Digger Posted February 19, 2016 Share Posted February 19, 2016 I gave up work in 1998 due to war related problems and am retired on a T&PI veterans' pension. I was 52 at the time. T&PI is short for "Totally & Permanently Disabled". My working life was in sales and management starting with working in a local hardware store until National Service took me away to the army. I got a job as a sales rep after the army and have represented a number of manufacturing companies initially selling electrical appliances. (Kelvinator being one of them) I was in a management position with Pye through the release of colour TV here in Australia, and what an exciting time that was! Along the way I developed an interest in radio, starting with CB and then moving to Ham radio. My knowledge from that became my qualifications for a job in the 2 way radio industry. I worked in that industry up until retirement selling both marine and land based equipment, and for a number of years specialising in remote area equipment, Flying Doctor HF and such. Part of that job involved a measure of training on my part as sending someone into the outback with a radio system that they don't understand wasn't an option. I taught a basic understanding of HF radio wave propagation via the ionosphere to groups such as Army, CSIRO, universities, TV production companies and many, many private travellers. Also lots of companies taking tourists into remote area. I also worked as a real estate agent for a few years all but completing the full agents licence at night school. Just got sick of working 7 days a week with school or study taking up 4 of my nights. I love my work and was devastated being forced into retirement through illness at such an early age! I guess for me the saving grace was living on a bit of land with so much needing to be done all the time. I never have nothing to do! I have done a few voluntary things such as mentoring kids in late primary school, also did a stint as a "Fishcare" representative wandering around our waterways helping fishermen understand the local rules, and giving them a few hints from local knowledge. Nowadays the physical work is getting a bit much and so soon we will move on from here I guess, but then I will devote my time to becoming a good fisherman! Do you have a story you'd like to tell? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LPguitarman Posted February 19, 2016 Share Posted February 19, 2016 I work in the material handling business. Conveyors and Palletizers. I am in the application engineering department. Basically designing and estimating Conveyor systems and Palletizers. 29 years at the same company doing the same job. Of course, 29 years ago I was using pencil, paper and a drafting desk to draw the conveyor systems and price the conveyor. Now, everything is on the computer. Auto Cad for drawing, Excel Spread Sheets for pricing, etc... Before the 29 years here, I was at another company, doing the same thing for 5 1/2 years. Turns out that other company was since purchased by my current company. So, benefits wise, I have 34 1/2 years seniority. 54 years old, and still going strong. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LarryUK Posted February 19, 2016 Share Posted February 19, 2016 I'm a self employed decorator. I've been at it for 32 years (I'm 57 now, started at 15). I did undertaking for 8 years in the middle, but still did the decorating as an extra thing. My body is giving up. My knees are shot. I've got two slipped discs and trigeminal neuralgia caused by a neck injury. I suffer with anxiety, panic attacks and depression. So, I can't work as I did and financially I'm on my uppers. So. There you go. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Digger Posted February 19, 2016 Author Share Posted February 19, 2016 I'm a self employed decorator. I've been at it for 32 years (I'm 57 now, started at 15). I did undertaking for 8 years in the middle, but still did the decorating as an extra thing. My body is giving up. My knees are shot. I've got two slipped discs and trigeminal neuralgia caused by a neck injury. I suffer with anxiety, panic attacks and depression. So, I can't work as I did and financially I'm on my uppers. So. There you go. Sorry to hear about your health problems Larry and I can relate to how hard that makes things. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Karloff Posted February 19, 2016 Share Posted February 19, 2016 Moving backwards through my life, I am currently a Project Coordinator for a Local Elevator Co. I worked in construction for them for about a year prior to the desk job. worked in the electronics field for 20 some years, worked at Harley Shop for 6 years in service. Lumber yard for a couple years. Installed carpeting for a year. Just played music for 1st 2 years out of High School (good times). Like Larry, my body is breaking down fast. slipped and bulging discs, arthritis in my neck, bursitis in shoulder, right knee is shot, left hip wearing out over compensating for right knee. But i still get to play music thank God. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ksdaddy Posted February 19, 2016 Share Posted February 19, 2016 When I was a kid I picked potatoes during harvest. 30 cents a barrel. All the local schools shut down for a minimum of 3 weeks so the kids could go to work. At 17 I worked on a potato harvester and also loaded trailers with 50# bags of potatoes. 1000 of them. Catching them at the conveyor belt and running to the other end of the trailer to stack them. At 18 I was cleanup/prep at the local Toyota/Volvo dealer, cleaning up the used cars and also prepping the new ones, taking the cosmoline off, applying stripe packages, all that. At 19-20 I was an auto mechanic. Loved working on my own stuff but not someone else's. Did some work on a farm down the road, plowing and harrowing for the '81 crop with a Massey Ferguson 1080. I was a courier for the National Guard Enlisted Association for a few weeks, getting $3.35/hr and 10 cents a mile. Went to work at a french fry processing plant (1200 employees) with a broom in my hand. Got on a forklift and loved every second of it. I would drive forklift for the rest of my life and never retire if I could arrange it. Stayed there for 2 years until the NY owner decided he was paying us too much and shut the whole operation down. It was bought up the next summer and I went back under a different company. Stayed there another year and then one night walked out the door and never came back because I was opening up my own guitar shop on a $2000 personal loan and some sketchy contacts in the wholesale musical merchandise industry. I basically starved for two or three years but made some lifelong friendships, as the string changes were always free and the coffee pot was always on. In 1987 I went to work for a manufacturer of golf cleats and related sport shoe hardware. The parent company had over 90% of the golf spike market and we, the subsidiary in a converted potato storage facility, made about 97% of the plastic spikes, the remainder being made by Footjoy, a completely different design. I started in the shipping department, took it over a month later, ended up doing most of the production control AND running the shipping dept. I saw my chance to take over the mixing department of all the raw plastic so I took that role over (same money, less stress). I stayed there until 9/11/1992 when the yuppie puke that owned the company shut us down while 5 trailer trucks pulled in with jobbers to dismantle everything and armed security guards stood at the exits while we punched our time cards for the last time. He moved the entire operation to NH where it was cheaper. It's since been moved to China. In '93 I went into purchasing for yet another french fry plant. I ran a stock room and drove around to the various local vendors, picking up and stocking stuff for the maintenance crews. That factory got bought out and basically shut down, which is typical of the Canadian companies that rule us in northern Maine, Irving and McCains. Competition? Buy them and pull the plug. Again I was a courier for some scam telemarketing service, delivering coupon booklets and trying to upsell them when I knocked on the door. On a good day I made $30 and only burned $15 in gas. I then took a job as a supported employment specialist, providing guidance, work ethics, routine and training to members of our society with long term psychiatric conditions, trying to weave them back into the work force. We had a bunch of offices to clean and lawns to mow. I seldom had anyone in my program because they preferred to stay home and collect an SSI check...too many "work" hours and that check would get sliced hard. So basically I was a janitor and groundskeeper with an occasional helper. Worst job I ever had in my life. 22 months of daily hell. I walked out one day in late 1995. In early 1996 another company asked me to come work for them doing the same thing. I reluctantly took it. One of the girls I 'coached' had been hit by a truck when she was 12 and had traumatic brain injury. Her father was a prominent potato farmer and he used some networking to get her into a volunteer position at the local soil conservation office. A year into it I was hired by that conservation agency as a temp. I was a temp for 2 years until the budget said I must go. I was immediately hired by a conservation district 55 miles away. I stayed there from 1999-2002 when I was hired full time by the local soil conservation agency, the same one who sent me home 3 years earlier because of budget. I am still employed by them, grossly overpaid. However in 2014 I was transferred to the office 55 miles away (same building as 1999-2002) where I remain today. I have 6 years left until I can retire at 62 with 20 years service and I canNOT wait. It's cushy, good money, and I even telework every Friday, but I want to retire. I don't care about the money. I refuse to work until 65 or 70 just so I can have $3.00 more in my check. Nope. Turn me loose, set me free, I'll take a pittance check and make it work. I want to build bird houses or walk around with a metal detector or volunteer at the animal shelter or run errands for shut ins. Please God let me do that before I die. Eff the 9-5 thing anymore.... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Digger Posted February 19, 2016 Author Share Posted February 19, 2016 I've had 16 jobs in my time but I think you beat me hands down Scott! Thank you for telling us your most interesting story. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jdgm Posted February 19, 2016 Share Posted February 19, 2016 Hmmm....I've had many jobs; started by commuting to London aged 17 in 1971, hated it. So worked locally, building sites, van driving. Then worked in record stores for some years in the early-mid 70s, things were really buzzing back then; 1974 was great. Got fired, went back to college - a complete waste of 3 years, dropped out due to 3 deaths in family. More crap jobs and bands too. Eventually became a locally successful self-employed guitar teacher - could say pro musician and home studio owner but the money came in through teaching - for over a decade. That finished in '97 for various reasons....trained as computer programmer on IBM AS400s but never really 'got' it. Eventually landed good job in education admin and managed to keep it for 13 years until made redundant 31/12/14. Paid as much as I could into pension scheme. Now 61, have tiny pension to help, determined to only do music now, and this time for myself. Money very tight, using up savings and 2016 has started v badly. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JScott Posted February 19, 2016 Share Posted February 19, 2016 20 years and a week in the US Air Force working with various Electronic Communications systems from HF Radio to Cryptology systems and everything in between. Retired from AF in Fairbanks and have now been in the IT business for 18 years. Currently the Deputy Director fro a 30 man operation here in Fairbanks. I am definitely not working in this field or any stressful field until 66 for "full" social security. Would love to get one of those travel host jobs where I film everywhere I go and sell it to PBS or National Geographic but I'm afraid that market is pretty tight and I really just want to travel for fun. In the last few years the wife and I have traveled around the Alps twice for a couple weeks and we are going back to Northern Germany again this spring. If I could only find out how to reverse this cycle of working most of the year and vacationing a few weeks I'd be a happy camper! Oh well back to work, J Scott Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
fromnabulax Posted February 19, 2016 Share Posted February 19, 2016 Well, let's see. I think every job I have ever had was done to tide me over until my next music gig, so.... Bagged groceries, shoveled cow manure at a county fair, drove taxis, worked as a long distance telephone operator, also a directory assistance operator, worked as a errand boy for Reg Grundy while a lad living down your way Digger, also while in Oz I worked at the Golden Circle cannery in Brisbane, the Kee Ora cannery in Melbourne, the Holden auto assembly line, some forgotten shoe factory in Sydney, warehouse manager for household goods in Melbourne, also took orders at a plumbing supply house in Melbourne, bottled perfume in Sydney, worked promotions for a record company, worked A and R for a record company, wrote advertising copy for record companies, wrote a regular music column for a magazine, worked in various public libraries, been working lately as a possible Deacon in my church while assisting my priest in various capacities, was a guitar instructor, picked grapes, and also of course, the music. Gigging, touring, recording, engineering and production. I suspect there are more nor coming to mind. Best of all though? Proud stay at home dad to the world's coolest 15 year old. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
btoth76 Posted February 19, 2016 Share Posted February 19, 2016 Hello! I am Russian language translator by education. Sadly, - I can say -, what I have earned with my profession didn't pay off the efforts and time spent learning it. I always had a passion for cars. I had a few US cars, I did tinker. By trial and failure, and lots of self-education, I learnt a lot about performance modifications. That's how I got hired by some local wealthy guys to restore and modify their collection of imported American wrecks. That was in the early '00s. Today, I work as a senior technical editor for a Swedish IT company. My main duty is creating spare part packages that are connected to service instructions within Volvo ABs aftermarket content management system. That concerns Volvo/Renault/UD, and now Mack Trucks. On demand, I help out the guys next room, with calculating repair times for JLR. That's what I currently do since 2007. But I did lot of other things, that didn't work out for me on longer term: IT support at Central European University; I also built pipes and manifolds for ventilation systems; Took care about my village's daily maintenance duties. Bence. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
pippy Posted February 19, 2016 Share Posted February 19, 2016 Photographer. Pip. EDIT : my brief iPhone scan didn't hint we were expected to give more detail... Did OK at school and accepted offer from Uni of Dundee to study Pure Maths. Last minute 'Eureka' moment sees me transfer to Graphic Design course. After qualification work in said job but realise I prefer the photographic assignments to the graphic ones and go back to take B.A. Photography in Edinburgh. Leave Edinburgh (reluctantly) to seek work in London. This was in 1987. Been working as a photographer down here ever since. Pip. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rabs Posted February 19, 2016 Share Posted February 19, 2016 Ohh ive done a fair few jobs.. Started off working as an assistant sound engineer (not including my time working in the markets when I was in my teens and then Pizza Hut as a delivery driver, but they were never serious (obviously)... I worked at about three different studios over three years including Berwick Street Studios where some cool stuff has been recorded and I worked at the studio where the Beatles recorded the video to All You Need is Love (called the Sound Studio). But that was never to last, bad pay, terrible hours and with little prospects.. Maybe if you are lucky you get enough experience you get to be a proper sound engineer and then a producer, IF YOUR LUCKY.. I was having way too much fun with my social life at that time to dedicate myself to it... After that was my main career which was in computer games starting as a tester (got the job completely by accident) and worked my way up to be a designer and producer of games.. Did that for like 18 years.. Problem being the industry is a well dodgy one, keeping up with technology, companies coming up and going down all the time etc.. I was made redundant like 8 times during that period... And in between two jobs I had the best job ever as a video and sound editor for the BBC. Mainly doing sports but doing stuff like live gigs too.. Was amazing but an even harder industry to get into than the games industry.. So that never went anywhere after two years of part time work with them. Then I was an I.T. manager for two years which was the WORST job ive ever had.. An awful anf long story to that which I wont go in to... Then I was unemployed after that company went bust... And now four years later (after 2 years of actually trying to get work) im TRYING to become a Luthier (as most of you know)..And as much as I love it, its probably the hardest thing ive tried to do yet.. Heres hoping :) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Digger Posted February 19, 2016 Author Share Posted February 19, 2016 Thank you for your replies so far, I'm finding this an interesting exercise. Pippy, what type of photography do you do? Bence, you seem to have a flair with languages mate! Your English is also pretty good. One thing about living in Oz is that we tend not to worry too much about other languages as we aren't connected to any other countries. For those that are doing it tough I hope things improve soon. Living on a pension for the last almost 18 years has been challenging for us too. Fortunately we own the things we have and can squeak by. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mr. Gibson Posted February 19, 2016 Share Posted February 19, 2016 Worked on the farm for dad until I was 16, then as a orderly at a nursing home for a year,then farm machinery mechanic for 1.5 years. Went to college for diesel mechanics for 2 years after that and got my degree. Then went to work as a oilfield mechanic for a couple of years,hated it,went back to farm machinery mechanic for 4 years,raising livestock and helping dad out on the side. In 1987 started farming and ranching on my own.Got married in 1990, had 3 kids, twins in 1997, and my youngest in 2006. Still married and living happily ever after. A lot of peaks and valleys along the way,but so it goes. When you get low,you got to rise up brothers.✊ Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rct Posted February 19, 2016 Share Posted February 19, 2016 Mid level federal technocrat. I work on real time systems. I developed the one that currently runs at 160 places in America but that is being replaced by the new one being installed by some super stars. My Mrs, a federal adminocrat at the same place is about 2.3 years from retirement day. I passed my day on May 30th of 2015, the same day she bought for me the EJRW that is in the favorite guitar thread. I will not leave her in that cesspool of reprehensible people alone, so I will go in every day with her until she can get out. Off to Florida as soon as that happens. How we got here and where we been from Philly to Bermuda to Virgina is a long story that would require several glasses of some good bubbly that the Limes among us will happily make me pay for when we get over there. rct Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JayinLA Posted February 19, 2016 Share Posted February 19, 2016 I have Run Car Dealerships, Tended Bar for a Cruiseline, Worked in Security in Panama, Tended Bar at a Golf Course, Worked the Door at some Night Clubs, Worked For Deloitte as a Consultant, Started my own consulting Company, Own a Custom Knife Making Business, Played Baseball for an Independant team in Rockford IL, Done some work in the Adult Entertainment business, Owned a Carpet Cleaning Business, Then found out I'm dying from a digeniterive Heart Condition. Quit my jobs, sold my houses, stopped doing drugs, work with troubled kids, Coach High School Baseball, Coach Rec League Baseball, collect disability, Play in 2 Rock bands, 1 is not performing due to the incarceration of the drummer, and basically try to count each day as a blessing. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tman Posted February 19, 2016 Share Posted February 19, 2016 I am a diagnostic Radiologist. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
pippy Posted February 19, 2016 Share Posted February 19, 2016 ...Pippy, what type of photography do you do?... For a Living? I started out assisting anything and everyone in any sphere. Mainly for magazine publication. Lots of portraiture, lots of location, lots of interiors. One fun job I did was some pre-release snaps for 'Braveheart' with Mel, Sophie and Cath. Nice folks. I was fortunate to assist some of the greatest photographers of their time and see how they worked. That experience is beyond price. Latterly (since 2003) I've found myself working in Fine Art and Antiques 80% of the time. The rest is portraiture. At the moment somewhere between 25 and 30 volumes of my snaps which have published by the respective clients can be viewed on-line. I'll send you some links if you are curious? Quite a few Aboriginal artefacts have passed through my hands and it has been an unalloyed pleasure to see them. For personal work I recently (18 months ago) got back into the Leica world. There is absolutely nothing else comparable on the 'Photography' planet. Just before Xmas (2015) I acquired a Leica M9-P and I'm now enjoying my 'personal' photography more than ever before - and that's quite a claim, believe me. I'm a Very Happy Bunny. Pip. EDIT : If you want to try to understand the Leica mindset then try to get through this page. It's long but very accurate and very amusing! http://www.kenrockwe...om/leica/m9.htm Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
surfpup Posted February 19, 2016 Share Posted February 19, 2016 Here's my job list in somewhat chronological order Bag boy/grocery clerk U-haul renter Bag boy/grocery clerk (different store) Bread truck driver Pepsi truck driver Car salesman Suit salesman Shipping clerk Musician (on and off for $ since college and still) Public school teacher (last 27 years) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
pippy Posted February 19, 2016 Share Posted February 19, 2016 ....a long story that would require several glasses of some good bubbly that the Limes among us will happily make me pay for when we get over there.... No; that honour will be mine. Pip. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sellen Posted February 19, 2016 Share Posted February 19, 2016 Getting the gold clock next year for 25 years of welding for the same firm. then i have 20 years to go, can't wait Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sellen Posted February 19, 2016 Share Posted February 19, 2016 Edit: Well as bad times is hitting hard and we lost a big job i might not get that clock after all. The firm got to let 150 guy's leave, i might survive but i will loose a lot of my workmate Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
'Scales Posted February 19, 2016 Share Posted February 19, 2016 Landed a job with a big US company in Sydney out of uni. Retired a few months later but no-one has ever noticed through a couple of big US and Euro organisations before going non-profit. Many job roles in those biz's till late 30's as I liked to change every year or two, some interesting, got to see some beautiful and some culturally remarkable bits of the world. In the few years since 40 I try to spread my work day evenly across walking, swimming, working, guitar and internet surfing which is a pleasant blend. Basically I suspect I may be George Constanza. Plan is to 'do an rct' and retire at 55 so long as the job and markets hold up till then. I'll be comfortable but not rich in my little hippy burg and hope to travel to various parts of the globe with my wife, go fishing and play some guitar. Still, nothing's certain, you just do what you do and try not to let the bast@rds get ya down! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
deeman Posted February 20, 2016 Share Posted February 20, 2016 I worked as a crisis/intake counselor at a behavioral health hospital for 9 years. I now work as a case manager for a small health plan. We manage HMO plans and I review referrals and authorizations for members. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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