]

I used to hear that famous saying; "Do a job you like and never work a day in your life" It was apparently, true.

The most difficult part was balancing the cost of raising a family with income.

I also respect the courage it takes to change jobs or careers. It's rarely a choice, but it takes initiative to progress.

That other saying came true too; "Income is something hard to live within or without."

There are a lot of heroes in our lives. IMHO the guy/gal that gets up, takes care of the kids then goes off to work each day, every day, year after year.....they are my heroes.

At the end of it, we want to ensure that we will be comfortable enough not to worry and to be able to do things that you waited forever to do. For those that didn't wait to do those things, this may be a time for "recovery" LOL

 

[Cathie G]

I've been thinking about this subject all day, and finally figured out how to put it into words somehow. I've had many jobs over the years. I barber trimmed shoes. I painted ceramics, and worked in a factory making natural gas meters etc etc...That was fun playing with drill presses for metal parts. I even got to make the diaphragms and try to learn curing rubber. My favorite job though was all of the above. All of them are related to crafts I love to do anyway. I even got to use that knowledge on my poor kids when they were homeschooled by Mommy dearest me.😊

 

[zovick]

I've been thinking about this subject all day, and finally figured out how to put it into words somehow. I've had many jobs over the years. I barber trimmed shoes. I painted ceramics, and worked in a factory making natural gas meters etc etc...That was fun playing with drill presses for metal parts. I even got to make the diaphragms and try to learn curing rubber. My favorite job though was all of the above. All of them are related to crafts I love to do anyway. I even got to use that knowledge on my poor kids when they were homeschooled by Mommy dearest me.😊

What is "barber trimming shoes"? I don't think I've ever heard of that until now.

 

[Cathie G]

What is "barber trimming shoes"? I don't think I've ever heard of that until now.

The short answer is I worked on an industrial post sewing machine with a knife that trimmed the excess leather off at the same. If I engaged the knife. I had a blast. I wish I had a post sewing machine to this day. You can sew anything on one. One of my favorite pastimes is sewing and I got to get payed for it.🐢😊 and make shoes to boot.😁

 

[Tom]

I used to hear that famous saying; "Do a job you like and never work a day in your life" It was apparently, true.

The most difficult part was balancing the cost of raising a family with income.

I also respect the courage it takes to change jobs or careers. It's rarely a choice, but it takes initiative to progress.

That other saying came true too; "Income is something hard to live within or without."

There are a lot of heroes in our lives. IMHO the guy/gal that gets up, takes care of the kids then goes off to work each day, every day, year after year.....they are my heroes.

At the end of it, we want to ensure that we will be comfortable enough not to worry and to be able to do things that you waited forever to do. For those that didn't wait to do those things, this may be a time for "recovery" LOL

I watched all of my parents (Several divorces and re-marriages) work their fingers to the bone and wear themselves out in typical blue collar jobs. Clock in at 8 or 9 and clock out at 4 or 5. Every day, day after day, hating every minute of it and complaining of their misery daily. Your heroes Jeff. Nurses, mechanics, etc... They all got up took care of the kids and went off to work. I watched it take a toll on their bodies, minds, and souls. They gave the best years of their lives away. Some of them saved for a rainy day and are doing okay in retirement now. Others, like my dad, couldn't make ends meet as his body wore out and he couldn't work as had as he used to. He didn't plan for the future and he died poor, borrowing money from his only son. I weep not for his death, but for the sad life he led. Life kicked his a$$. Repeatedly. He took his beatings in stride time after time, and quietly soldiered on, hoping that the next day would show him mercy. I watched this as a child and shook my head. "Not me. That will NEVER be me." Life punches me in the face and I come up swinging. Hard. With fury in my eyes. I'd rather die on my feet than live on my knees. I've won more of those fights with life than I've lost.

I heard the "find a job you like..." saying too, but right along with it was that saying that "if you do what you love for a living, it becomes a job..." There is an element of that in my job, I suppose. I've heard of this going two ways: 1. Work hard at a crappy job to make enough money to go do the things you love on vacation and weekends. 2. Find a way to make a living doing something you like, and live life doing what you love every day. The second way is great, as long as it doesn't become drudgery and make you begin to hate what you used to love. I don't think I could do it the first way, but I know many people who do, and they seem to get by okay.

The saying that really hit home and stuck with me was "Work smarter, not harder." Residual income. I still get paid regularly for jobs I did in one day decades ago. Sometimes its just pennies, but other times its hundreds or thousands. I also enjoy rental income from owning property. There are expenses that sometimes go with that, but its a gain on the whole.

When I was a kid and people used to ask me what I wanted to be when I grew up, I would answer: "I want to make as much money as possible, for as little work as possible". I think I have found a nice balance. A balance that works for me. I work very hard every day, but that work is on MY ranch and done for ME. My job/career that I actually get paid for isn't work. Those days are a break from the work that I do. I still have to get out of bed on someone else's clock occasionally, but even that part of my life is beginning to fade away. When I do have to go to work, I get paid stupid amounts of money to have fun in beautiful locations and eat gourmet food, while accruing a terrific pension and excellent health care benefits for my family. Its still work, and there are occasional bad days, but on the whole, if I have to go to work, it ain't too shabby. Most days I look around and smile. "I can't believe they are PAYING us to be here and do this." But there we are.

As Morgan Freeman's character said in "Shawshank Redemption", "Get busy livin', or get busy dyin'." We only get one chance at this. I decided long ago to live life to the fullest.

 

[Maggie3fan]

We all have a choice of what we do to while away the days when we are between 16 and 65 or so.

Like many here, I gravitated towards the animal-jobs.......maybe a zookeeper, forest ranger or a "Merlin Perkins on steroids" kind of thing? Then I chose to leave home a bit earlier than most so I began as the youngest manager Howard Johnsons ever employed at 17 years old. I was proud but a Restaurant manager took 60-80 hrs a week, for a couple bucks an hour when you broke it down...a dead end for me. .

Most of what I wanted to do required college. This is where I hit my "wall"....college wasn't going to be in my wheelhouse, I didn't have the patience for it. So, loving nature but being the type that would not excel in school, I elected to travel to those places and let whatever job I had pay for it. A "work-around" of sorts. I learned a trade, tried nearly every position in a Construction office then landed on my X for my career. I have enjoyed it and I consider myself to be extremely fortunate. I don't believe in regrets and I don't regret not going to school, that was my choice so I'm ok with the results.

I am also super happy to see those that did get their dream jobs and the jobs I would have liked to have tried!

Clearly, this is aimed at those here who have or had a pretty cool job. I give kudos and respect to those that buckled down and put in the pain to get to where they wanted to go!

So, I get paid to guess....not a bad gig if you think about it, someone actually pays me to guess! Not only that, but my skillset is IN DEMAND! I always thought this was the biggest scam of my life because they pay me to "work" and I don't! LOL

I had a friend of mine whose job was to fly to cool places to scout locations for TV commercials......she had a pretty cool job. Had another girlfriend who was Chief of Staff to a certain Hawaiian Senator. She had a pretty cool job too, but not one where she could be honest so that kind of kills that one for me. Another was a VP for Raytheon and she got to babysit the Universal Soldier initiative and go around the country demonstrating it's capabilities. She even let me try it at Andrews AFB...cool stuff.

So, what is your dream job?

I had a buncha crappy jobs for years...managed a RedWing shoe store, delivered flowers...dried off Mercedes in a car wash... then I went to truck driving school and the rest...a freakin great job for me. I went everywhere and met everybody....

I loved it

 

[jeff kushner]

The saying that really hit home and stuck with me was "Work smarter, not harder." Residual income. I still get paid regularly for jobs I did in one day decades ago

Isn't that called; Alimony?


My Dad was a PHD who did secret stuff, his Dad was a dirt poor Russian who died of TB in the coal mines up North after coming to the US with his young family of 9. His son was different, I am different yet we are completely different from one another in how we approach life. Kind of neat.

Oh and Tom, you DO know "you aren't like the rest", right? LOL I cannot be the 1st person to let you know, just can't be!

Come on guys, he ain't normal...have you looked at this dudes resume`? The term "overachiever" gets lost in there!

I love it, folks doing different stuff.

The best jobs to me, are those that you leave saying "that was fun"......how Mags looks back at Truck Driving.

 

[ryan57]

Funny. This evening my wife and I made a list of 2024 goals to achieve this year. The first task was to phrase things like, I'd like to drive such, I'd like a better job, I'd like to go to somewhere, Lose weight, I'd like home renovations in these areas, get dental work done, etc.

The second task was to look at the list and set the priority by what single item will make your life better if you had it. Umm... we looked at each other in silence for a while realizing that nothing on our list of goals would make our daily life better. What a fantastic state of affairs!!! We settled on some minor renovation things.

Tomorrow I drive 2 hours to work to onboard 2 entry level employees and build their skills in coming weeks. I've been living my dream job of doing whatever I want to since I was about 24 years old and have become a credentialed and published expert in my chosen field. I haven't always made ends meet and my parents have helped me much over the years but I chose my own path and saw it to the end. My dream job now is simply to be able to work until I absolutely can't. I'm 52 years old this year and ready to work, live, love and die a happy man. There is no bucket list.

And having Stump and Figgy, as crazy as it sounds, gives me purpose to the yard work and I look forward to them on a daily basis. A few hours ago, when clearing branches from the yard from limbs that broke because of the snow I saw Kathleen carrying Stump from the soak to his room through the front door and hopped off the 3 wheeler to see him have a snack and go to bed. Awesome times.

 

[jeff kushner]

Funny. This evening my wife and I made a list of 2024 goals to achieve this year. The first task was to phrase things like, I'd like to drive such, I'd like a better job, I'd like to go to somewhere, Lose weight, I'd like home renovations in these areas, get dental work done, etc.

Wants vs Needs list......that's cool you guys do it together...keeps you growing in the same direction.

Cool that you forged your own way too.....but your outlook about work may change one day. You may choose to do other stuff....and that's the cool thing, we can!


In reality most of us "need" very little.....but are influenced to "want" by our society or just our own interest in new and cool stuff (I'm guilty as charged).

I hear folks talk about "having purpose" and how important it is in their lives. I don't see it that way.....I KNOW the stuff that I want to do..........I just needed time to do them. If I spend the day in pj's today, it's because I want to, not because I'm bored with no drive or purpose....my "purpose" is doing the things that make me and those I care about, happy......

 

[Cathie G]

I watched all of my parents (Several divorces and re-marriages) work their fingers to the bone and wear themselves out in typical blue collar jobs. Clock in at 8 or 9 and clock out at 4 or 5. Every day, day after day, hating every minute of it and complaining of their misery daily. Your heroes Jeff. Nurses, mechanics, etc... They all got up took care of the kids and went off to work. I watched it take a toll on their bodies, minds, and souls. They gave the best years of their lives away. Some of them saved for a rainy day and are doing okay in retirement now. Others, like my dad, couldn't make ends meet as his body wore out and he couldn't work as had as he used to. He didn't plan for the future and he died poor, borrowing money from his only son. I weep not for his death, but for the sad life he led. Life kicked his a$$. Repeatedly. He took his beatings in stride time after time, and quietly soldiered on, hoping that the next day would show him mercy. I watched this as a child and shook my head. "Not me. That will NEVER be me." Life punches me in the face and I come up swinging. Hard. With fury in my eyes. I'd rather die on my feet than live on my knees. I've won more of those fights with life than I've lost.

I heard the "find a job you like..." saying too, but right along with it was that saying that "if you do what you love for a living, it becomes a job..." There is an element of that in my job, I suppose. I've heard of this going two ways: 1. Work hard at a crappy job to make enough money to go do the things you love on vacation and weekends. 2. Find a way to make a living doing something you like, and live life doing what you love every day. The second way is great, as long as it doesn't become drudgery and make you begin to hate what you used to love. I don't think I could do it the first way, but I know many people who do, and they seem to get by okay.

The saying that really hit home and stuck with me was "Work smarter, not harder." Residual income. I still get paid regularly for jobs I did in one day decades ago. Sometimes its just pennies, but other times its hundreds or thousands. I also enjoy rental income from owning property. There are expenses that sometimes go with that, but its a gain on the whole.

When I was a kid and people used to ask me what I wanted to be when I grew up, I would answer: "I want to make as much money as possible, for as little work as possible". I think I have found a nice balance. A balance that works for me. I work very hard every day, but that work is on MY ranch and done for ME. My job/career that I actually get paid for isn't work. Those days are a break from the work that I do. I still have to get out of bed on someone else's clock occasionally, but even that part of my life is beginning to fade away. When I do have to go to work, I get paid stupid amounts of money to have fun in beautiful locations and eat gourmet food, while accruing a terrific pension and excellent health care benefits for my family. Its still work, and there are occasional bad days, but on the whole, if I have to go to work, it ain't too shabby. Most days I look around and smile. "I can't believe they are PAYING us to be here and do this." But there we are.

As Morgan Freeman's character said in "Shawshank Redemption", "Get busy livin', or get busy dyin'." We only get one chance at this. I decided long ago to live life to the fullest.

That's a really good movie I watched for the first time only recently. And of course I had to watch it more than once cause I have critters. Now I'm getting a puppy soon. My new added on retirement job is going to be training my pup. I think Fre will pay me his weight in gold.

 

[Tom]

That's a really good movie I watched for the first time only recently. And of course I had to watch it more than once cause I have critters. Now I'm getting a puppy soon. My new added on retirement job is going to be training my pup. I think Fre will pay me his weight in gold.

My dogs have literally bought my houses and cars, but I would still have them even if they didn't.

 

[Cathie G]

My dogs have literally bought my houses and cars, but I would still have them even if they didn't.

Amen. I've been wanting a tiny dog for a long time. I haven't taken care of a dog for about 25 years. Here's hoping I can remember and do the best of care for him. I do know I can get good advice from my friends here though and that will help immensely.🤗