I’m doing a writing class from Daily Om and here was the first question for today. I honestly had no idea that I would end up writing and remembering so much. It’s about work, and as I’m fifty three I have quite a “resume".” I know I’ve already written a bit about past jobs, but hang in there with me, readers, this has more detail. Ready? Here we go.

List as many past jobs that you've held as you can think of.

When I was in middle and high school I used to babysit. I did not like it very much. I used to look around in people's homes and watch TV and read, and to be honest I was never very good with kids. Maybe that's why I never had a baby sitter for Sam, except for my parents in Brown Deer. I just didn't trust anyone with him.

The summer before my Senior year I got a job at a United Methodist summer camp, Camp Lucerne in Neshkoro, Wisconsin. I worked there for two summers, and had many interesting adventures, including meeting Nathan. I should write more about it sometime. It was a beautiful place. I was very young and inexperienced at working. Not an ideal employee, I was easily distracted, but I did ok, and played guitar for singalongs, and taught everyone Baby Shark (The REAL Baby shark, not the silly bubblegum version that became popular. The REAL song goes:

Baby shark shark shark shark shark

Baby shark shark shark shark shark

Adolescent shark shark shark shark shark

Adolescent shark shark shark shark shark

Giant shark shark shark shark shark

Giant shark shark shark shark shark

Lady swimmin swimmin swimmin swimmin swimmin

Lady swimmin swimmin swimmin swimmin swimmin

Shark swimmin swimmin swimmin swimmin

Shark swimmin swimmin swimmin swimmin

Sees the lady Bop Bop Bop Bop!

Sees the lady Bop Bop Bop Bop!

Shark Attack! Ugh ugh ugh ugh

Shark Attack! Ugh ugh ugh ugh

Swims away, Yum yum yum yum

Swims away, Yum yum yum yum

With appropriate hand motions including a big flail for the shark attack. I believe Nathan fell in love with me over Baby Shark.

My next job was working at a Weight Watcher's salad restaurant. I liked the salad but hated my bosses and I quit in a very dramatic way. (I believe the exact words were something to the effect of "F*ck you, and F*ck your salad," Boy hidey, I was really mad.)

Then I went to Whitewater, studied theatre and acted in a bunch of plays, and I worked for the theatre department library. Not much to say there but I did get to know Dr. Sederholm before he died, which I am really grateful for, he was a remarkable man.

After Whitewater I worked at a Kindercare, a commercial child care center. It was dreadful.

After Kindercare I worked at the kitchens at Cardinal Stritch College (as it was then) and I got interested in going there for my higher education, so I applied and started as an Early Childhood Education major… (what the hell was I thinking?) Pretty quickly I changed my major to English, and married Nathan, both really good choices. I also got a student job in the CSC library. (Dear Sister Margaret, were you honestly as terrifying as you appeared?) I worked in the library until I graduated.

After college I worked at North Shore Public library as a clerk-dogs body. I kind of liked working there, and I don't remember why I left that job. Then I got a job as a barista in a Victor Allen's coffee shop and worked there for a few years. I needed to do something else, so I decided to go to the University of Wisconsin Milwaukee (UWM) for a Master's in Library Science (MLIS). While I was doing that I worked for the tutoring center, which honestly was one of my favorite jobs. We were an eccentric fun crew, and I still remember some of the people I tutored. I got a job at the library in the cataloging section, and then, SURPRISE! I got pregnant. (We were trying, so it was not THAT big of a surprise). I left work at 7 months.

I'm a little fuzzy on exactly what happened next. I had Sam (June 9, 1994, 10:16 AM, 9 pounds 8 ounces), and graduated. After that I know I was working at some library, UWM I think, and I had a writers workshop with a children's author and I had an epiphany: I really was more interested in retail; I'd rather work at Audubon Court Books, my favorite book store. I had this realization AFTER I got my degree. But honestly, I wouldn’t give up getting my MLIS for anything: I had so much fun. My focus area was information science and search theory and all kinds of impractical and esoteric stuff like that because I adored my professor, so I took everything he taught. I never used my degree (directly, for a library job).

I applied to Audubon Court and got a job working in the children's section. It was great fun, I was totally suited to the job: I used to create amazing paintings on the windows that I changed seasonally. I really liked working with NEW books. I loved making displays, creating fun children's reading times, and meeting and helping the authors that came to visit and read their new books. It was a gorgeous book store, with fireplaces, a coffee bar and deep comfy leather chairs. I think Audubon Court Books was the model that the big box stores like Border's and Barnes and Noble build their stores on. But our store was better because we were a true neighborhood store, not corporate at all. I adored that job. A couple of years later we moved to Cleveland for Nathan's new gig as the Marketing Director at Pilgrim Press.

My main job in Cleveland was full time Mom. I did work a bit at the clubhouse at our apartment complex, and I got a job working for a publishing friend of Nathan's, who had an internet startup called "ReviewCopy.Com" it was fun and I was paid very well indeed for doing my Goddess given gift for research. Pilgrim Press reorganized, and instead of staying there Nathan threw his hat in with us and joined ReviewCopy.Com, which, when I think of it, was an extremely risky thing to do, two people at a startup who had a young child, all eggs in one basket. Oh, well, we were young. We moved back to Madison and got an apartment on the East side. We did ReviewCopy.Com until the bubble burst and the little company folded, which was a shame as I thought it was a pretty good idea, a resource for professors to get Review Copies of books.

When Nathan was at Pilgrim, and I think even before that when he was working at Theological Book Service, he became acquainted with this amazing dude named Hargis Thomas who was the director of Bible sales and marketing for Oxford University Press. I had met him several times too, when we would go to shows like AARSBL and BookExpo and shows like that (there was a particularly magical one in Boston at Eastertime soon after we were married, before Sam. I just went with Nathan I was not working in that book world yet It was like a second honeymoon. On Easter Sunday there was a street dance in front of the Catholic church with amazing huge marionettes, and a priest in a white robe handed me a daffodil).

Anyhow, after RevieweCopy.Com died I started my own company, Shiloh Publishing Services LLC (fancy, huh?) and my only client, as it turned out, was Hargis, but that was fine; I was happy to hitch my wagon to that funny, amazing, gifted man. I did research for him for Oxford University Press, and then he got a job at HarperCollins, marketing their various Bibles, and he brought me along. I loved working virtually, I loved doing research for these famous companies, and I loved the money: it was the most I ever earned in my life; I was able to dictate my price, and Hargis helped me figure out the (apparently rather high) worth of my research. After a couple of years Hargis decided to retire (damn him for wanting a life).

I got a job at MindSparks, (I'll remember especially for my interview, which was kind of bizarre. It was on 9/11. we brought out a TV and watched the buildings come down. It was very strange and scary. We didn't talk about the job much… she gave it to me and I drove home in a daze. We were both in a daze.) It was an upscale educational toy store (I honestly love retail). I worked there for a couple of years, then it folded and I got a job working as the manager of the print shop at a OfficeMax. It really sucked.

So I got a job at Meriter in the Meriter Community Health Education Center (or MCHEC) (may it rest in peace). I worked there for a few years as a PSA (Program Support Assistant) (dogs body again) I liked the job very much (except for answering the phone) And then, after a while, my boss took against me for some reason. To this day I do not know why. She took me into her office and said "You need to find another job." she didn't even have to guts to fire me. I asked if I could stay until I finished a course in Medical Coding, but she said NO! Honestly, it was like she couldn't stand me, and we had always gotten along well. To this day I don't understand. Well, it's far in the past now and I really need to let it go. I have mostly let it go. A couple years after I left there the company got a new CEO and they shut down MCHEC, which I thought was a bad move, but do I look like a hospital CEO? Nup.

Anyhow, I got a job at the Otolaryngology Clinic at UW Hospital, the biggest hospital in the city. As much fun as it is to say “otolaryngology,” I hated that job. It was mostly sitting in a cubical answering phone call after phone call and trying to schedule people for appointments in an impossible schedule. I only worked there two years, and then what happened is… I pretty much had a breakdown.

I told Nathan "I just can't do it… I can't work anymore." I talked to my therapist and she helped me get on disability (trust me, I extremely qualified,) and I was on disability for six years. I don't remember much about those years, honestly. I just was a mopey wreck. I apologize to Nathan and Sam for how incredibly useless I was.

After six years I got a letter from Social Security gently prodding me to get a job. I got a trial job at a really cool little store called "SERRV" which stands for something (I don't know what). They imported arts and crafts from third world countries, and really supported the artisans. It was so good… the people I worked with were super nice. Retail again after those awful desk jobs! I wanted to get a full time job there, but they didn't have one available. So I looked around close to home for a job, because I don't drive.

I got a job at Walgreens working front counter and in the photo lab, which was very cool, and whatever else they needed me for. It was not a dream job, and we were right across from the west transfer point, so sometimes we'd get creepy, drunk, or obstreperous people coming in. But I tell you what: I bless Walgreens, and my bosses there, and all the people I worked with (some of whom are still friends to this day), because going back to work really broke me free from my depressive funk. I did a good job there, got good reviews and a lot of praise for my hard work and dedication. It was very affirming. After a couple of years the boss who hired me left (He was very uptight and strict, and expected the best from us. A lot of people disliked him and he had a reputation in the greater Madison area Walgreens world as a tough, scary guy, but I really liked him so much. He took a chance on me, and working up to his expectations made me realize that I could reach out and take risks and that I could be a better person, one actually worthy of praise.) The new manager was… a bit dizzy and ditsy and laissez faire, and I hated to see our store go downhill. Also the crime and actual anxiety about working there got to me.

I remembered what a fine time it was to work as a barista years ago, so I interviewed at Hy-Vee, which has a Starbucks; which is literally blocks from our house (I could easily walk it in eight minutes, and not rushing). I worked both jobs for a while, but was really frustrated with the way Walgreens had deteriorated, and tired of both juggling two jobs and working seven days a week; I decided to give them my two week's notice.

Then I was just a Starbucks Barista. I loved making the drinks and talking to the customers, but my anxiety had creeped back up on me, I was so anxious before shifts that I medicated myself with antianxiety meds. Too much, every day. I went through three back surgeries during my time there, and had a tumor removed along with my ovary and fallopian tubes. The job was really hard on my back. My body was getting older, and starting to show the limitations of age in a body that was not fit. I was also getting tired of working with high school kids. I adored them so much, and they liked me too (at least to my face, and I never heard otherwise), but I got tired of the drama and being "the old one." Made me feel ancient. Then Covid happened. And the Starbucks stayed open. Honestly I didn't feel safe working so close with people, and this was before masking became common. I told my boss I didn't feel safe, and I left, thinking I'd be going back to work "once the Virus is under control."

After being off of work for a couple of months I realized that what I really wanted to do was to retire (Yes, I was only 52 at the time), write and take care of my husband and household. I went to Nathan to toss the idea to him, and bless him, he said yes, as long as I could get my spending under control, which I mostly have, (except for my new computer which I did justify as being needed as a writer's tool) (yes, ok, I know I could write on paper, or my old laptop, or on a rock with charcoal, but this is my thing, and I love it. Here I am writing!)

I am so happy now. I am hoping that this is it, baby, that I can be a homebody writer and keep up with my poetry and blog.

Hey! How about you, Constant Reader? Do you remember all your jobs?