Thursday (er…Friday) Threesome: Dream Jobs
Posted in Thursday Threesome, Writing on 08/07/2009 08:46 am by ifferjennOn the Thursday Threesome, I’ll choose a theme and describe three things that have to do with that theme. Wow! I’ve suddenly become popular! Which, of course, meant that I happened to have an unexpected adventure yesterday, delaying my Thursday Threesome. Rather than skip it, here’s what I meant to write about…Three dream jobs I’d like to learn how to snare:
- College Professor: I live in Worcester, which has about a dozen colleges, and within commuter rail distance of Boston, which has another three or four dozen. I have a Master’s Degree. I used to teach high school, but found there was a pesky complication of parents. (Yes, I realize this is ironic, as I’m about to become a parent of a child in school.) When I did college administration, I loved being able to just work with the kids. So, before I go back to get my PhD, how do I get into teaching college?
- Director: Oh, how I miss theatre… When I was teaching at the aforementioned high school, I was also the Drama Coach. Seriously, that was by far the highlight of my day. It was refreshing to go to a place where students actually wanted to be there. And wrangling them into a production was immensely satisfying for me, feeding just enough of my ego without having me on stage the entire time. Plus, I’m also incredibly obsessive-compulsive when it comes to a production, so having that big-picture control was great. Oh, and did I mention my degree is in Drama? Does anyone have a connection or two in the Massachusetts local theatre? Closer than Lowell would be nice, though I would love more opportunities to work with the 119 Gallery.
- NPR Commentator: This is one I would love to do part-time. It incorporates two of my favorite pasttimes: writing and listening to myself talk. Seriously, though, I do enjoy the short essay vs. the long novel, and I’d like to think I have some humor to balance out whatever facts might happen along. I’m also pretty close to WGBH and their fantastically beautiful new building. How does one score the occasional NPR commentary?
Have an idea for a Thursday Threesome? Leave a comment, and I’ll see what I can do!
August 7th, 2009 at 10:03 am
Well, you mentioned three jobs I wouldn’t mind having. And while I can’t help you with any of them (sorry), I will say that you should check out Sarah Vowell’s essay collections if you haven’t already. I own “The Partly Cloudy Patriot,” with the essays inside ranging from good to excellent. I mention this because she works at NPR. If you buy them, you may reverse the trend in the publishing world, where it is believed that the only thing that sells less copies than a collection of short stories is a collection of essays (at least among prose pieces. I don’t imagine poems selling very well, either).
August 7th, 2009 at 11:28 am
Oh my gosh! Now that you mention it, I love Sarah Vowell’s writing. I picked up Assassination Vacation as an audiobook, as I’ve liked her This American Life contributions and I have a thing for assassination history. I’m itching to pick up The Wordy Shipmates next, I think.