What do you do when you're not working on your house?

[awomanwithahammer]

I was reading some posts, and the general knowledge displayed by some folks just blows me away. I thought it might be interesting to find out what folks in the District do for their day jobs. Some of them we know, like Heartwood. But others aren't obvious.

I'll start. I don't have a day job anymore (my house IS my day job!) but my background is in clerical work. I job-hopped for several years and stayed home with my kids for several years, and then I was an administrative assistant at the local college for 18 years. I started out as a secretary, but they promoted me to administrative assistant. No pay increase, just a change in title.

Anyone else want to chime in?

[mjt]

The first 20 years of my day job I was a software developer. Since then I've lead/managed software development teams. Because my day job often doesn't have outcomes you can touch and feel, it's nice to have a hobby that does.

As a result I sometimes describe myself as "a builder of things virtual and physical"...

[GinaC]

I started out working in the fashion industry after getting my degree at F.I.T. in NYC in the late 80's. Then I worked at Juilliard in the costume shop and did some freelance work for the American Ballet Theatre making tutus. That's when I started getting sick, and my doctor at the time told me I had fabric allergies, so I started temping and then got several nice secretarial jobs. I was working at Lehman Brothers on 9/11, but happened to be off that day. After that, I moved back down to my hometown in Northern Virginia and got an "administrative assistant" job in the conservation department the year before the National Museum of the American Indian was set to open. I was working for one of the curators when it opened and planned to stay there.

Then I got really sick and had to quit. In 2010 I finally got my fibromyalgia diagnosis. So I've been either retired or disabled since then depending on who you ask, since I've been denied disability three times because I don't want to take experimental drugs.

Before 9/11 my mother and I purchased a 1933 co-op in Brooklyn, and I learned real quick how to renovate it when our contractors ran off to Israel with all our money.

So yeah, currently my house is my job. A few years ago I learned goldsmithing, so I plan to really get into that once I get the house done.

[Gothichome]

conceptualizing the next old home project.
I’m a journeyman Heavy Duty mechanic by trade. Spent thirty years traveling the world fixing oil rigs and other really large heavy equipment, mostly in places no one has ever heard of. Was hoping to be retired buy now, but no, we bought an old home.
My current day job is fixing farm tractors, it keeps me off the streets.
And for those lazy days, sit with a glass of wine or a cold beer and watch my river by.

[Gothichome]

I started out working in the fashion industry after getting my degree at F.I.T. in NYC in the late 80's. Then I worked at Juilliard in the costume shop and did some freelance work for the American Ballet Theatre making tutus. That's when I started getting sick, and my doctor at the time told me I had fabric allergies, so I started temping and then got several nice secretarial jobs. I was working at Lehman Brothers on 9/11, but happened to be off that day. After that, I moved back down to my hometown in Northern Virginia and got an "administrative assistant" job in the conservation department the year before the National Museum of the American Indian was set to open. I was working for one of the curators when it opened and planned to stay there.

Then I got really sick and had to quit. In 2010 I finally got my fibromyalgia diagnosis. So I've been either retired or disabled since then depending on who you ask, since I've been denied disability three times because I don't want to take experimental drugs.

Before 9/11 my mother and I purchased a 1933 co-op in Brooklyn, and I learned real quick how to renovate it when our contractors ran off to Israel with all our money.

So yeah, currently my house is my job. A few years ago I learned goldsmithing, so I plan to really get into that once I get the house done.

Gina, goldsmithing, now that’s a bit different. We have (had) several folks in the fashion and stage business.

[Gothichome]

MJT, now there is a career with a lot of conceptualizing. One of the smart folks who help make the magic of the digital world work.

[Gothichome]

AWWAH, the back bone of any organization.

[1918ColonialRevival]

By day, I'm an engineer. My wife is a nurse.

Now that my health has been improving, I've been getting back into working on the house along with my other hobbies. When I'm not working on the house or one of our vehicles, I can be found restoring furniture, pinball machines, appliances (small and large), phonographs, radios, basically anything old that's mechanical and/or electrical.

My wife's hobbies are collecting vintage cookbooks and restoring antique brass cash registers.

[phil]

worked in printing in my earlier years, pressman then press technician, then remote troubleshooter for complex computer driven CNC machines that make printing plates. love working on cars, metalwork machining welding etc. I got into old radios as and interest, I learned a bit about old "hollow state" electronics and cabinet repair. I love antiques. I really got into woodworking and love it. built my own kitchen cabinets while my dad was still around and able to pass on some knowledge. he was a cabinetmaker and a carpenter and I learned a lot from him. I learned a lot about wiring , rewired my whole house. I'm a millwright and fix all sorts of stuff mostly mechanical , some electrical. I've got a bunch of older cars, mostly Volvo's an 80's boat lots to keep me interested and busy. I try to find some source of accomplishment every day even if it's just something minor, I need that. I think I'm happier now not doing the technical as much as more hands on repairs. I'm taking courses to perhaps go into instructing if I get tired of crawling around under machinery with wrenches but I like doing that now. I like to scan craigslist free and just see what comes up. I find materials and sometimes projects, stuff that needs repair. met some really nice people donated some stuff back as well. I like restoring machinery. I like old tools. each is like a little extension of what I can do so I have lots. I'm pretty versatile. the giant mortgage eats up a lot of my expendable income but I keep busy and try to keep ahead of the game by doing stuff that doesn't involve huge expenditures. I think I appreciate the 1930's mentality of being resourceful. I like 1930's deco stuff. sometimes I do stuff because I'm interested and not so much for profit. like restoring antiques or thinking up inventions. I like taking ideas and making them into projects. Sometimes its a hair brained way to save money but also I enjoy this as a pastime so I can spend some crazy amount of time on some projects and chalk it up to entertainment. I like getting lost in a bunch of projects but I try to balance that and enjoy myself, maybe being a little less productive but Ive always got a few things that I'm working on or planning to do and that keeps my mind busy. no kids. I got too old all of a sudden but I have a nice girlfriend who is super supportive and kind and we get along really well. I did some catch and release and had some drama and adventures along the way. I'm finding it a lot more peaceful now with a partner that I really like and who works with me, We pull together and we've become very close. finally a match! Ive got a little cat that is a huge part of my life, she's very friendly and always game for a little love. sometimes it seems like I can spend half the day letting her in letting her out and playing with her.
fun to blather on here with like minded folk. Its often interesting to try to think of ways to help and approach projects. I probably post too much and carry on.. but people seem to put up with it here
Good post nice to hear about what others are into aside from house repairs.

[mjt]

MJT, now there is a career with a lot of conceptualizing. One of the smart folks who help make the magic of the digital world work.

I surround myself with smart folks. If I'm the smartest person in the room, there's a problem.

For my college internship I worked at the company that built the Tuned Mass Dampers for the Hancock building in Boston. They also made earthquake tables, wind tunnels, wave pools, and other software controlled test apparatus and sensors. Very smart people indeed and a very cool experience.

Since then telecom, banking, transportation logistics, debt collection, energy management (software that controls power plants and the electric grid), air traffic control, and enterprise software for the company owned by the world's wealthiest Canadian (if you've used products from that company you've likely used my software...).