I’ve been thinking recently about the things that I’ve wanted to do for some time.
I’ve got a stable list of things – many of them professions – that I’ve wanted to engage in regularly for at least 3-5 years. They range from white to blue collar. They range from requiring multiple degrees and certifications to primarilyrequiring a driver’s license, a strong back, and a willingness to listen.
Construction: For several years now, the allure of swinging a hammer and actually building homes has held a definite appeal in my mind. It’s the idea of creating something with a lasting benefit, something tangible that you can look at day-in and day-out. It also may have been a lucrative field – especially since I already had a job with benefits and great hours/pay.
Writing: Hell, right now i’m writing and I’m enjoying it. For sometime now I’ve wanted to describe, create, and give life to complicated, tragically funny, human, and sometimes inhuman characters. I’ve wanted to, again, be creative and craft mysteries and viewpoints that aren’t necessarily commonly held. Unfortunately, I don’t READ enough literature, and haven’t read nearly enough literature to be the amazing writer that I want to be.
Surgeon: I’m on my way. It’s a craft, a certain creativity, another profession with a tangible pursuit – although one that is somewhat more visceral than palpable. I like the combination of detective work and the butchery of it all. I like the hand-eye coordination. I like the technical proficiency, the detail, the creativity (although limited – see below) of it. I like the opportunity to definitively correct pathology, and I like the pressure of it. Ultimately I also like the idea of being more likely to work, medically, with those who acutely need good physicians and are the most unlikely to be able to identify with physicians…I also love the idea of working with my hands. The drawback is how much it seems to interfere with the rest of ones’ life. Which is unfortunate to say the least…
SWAT Team Member: Forgive me if my “adventure spirit” aka. testosterone occasionally gets the better of my judgement and conscience – all I can say is rapelling into a building, smashing windows out, and shooting a gun while yelling/screaming at “bad guys” does still hold some cachet in my brain – even if higher parts of me realize the sophomoric nature of it all… Unfortunately the whole, “being a cop” thing sort of bugs me about it though…
Adventure Athlete / Mountain Climber: Believe it or not, i like trail running – something I discovered when me and Jenn were bombing down a trail on Mt. Si a few years back. I also like the combination of technical proficiency, and the opportunity to be outdoors. Again, the use of ones’ body in the profession is a plus as well. God gave us arms and legs to walk, push, pull, and kick every day….If God wanted us to sit on our ass all day he at the least wouldn’t have given us legs…
Musician: The idea of sitting down every day, notebook in hand, guitar in hand, wearing sunglasses and something awfully rockstar funky, does hold a great amount of appeal. Playing over and over, riff after riff, practicing the craft until I’ve reached a level of technical mastery that seems to be unparalleled is really cool. That passion is something that will help me to become an amazing surgeon – but damn it would be cool to do with music as well…again the creative freedom that music allows is something that I find unique…to my knowledge, no fields offer the same level of expressive freedom as music – you can be very creative in construction, but it’s useless if the building doesn’t remain standing when it rains. You can be creative in surgery every once in a while, but if your patients die, they’ll ask questions…and you’ll have to answer them…Creativity on a SWAT team doesn’t really tend to go over so well “so this time guys, I’m thinking I’m gonna flip a coin before I rappel into the window and if it’s heads – I shoot the bad guys, tails I shoot the person I like least in the room…which isn’t necessarily the bad guy.”
Engineer/Designer: I definitely appreciate good design, and again the creative aspect of the profession combined with the technical proficiency needed to create something useful that won’t fall apart or break when its’ needed the most. I think a lack of true engineering is what has led to our countries’ auto company crisis. I think a lack of true engineering is why our transportation systems are quickly choking and dying. I think a lack of true engineering is why we haven’t figured out more energy efficient solutions to making durable goods easily recycled/repurposed; heating, cooling, and lighting our homes; driving our cars; flying airplanes around; and moving heavy (which if better engineered could be light) freight around. Coupled with a positive aesthetic, good well-engineered stuff
Physicist: String theory is cool. Quarks are exciting. The freedom to be a complete nerd, live in Europe (likely Switzerland), and be on the cutting edge of a whole bunch of things is intriguing. Too bad I’m likely not smart enough to do it…
Economist: The economic choices that our governments, corporations, and people make are interesting to me and I think that many of Western societies ills stem from inappropriate allocation of resources as well as inaccurate valuations of products, processes, assets, and liabilities, whether those be cars, waste treatment, people, homes, transportation options, prisons, police, or schools. Second to being a teacher, I think being an economist could fulfill a cerebral need of mine to truly, contribute to society and make an honest try to make the world a better place for everyone.
Lawyer: I like the idea of being a lawyer in a theoretical way only. Lawyers are perhaps those best equipped to handle themselves in our world, mostly due to their understanding of the legal basis by which our world works, as well as the pitfalls and holes that society, as a body of law, has in its’ fabric. Ultimately, at the very least the only thing you can rely upon somewhat is law. If you don’t know it – you don’t really know where you stand. Which is very unfortunate. Why only theoretical as opposed to in practice? Sitting down all day = no deal. I’d go nuts on day three. Suit and tie is okay a couple days a week, but isn’t there something to work on with my hands?
Landscape Architect/Farmer: I like plants. I like the idea of building something – again tangible. Using your body to do it. I like the idea of growing your own food – this was something brought home to me by reading the book the Omnivore’s Dilemma. I say landscape architect/farmer because if I could, I’d re-plant most of urban/suburban America’s boring lawns with self-sustaining gardens that would feed families and their neighbors. I’d allow people to be their own mini-serfdoms, where families could all pitch in and farm one home a week and have a huge bountiful harvest. Ultimately, reclaiming perfectly good, arable land from the chemicals and gunk that goes into “lawns” would prove healthy for our environment, as well as appealing to the eye and palate/stomach. Fresh corn, yams, tomatoes and spinach taste unlike anything I’ve ever experienced and I’d like my kids to know that taste.
Football/Rugby/Hockey: Speed, violence, working with your body, emotion, character, racing to catch your thoughts and your breath. Technical mastery, skill, agility, camraderie, and adrenaline all enter into these sports. The ability to be outdoors often (in all except hockey) holds a great deal of appeal as well. The strategic aspect of the games is enticing. Unfortunately, I have a difficult time feeling like it matters much. It could be different if it was tied to society in some meaningful way – like the winners of a particular team got to vote for a certain charity to be funded or something – but there’s really nothing at all on the line other than a “ring” which honestly – I don’t wear jewelry…
Track and Field / Speed Skating / Race Car Driving: It’s the idea of speed. Speed is very seductive to me. I like to drive fast. I love to run. Speed skating enters the equation because it is sprinting on ice. And god does it look fun. Especially the crashes and corners. The adrenaline in these sports must be sky-high. Again though, it just doesn’t seem like there is much you’d leave behind in terms of tangible accomplishments…
Soldier: Theoretically, being a soldier could be a very cool thing to do. I certainly respect the hell out of soldiers’ for being soliders, but I don’t necessarily respect what the military does. I understand that being a soldier requires two entirely different psychologies, and the ability to nimbly switch between the two personas – much like violent athletics actually – and that problems in a soldiers’ life arise when the two personalities are required to be around simultaneously… In a sense, I think that being a soldier is closer to the truth than at any other moment in one’s life. That is of course an uneducated musing from someone who is NOT a soldier. But there is excitement inherent in being a soldier – gunfire, running, screaming at innocent people to duck, shooting at people, fighting – exorcising the pent-up frustrations and day-to-day anger that “society” promulgates – for ones’ own sanity and clarity, and feeling like you are on the side of principle. Not just an empty vessel of consumerism…Or maybe it’s way less cerebral and much more about the discipline, camraderie, and surge of power and adrenaline that one feels when they shoot guns in teams, and call for their side to rain fire and destruction down on the other side. The only problem I’ve got with it is the idea of being made to kill someone…because of a lack of political will to deal with things in other, nonlethal ways…
Pilot: Again the speed thing is pretty alluring. You essentially strap yourself to the front of a bullet with two or four jet engines (read: mini-rockets) and you hurtle down a straightaway until the damned thing starts to lift off. Once you are at cruising altitude and speed you just watch the skies and talk to air traffic control to make sure you don’t hit someone else who is doing the same exact thing as you. The freedom to travel and see multiple places is cool. The technical proficiency is cool. The nomadic existence, living in hotels all the time is not. Also pilots don’t necessarily get to poke around in the cities that they fly to – they’ve got to sleep and get ready for their next flight oftentimes. All that said, I would absolutely LOOOVE to fly a large jet – not a Boeing 737 or anything like that – I’m thinking of a plane the size of a Lockheed C-5 or C-17…one with the wingtips that look tiny, but are actually 9 feet tall…I have to admit I wish there was a way to fly an airplane and not emit massive amounts of carbon…I also wish there was a way to do that without working for the military OR commercial airlines, both unappealing employers to say the least.
Coast Guard Rescue Swimmer: You get paid. To jump out of helicopters into pitching and rolling 40 foot seas. Swim to a person who is cold, tired, and likely slowly drowning. Put a harness on them – and then haul their asses out of the water…back into the perfectly good helicopter you jumped out of. You then take care of them while that helicopter hauls ass to the mainland…can you say adrenaline?
High School Teacher / Professor: I can think of no other job more important to society than that of a teacher. It is unfortunate however, that our teachers aren’t the ones held in the highest regard – our teachers are barely paid a living wage, and they are consistently underequipped in terms of learning materials
Dancer: Much like being a musician, being a dancer allows a great deal of creative flexibility, and it also allows you to work with your body. There is a certain adrenaline that goes with performing, and you get to listen to music all day long – although it’s probably the same music, all day long. Unfortunately, the pay sucks and the vicious nature of the business isn’t all that appealing.
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