Who knew I'd be back where it all started? When I started interpreting, I knew it wouldn't be for the long haul. I'm a nomad, a jack of all trades; my interests span from makeup and beauty to riding horses and getting dirty, cerebral topics to the mundane; so staying in one thing for an extended time is hard for me. Getting that itch to move on and try something new, figure out some awesome new experience...that's hard to ignore. I don't even like to stay in the same apartment for over a year. That said, I never ever thought I'd be back in a kitchen.
When I was 15, I got my first job as a buss-girl. At that age you don't know the world, at least I didn't. I did my job, never got tips and didn't know that wasn't right. And as a shy person, I wouldn't ask questions- like "where do I get my lunch". Regardless, I moved around that job to various positions for the next 4 summers and swore up and down I would never work in a kitchen again. I hated the heat, the constant lack of appreciation and rules. Not to mention, I'm no chef de couisine. As soon as I could leave that job I ran, finished school; ended up with a college degree and no direction.
At 22 I was lost, but with some directional help from friends I ended up in an interpreting program in Maine. Now, I know I've skipped some vital information, but needless to say, after 18 years in Illinois, and 4 years in Indiana, I couldn't wait to land somewhere new. Maine was beautiful, the interpreting program was a challenge, and it allowed me to go places and meet people I wouldn't have had I never been lost and sans purpose. I ended up with a part time job at a popular shoe chain as well (love shoes, hated sales). 1 year of that was enough motivation to move back to Chicago and try something else.
(To review, I've worked in hospitality/food and retail whilst living in 3 different states. None of which fit. )
That summer, I got internships with two amazing companies for editing. I both loved and hated the work. Not much social interaction, unless you count the relationship I developed with my computer. But, the places themselves were awesome: an art museum and a small publisher.
So, when those 3 months were up, I found myself, like many others, in an economic recession and unable to pursue the written word in the way I thought I might. Hitting bottom, I eventually applied and got a seasonal job with a high-end outdoor clothing/equipment company on Michigan Avenue. I figured, if I had to move back home with my mom, that I needed to at least feel important by having a job on the most popular thoroughfare in Chicago. I knew it wouldn't be enough to sustain my intellectual tendencies, however, a job is a job. That's when I decided to give the interpreting thing one more chance. I applied to a program in the city and took more classes to feed my intellectual deficiencies because, as some may understand, my brain had turned mushy standing on my feet all day asking "do you need any help?" and getting no answer from those who think they are better than you. Regardless...I ended up back in school part time and working full time.
Fast forward a few years, I was able to leave that retail position for a full-time interpreting job in an elementary school. I moved out of my mom's house and into a small apartment in the south suburbs and had a position I was looking forward to possible sticking with. Nope, through one thing and another a year later, loved the kids, but found myself without a job and ready for a BIG change. That's how I ended up in Florida interpreting for a small agency and living 15 minutes from the beach and loving it. Well... there's a bit that happened before I ended up loving it, but that's for another day.
Florida was huge for me...both personally and professionally. I was able to learn a lot about myself and knowing that I can do things by myself despite thinking I never would. I knew what it was to love a job... where it didn't feel like work and would have done it for free. Unfortunately, that didn't last as long as I had hoped, but now I know what I want to feel again. THAT.
Now, I'm back in Chicago, for almost a year, still seeking out the fulfillment I had briefly attained in Florida. I like who I am, but after 4 states and innumerable interpreting jobs, I'm getting the itch to move on to something else. Not to say I don't want to interpret anymore, because that's not the case. But, currently I have a job in a kitchen (it's interpreting) but all the rules and strict structure has come back and I fought so hard to get out of it, that being back in this world has really made me think twice about what I want.
Likes: Dislikes:
freedom to make my own decisions uniforms
my own rules too much structure
expression of thought no team work/being cutthroat
non-conformity lack of recognition
intellectual integrity stupidity
That's all for now.. gotta jet. More to come!!!
