Work and Play

About half a year ago I realized that many of the vocations that I have been involved in have vanished. Something I'd expect if I were 60, 70 or 80. It was a strange revelation on three counts; first because I have another thirty years ahead of me to work, second because these vocations were positions important to the American ideal, future and economy, and last, because it is sign that times are rapidly changing giving rise to unpredictability.

Two weeks after my last day in high school and for the next year of my life I was a directory assistance operator, a job that later folded when Ma Bell went from being a monopoly to becoming divested. I then went onto college and worked part-time teaching remedial reading to inner city school kids. Four years later, I leaped into public affairs with another public utility company. Public affairs was thriving in the image-conscious Reagan years, however later the department dismantled because of budget cuts. Then came my moment in television as a soap opera decorator, with The Guiding Light and All My Children's recent cancellation—it’s clear that soap operas are remnants from a television past when the three networks ruled the airwaves and advertisers could expect huge non-fast-forwarding audiences for their endless commercials. Then I had a stint as a CD ROM producer, but technology went to DVD, and put an end to that dinosaur. I switched to reporting for a newspaper, and with the advent of the Internet, we now know that newspapers will never resurrect; even the New York Times has gone from being hefty to tabloid thin. In fact, it seems all of the fore-mentioned vocations will never come back to life. And although I loved change and sought it out, I wish I would have not taken “work” so seriously, and enjoyed more of the ride.

So good-bye to phones, public affairs, the sound stages, the editing booth, the newspaper room, and all the rest of the relics of these disappearing vocations. I miss the diversity and ease of transitions I had and think about the people I met along the way– and doesn't it always come down to that equation– that we are here to connect to others. 

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tQsooCyjcv4