What Simple Job Would You Take?

[TheStatutoryApe]

A friend of mine worked at a Lowes. He started chatting with the guy who worked in the garden department and found that he was a physicist. He had apparently worked in a think tank for a major corporation that paid him handsomely to extricate himself from the field when they were bought out. He wanted to keep busy and decided he liked gardening.

I've met several people who had rather high paying jobs that decided they couldn't handle the stress and took much lesser paying jobs when they reached near retirement age. A few of my co-workers from working security had done this. My friend Bobby did the same and now works as a cook.

If you didn't have to worry about money and/or were nearing retirement would you take a simpler job? and what would it be?

Personally I enjoyed working at a coffee house years back. I think its the only job I've ever really enjoyed much. I've considered looking for a job as a bartender too.

My current job is not particularly difficult or complex. I just don't like it. ;-)

 

[Oscar Wilde]

I once read that retired corporate executives are hired by Disney to drive ferries back and forth in the Parks. I would really enjoy this job.

But also I have always wanted to mow the lawns in the median between sides of the highway. As long as I could eliminate the noise I would find this to be quite relaxing and fun!

 

[TheStatutoryApe]

I once read that retired corporate executives are hired by Disney to drive ferries back and forth in the Parks. I would really enjoy this job.

But also I have always wanted to mow the lawns in the median between sides of the highway. As long as I could eliminate the noise I would find this to be quite relaxing and fun!

Lol... I can see the pull of the title Ferry Boat Captain but Lawn Mower Jockey? ;-p

Interesting choices. :-)

 

[Danger]

I would be more than happy to take anything that I can handle both physically and mentally. I've been unemployed since the end of October, and am not eligible for EI since I was a contractor rather than an employee. This is putting a tremendous strain upon W.
Unfortunately, jobs are very scarce around here. Out of the dozen+ applications that I've put in, only one even bothered to call me in for an interview. That was for conducting telephone surveys on behalf of the government. They called back a week later to say that they'd chosen someone with more experience.
The one that really annoyed me was Lube City. I could build a car from the ground up in my sleep, and they won't hire me to change someone's oil. :grumpy:

 

[TheStatutoryApe]

I would be more than happy to take anything that I can handle both physically and mentally. I've been unemployed since the end of October, and am not eligible for EI since I was a contractor rather than an employee. This is putting a tremendous strain upon W.
Unfortunately, jobs are very scarce around here. Out of the dozen+ applications that I've put in, only one even bothered to call me in for an interview. That was for conducting telephone surveys on behalf of the government. They called back a week later to say that they'd chosen someone with more experience.
The one that really annoyed me was Lube City. I could build a car from the ground up in my sleep, and they won't hire me to change someone's oil. :grumpy:

Sorry to hear that Danger. :-/
I know that it gets harder to find jobs when you get older. I'm trying to think of jobs that would be less choosy...
Taxi driver?
You used to work tow trucks but I guess that could be physically demanding.
Didn't you used to do locksmithing?

 

[Moonbear]

That's the nice thing about academia. Some people never retire, and even if we do retire, if we get bored, we can always go back and teach a class or two just for fun...nobody ever turns down free help. We have a retired surgeon who comes into the anatomy labs to help out just for fun. It's wonderful having his perspective to learn from.

Though, one of my colleagues who just loves to talk all day jokes (I think he's joking...he might be serious) that when he retires, he's going to work as a WalMart greeter so he can keep talking to people all day. Another has turned his hobby of carving wood bowls into a small side business. That might be more along the lines of what I'd do if I were retired and bored...pick a hobby I enjoy and sell the results at craft fairs.

 

[TheStatutoryApe]

That's the nice thing about academia. Some people never retire, and even if we do retire, if we get bored, we can always go back and teach a class or two just for fun...nobody ever turns down free help. We have a retired surgeon who comes into the anatomy labs to help out just for fun. It's wonderful having his perspective to learn from.

Are there any classes outside of your primary field you might enjoy teaching? My stepfather is an engineer and teaches both CAD and cooking at the local community college.

Though, one of my colleagues who just loves to talk all day jokes (I think he's joking...he might be serious) that when he retires, he's going to work as a WalMart greeter so he can keep talking to people all day. Another has turned his hobby of carving wood bowls into a small side business. That might be more along the lines of what I'd do if I were retired and bored...pick a hobby I enjoy and sell the results at craft fairs.

A friend's father is a vietnam vet and a retired electrical engineer. He makes jewelry of silver and semiprecious stones that he sells at fairs. He goes to the VA and teaches the vets basic geology, rock polishing, and jewelry making. He also does some wood carving.

 

[Danger]

Thanks for the interest, Stats. Your suggestions are very good from an outsider's perspective, but there's some stuff that you weren't aware of.
I did, in fact, drive a cab in the old days. I wouldn't want to do it again, although it's better than nothing. Driving a bunch of armed drunks 100 km to the backroads of a native reserve was okay when I had a .45 on me, but the government took it away. (This is not to imply that I'm racist; my wife is a native. Still, it's perilous territory.) There are 2 impediments to that. The first is that there's only one cab company in town, and it's fully employed. There was another one, but the only driver got put away for dealing coke. The second, which also negates several other jobs or me working out of town, is that I don't have a driver's license. I got a one-year suspension about 6 years ago on a bogus impaired charge, and haven't been able to get it back. (It costs a couple of thousand bucks to renew.)
I never drove a tow truck, other than spelling off my buddy on a 14 hour trip. I just rode along with him to keep him company and negate my own boredom.
I was, indeed, a locksmith for some time. That meant being on 24-hour call 7 days a week for 17 years without a break. I'm getting a bit old for that, but that's not why I retired from it. Although I voted against it, majority rule of the Professional Locksmiths' Association of Alberta got us certified as a trade. There were things that I never studied because I had no intention of working on them, such as teller units and large safes. In order to be certified, I would have had to take a lot of upgrade courses, which were far out of town and cost a couple of hundred bucks a day. In combination with paying for accommodation and food, plus having no income during the courses, plus having to build a new shop van... it would have cost me over $100,000 just to stay in business. Since I had managed to maintain an average bank balance of between $75-$150, that was a bit unrealistic.

 

[Raizy]

Hmmm...

Any job that allows you to become surrounded by positive people.

 

[Danger]

Bar tender at a strip club

Reminds me of one of the cleverest off-the-cuff responses that I've ever heard. Some idiot who was into reincarnation asked my very practical buddy what he wanted to come back as. His immediate response was, 'the brass pole in a strip bar'.

edit: Hey, you changed your post!

 

[Raizy]

Damn the net froze and I edited too late.

 

[Danger]

:rofl:

 

[TheStatutoryApe]

I kinda assumed you had already thought of these things. More talking out load.
Wish I had some better ideas.

Maybe you can hustle the local billiards rooms? ;-)

I thought of making extra income playing online poker and realized that although I seem to be better than most players I am no where near good enough to do better than breaking even. Its fun at least.

I'm working security still. Not something I would wish on anyone but its a steady and easy paycheck.

 

[Danger]

Maybe you can hustle the local billiards rooms? ;)

Not local. My town is a place where very smooth hustlers from the city take their best shot and then leave with their tails between their legs. We were invited to leave the Calgary league about a dozen years ago because we beat them too consistently. The breaking point was when there were 10 trips to the World Finals in Vegas up for grabs (those were the playoff prizes). There were about 40 teams out of Calgary. We had 7 teams and took 6 of the trips. Alas, though... I have a very firm policy of never playing for money.

working security still. Not something I would wish on anyone but its a steady and easy paycheck.

I assume that you mean working as a security guard, as opposed to the security consulting that I did as part of my locksmith profession. It's not an easy job. You have hours upon hours of sheer boredom, and then once in a while an adrenaline blast. It is a lot more difficult than most people realize to remain alert after untold hours of nothing happening. I salute your dedication.

 

[TheStatutoryApe]

Not local. My town is a place where very smooth hustlers from the city take their best shot and then leave with their tails between their legs. We were invited to leave the Calgary league about a dozen years ago because we beat them too consistently. The breaking point was when there were 10 trips to the World Finals in Vegas up for grabs (those were the playoff prizes). There were about 40 teams out of Calgary. We had 7 teams and took 6 of the trips. Alas, though... I have a very firm policy of never playing for money.

If your locals are that good then I suppose lessons would be out too?

I assume that you mean working as a security guard, as opposed to the security consulting that I did as part of my locksmith profession. It's not an easy job. You have hours upon hours of sheer boredom, and then once in a while an adrenaline blast. It is a lot more difficult than most people realize to remain alert after untold hours of nothing happening. I salute your dedication.

Thank you Danger. :-)
Its true that while just about anyone can get hired on with my company the only good guards are the intelligent hard working sort.

 

[Moonbear]

Are there any classes outside of your primary field you might enjoy teaching?

None I can think of off-hand. Though, if I considered things other than university classes, I would enjoy working with illiterate adults or teens to help teach them to read. I'd also enjoy working in a public library.

I'm assuming that by the time I'm retired, landscaping would be too physically demanding to do as a regular job, otherwise things like that would be fun too. Maybe working in a nursery or greenhouse or botanical gardens where I could just pot plants rather than do landscaping would work.

 

[Danger]

the only good guards are the intelligent hard working sort.

Then your future should be assured, should you chose to remain.
I do, in fact, teach pool... but not for money. I've made it a point to put a newbie on every team that I've ever captained. Every one of them ended up kicking my *** and starting their own teams. As irritating as it seems on the surface, it makes me very proud. Apparently, I teach better than I play.
The greatest thing that happened was when a mutual acquaintance introduced me to a girl that he worked with when she turned 18. She liked pool, but didn't know much about it, so he suggested that I might give her some lessons. That was in December. By March, I'd made her a full member of my league team. At the World Finals in Las Vegas, she was tied with me for the highest win/loss record on the team. Now she plays Womens' Masters division in Calgary. I wouldn't have a snowball's chance against her, and I don't know whether that's a good thing or a bad thing.

 

[wolram]

I would not take any thing less than brain surgeon.

 

[Danger]

 

[TheStatutoryApe]

As irritating as it seems on the surface, it makes me very proud. Apparently, I teach better than I play.

I like getting my *** kicked at pool. Those are always the people I want to play against the most. To have them be your own students should definitely make you proud.

I would not take any thing less than brain surgeon.

Woly the Brain Surgeon is a pretty scary thought! ;-p

 

[JasonRox]

I'd like to work in Cafe or something too. I did that last summer and enjoyed it.

I plan on doing this for my whole life. Not the end of it.

 

[Alfi]

I know ( at least around here ) that school bus drivers are always in demand.
It's what I ended up doing when I got too old to be hired as a technician.

It keeps me busy if nothing else.
Just an idea you may not have thought of.

good luck.

 

[JasonRox]

I know ( at least around here ) that school bus drivers are always in demand.
It's what I ended up doing when I got too old to be hired as a technician.

It keeps me busy if nothing else.
Just an idea you may not have thought of.

good luck.

Dang! That's true. I never thought of that!

 

[George Jones]

Something similar to what Moonbear has already said: I would like to work at the circulation desk of a public library.

 

[rootX]

Working in few remote underdeveloped countries looks like pretty interesting. That's what I think I would like to do.

I can't do simple jobs that involve repetitive tasks.