Journalist seems like it could have been a good career choice for me. Since childhood I've had a fascination with newspapers, magazines, television news, and anything that had to do with reporting the events of the world or community. I would sometimes make my own little handwritten newspapers with made up stories just as part of my playtime. In my high school and college years I would spend hours perusing newspapers and clipping articles that caught my interest. I think I could have made a good journalist, but I was more interested in trying to get mentioned in the newspaper than working for one. These days we could use more dedicated journalists instead of propagandists and spokespeople for causes and agendas. Maybe I should have been a journalist, but I'm not going to pursue that career now.
Jeweler could have been a very viable option for me I think. Both my sisters worked at a local jewelry store in their young adult years. If I had wanted to work in that jewelry store or another then I'm sure I could have gotten hired. The fact is that I've never been a big fan of jewelry and tend not to wear any myself other than my wedding ring. I've heard that jewelry has one of the biggest mark-ups of any product. It's all a matter of perceived value like most things people pursue in life. If I can't get worked up about jewelry then I think I wouldn't be a very good salesperson to try to sell it to someone else. But then I've never been that great of a salesperson anyway.
I'm probably better at judging people, but aren't most of us? My wife and I have been watching the old Perry Mason episodes of late and sometimes I'll tell my wife that if I were playing a role on the show then I'd want to be the judge. Unfortunately I guess I'd have to get a Law Degree to be a judge so I won't be sitting in the professional judge's chair. And I doubt that I'll ever play a judge on TV. I think I'd be a good judge though. I'm pretty sure that I'd be better than a lot of the judges making the news these days. Most likely I'd get kicked off the bench pretty quickly since I'm sure that not everyone would agree with my great judgmental wisdom and discernment. Yeah, forget me being judge in court, but I'm going to keep judging in my mind.
All my life I've heard the mention of "journeyman" as a career path. With the connections I had through my father, I'm sure I could have easily pursued being a journeyman to a plumber, a carpenter, an ironworker, or any of the other trades where younger workers are trained under more experienced hands. Seemed too much like labor to me so I became a "journey man" of a different sort as I started working on touring shows and taking all sorts of journeys. My "life's journey" has been a series of many actual journeys that were required to do the show business work that I did. Traveling is fun, but a journey becomes a lifestyle.
What did I do in my show business journeys? Lot's of things, but the one thing that I would name primarily is juggling. If one would have asked me in the seventies and eighties about what I did for a living then I would have likely said, "I'm a juggler." My parents were jugglers and that's what I ended up doing. Now I don't juggle for a paycheck, but make me an offer. Juggling is a big part of who I have been and who I am.
Have you ever worked in the field of journalism? What do you think is the state of journalism in our time? When have you had to appear before a judge?
Do you still juggle? Even if it's just for your own amusement?
ReplyDeleteWe could absolutely use journalists who weren't wannabe editorial writers. Who, what, when, where, why, and how need to make a comeback in the newpaper biz...
Yeah, they kinda want you to be a lawyer to be a judge...
John H, yes, I still juggle on occasion. I keep three juggling balls in the living room by our TV so I can pick them up now and then to keep my reflexes active. Last year when I was visiting my daughters we juggled some between us and that was pretty cool. They are continuing the tradition.
DeleteJournalism is in a sad state these days. We have few credible journalists, but a ton of propagandists and agenda driven folks who'd rather create news than report on actual news.
Lee
I don't think journalism is what it used to be, more's the pity.
ReplyDeleteAfter getting called for Jury Duty three times in a row one summer, I asked the judge to dismiss me - permanently - due to a medical issue. To my surprise, he did!
Your daughters continuing the juggling tradition is terrific! You must be so proud!
Juggling...the essence of life manifested in performance art. I appeared before a magistrate, (local court judge), when I was 15. I was arrested in possession of a stolen car and, funnily enough, charged with auto theft. I'm visiting on the A to Z Hop. Thanks for sharing your thoughts.
ReplyDeletehttps://dacairns.com.au/blog/f/a-to-z-blogging-challenge-j
Juggling is such an ancient art but how did you practise it as a living in the modern age...
ReplyDeleteWow, lots of J occupations!
ReplyDeleteI know you have been a juggler which I always found cool. Judge…of course we all judge. I am an insolvency counsellor so when people go bankrupt or do a Consumer Proposal, they must do 2 counselling sessions. Sometimes, they can be angry or they say they were not told something and I know they were. I have to really actively listen because they usually contradict themselves. I can tell when they have no care and when they really want to learn.
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