I could have cats

Hoorah for you. I am most definitely standing next to you, comrade. If and when I spend all day reading, interspersed with the odd chewy snack and walk down the shops, I feel much more accomplished than many of the ‘CV-worthy’ activities I do.

I was on the train just before, about 30 mins ago, and saw two guys in their late twenties recognise each other (probably from school or uni) in that awkward ‘I-wish-we-hadn’t-stumbled-across-each-other’ sorta way. They we both balding and in suits and after the perfunctory hellos, one said “So what are you up to these days?”

And the other said, “Not much, just working,” and pointed at his suit with that sheepish ‘i’ve joined the masses’ look. Then he said, “And what about you?”

And the first guy said, “Same, just working,” with the same lapel-tugging gesture.

And then they both had nothing else to say, and their forced smiles were really sad.

Oh, dear. Running into old school/uni people. The awkward two-step shuffleness of it all.

I mean, it’s not so much the horror of the ‘proper’ job, as they say. I’ll never be one to assume that full-time or office work, for instance, is something that slowly exsanguinates people. Although I’m sure some people feel that way about it.

In many ways, I like the part-time work I do in an office. A community station, but an office nevertheless. The rhythm; the relationships with people; the structure to it; the ability to tick things off a list (something I love doing, but that painfully gradual processes like writing, art, anything creatively inclined don’t really allow); the pay (naturally).

All of these can be positive things. Having said that, I do know some people who find the 9-5 draining and as someone yet to knuckle down into that kind of employment, I’m probably not the best judge.

What bothers me is that pressure to build skills, skills, skills. Network, network, network. Sometimes phrases like ‘networking’ and ‘skill-building’ seem like a glossy way of telling me to be social climber and I don’t want to buy into it.

And indeed – hoorah for whole days spent reading. A striking feature of life post-university is the amount of room in my head for everything else.

By the way: are you sitting on a train reading in your avatar?

As a matter of fact I am. Everything important in my life, everything documented by photographs – all has occurred on rail networks. Really.

I know what you mean about ‘networking’ and ‘skill-building’. And all of the other synonyms for these things. Crap. Ricky Gervais crap.

There’s also that middle ground of doing things for little or no money. This year I’ve been involved in quite a few projects or taken up positions that are not really financially rewarding – things that might be called ‘intershippy’ sort of work, except it’s not an internship. Yes, it will eventually look good on a CV (although that’s not why I do it) but there are some people in my life who screw up their face in confusion when I tell them about it all.

woops. double comment. idiotic internet. idiotic me.

I deleted the accidental second comment – so you’d feel like less of a boob.

But now Samwell looks like a boob for saying sorry about the double comment, when there is no second comment.

Good point. I can reinstate the second comment if it will make everyone feel better.

Maybe we can have a coffee one day? It definitely won’t do us any good as far as networking goes, but it might be the beginning of a friendship.

I’d love to! Send me an email if/when you’re in Melbourne and if/when you’re not too busy with study. Or, rather, when you are busy with study and need to procrastinate. I’m always keen to not-network.