Thursday, March 11, 2010

JHW: I value the rising sun

In my current Job Hunt Woes series.
(since my job hunt is temporarily resolved, perhaps this title is anticlimatical. Still, it works)

I value living my life, and so my current job in group homes/mental health (to simplify) is probably not for me.
I do care about the clients we help and serve, but not enough to sacrifice my whole quality of life for no other compensation.
I am very very glad to have a job, very glad. And even low pay is enough for a wise person to live off of. Barely.

But as I attempt to remain hopeful, I have come to realize this is probably a very bad line of work for me to be in, because I value my life away from work. I value my sleep. I value the arts. I value my family. I value the rise of the run, the natural arch of the day, and the dusk. This is the type of job that you can very realistically work 7 to 3, go home, get called back for an emergency at 3:45, right when you've gotten home, and then finally go home at 8 (after missing a family reunion) just to be woken up at 3 am with another crisis and have to go back to work. That's just not a sane way for a human to live, unless it's wartime or something.

Even with that said, I'm not sure how often that will happen. I *think* most times you take on that responsibility voluntarily. But I know not always.

I know the hazards of mental health are nothing different than what many nurses or police officers endure, but that doesn't mean it's a pleasant life.

I am trying to remain positive about the whole thing.

1 comment:

  1. My outlook is quite a bit more positive today. This job I'm getting started in seems livable, although its going to take awhile to get things situated. For instance, I could not be offered a college-level-position right now, at a lower pay scale, since there were no appropriate positions open. Also, there were no full-time positions open. However, I was told (and I am always skeptical of being told things by managers) that I could probably get one soon when one came available. I hope so.
    Then again, maybe I'm in a better mood cause I have a good party tonight to look forward to, and I could use it.

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