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"What do you do?" | Pad Patter 4.21.16

I have been using 'retired' for awhile, but usually I say I work for veggies. Yup. I deliver produce to people's homes for a local farm. I get a small amount per box I deliver plus a box of veggies each week.

But still a homeschooling mom whose end is in sight -- my youngest will be in 10th grade this fall.
 
staciahall said:
You say CPA.... everybody wants to ask you tax questions
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I used to have this problem. I worked for Ernst & Young for many years, as an AUDITOR. I never even did my own taxes. Yet others would FOREVER ask me tax questions. I don't know...ask your accountant! LOL
 
As you all probably know, it's very hard to explain digital scrapbooking to someone who has no concept of what it's about. I typically say something like, "I own an online store and community for digital artists." Then, if they seem to get that idea, I explain it's for scrapbooking, art journaling and hybrid crafting.
 
I love learning about the different jobs and careers people have. If someone asks me what I do, I usually say, I don't know ... I'm still figuring it out.

Right now ... part time substitute teacher. That sounds impressive, doesn't it? LOL.

I've been a SAHM since 1997. I dropped out of law school when I finished my first year. I had a brand new baby and didn't want to be away from him. I dabbled in selling Tupperware for a couple years. When the kids were in 2nd and 4th grade, I started substitute teaching and entered a credential program. With the "Great Recession" I couldn't secure permanent teaching and my credential expired. My son was challenging in high school and it was easier to focus on the kids these past few years. My marriage fell apart as well so I've been working on getting myself mentally healthy again. I'm trying to decide if I still want to teach. I don't want to work full time during my daughter's senior year, but come late 2017, I think I'd like to be working full time. In the meantime, my yard and pool have been sorely neglected and I've been putting hours and hours into gardening and pool care as well. Add that to the resume ... :)

Non scrappers seem impressed when I show them what I do with my photos ...
 
I say part-time Dental Hygienist and full-time mom & wife.

People either respond that they love their dental ASSISTANT ;) (Don't get me wrong- my assistant is my favorite person in the universe- but I have a Bachelor of Science degree in Dental Hygiene and have taken more board exams & tests and continuing education per year to be certified than most professions! The general public thinks we just polish people's teeth & look pretty :no2)

OR they respond with "I have this tooth...." while opening their mouths! :p
 
Contemplater, next step planner, mom & Taxi (it's getting old he's 27 soon to move near the bus), hopefully soon to be full time Masters student and future counselor/Marriage Family Therapist (all in process)
 
I used to hate getting asked this when the kids were younger - where we live, most of the women worked and there was a definite divide between those who worked and those who did not. It was considered to be an embarrassment if you voluntarily stayed home with the kids.

Now, I don't care. I am a stay at home Mum and quite pleased about it. Work/don't work, as long as you are a kind/considerate person, that's all that matters. I as enormously lucky in that my husband's wage can have us living comfortably- but he works 12 hours a day at the moment so I do literally everything else.

The kids are growing up so I am looking to do some volunteer work, but in no hurry..
 
BevG said:
I have been using 'retired' for awhile, but usually I say I work for veggies. Yup. I deliver produce to people's homes for a local farm. I get a small amount per box I deliver plus a box of veggies each week.
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but I would love doing something like this, perfect job, social and fun!
 
ljonezy said:
I say I'm retired because of disability
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That's how I feel, too. I've been on disability for almost 10 years because of a stupid surgeon. So now I just say that I'm a digital scrapbooker who works for some fabulous designers. Then I have to explain what a Creative Team is and why I get stuff for free.
 
KarenW said:
Now, I don't care. I am a stay at home Mum and quite pleased about it. Work/don't work, as long as you are a kind/considerate person, that's all that matters. I as enormously lucky in that my husband's wage can have us living comfortably- but he works 12 hours a day at the moment so I do literally everything else.
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Yes, we should be supportive of all mothers, no matter their "work" status.

When DH was in grad school he worked 12 to 15 hrs a day in his lab (or more if an experiment wasn't cooperating). I was in retail management before I had kids; I could work from 11am till 11pm at the holidays or back to school time, so there was no way finding affordable daycare for an infant was possible. So I stayed home not because DH made a ton of money (though he did get paid to go to grad school, unlike many people) but because daycare prices made working impossible.

And where I've lived, like near an expensive part of Houston, not working is a badge of honor, so I felt like a fraud when I'd say I wasn't working cuz it implied a few extra zeroes on DH's paycheck.
 
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I usually just say I'm a consulting engineer, which is vague and usually enough for most people. I only provide additional details about the type of engineering if asked. Specifically though, I'm a geotechnical and environmental engineer, which is a branch of civil engineering.
 
Like a lot of people, I hate that question... like you are going to be defined too much by it I guess? But SAHM or "my kids" is how I usually answer.
 
Yes, my farm is a CSA - well, it is not really my farm. It is a family operated farm about 70 miles from my house - down where the land is flatter and the weather warmer.
 
I usually say I'm a graphic designer and leave it at that. Trying to explain that I make templates for digital scrapbookers makes most peeps get a quizzical look on their face followed by awkward silence, because they aren't even sure what to ask then. LOL

Before I made templates, I simply said I was a domestic goddess. Hee hee
 
We are all COO - chief operating officers of our homes - and keepers of memories.
 
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