Don't Judge a Book by it's Cover; And Please Put Your Knickers Away
For the last month I have been 'freelancing' in terms of employment - teaching dancing and temping as a housekeeper. I have been pretty nervous to admit this, but I am horribly happy and content right now, working on nothing that remotely constitutes a graduate career and earning little while still living with my parents. I have been busy making new friends, catching up with old ones, and struggling not to plan an escape to some remote corner of the world. In the last week I have considered Bali, Cambodia, Vietnam and Thailand, but for now I think I will put this on hold, as I have just been invited to the furthest place from the British Isles on Earth next week - France. This game-changing invitation is as a result of my temp work as a housekeeper at a local residential conference centre for the last few weeks. The staff there are some of the friendliest and most upbeat individuals I have ever met despite having to clean up after other people everyday. I feel like I have been there for months rather than days, as every staff member is made to feel equal to the next regardless of job description or wages. I only have one fault so far with my job, and it is not an uncommon one I'm sure. Aside from the surprise of business ladies leaving their knickers lying around their room next to an empty bottle of wine and the neighbouring (male) room's bed untouched, it is the attitude of people who sit still all day rather than take part in any physical activity that surprises and somewhat upsets me. As I was cleaning the males (I hasten to add disgusting toilets), two ladies came out of their seminar room to use the facilities. As a housekeeper/cleaner, I make myself scarce. However before I left their earshot one exclaimed 'There are a lot of children about today', while the other agreed adding 'I think it's the school holidays.' I wanted to scream at them and shake their chubby cheeks from office work all day - I am not a child!! And I have a very respectable degree thank you very much! But following 4 months of an unpaid graduate internship I needed some money, and as it turns out, I actually really look forward to going into work everyday. I may not be solving the world, or this companies, financial woes, or fighting for world peace, but I am on my feet for 7 and a half hours a day cleaning up after them to enable them to do their job, and learning the apparent hierarchies of the world. It has been a humbling experience to work with some of the happiest people I have ever met, despite them all earning little above minimum wage they do not begrudge their job or lifestyles. That just shows that Bob Marley et al, really were right when they said that Money doesn't buy happiness. Just like the private school child who assumed I was Polish purely because I was working as a dinner lady at his school for 6 hours, I feel sorry for the business men and women out there who have forgotten what it was like when they started their career and no longer have any concept of the hard work millions of low paid workers do everyday while they ignorantly graze on unhealthy snacks while staring at their computer screen. I am so glad I have accepted a job as a housekeeper for the next few months, not only because I get to go to France for a team building two days next week, but also because it is helping me to appreciate different hierarchies in this world, with the hope that one day I will have enough money and experience to help others find employment at any level in whatever sector they choose, in my own little quest to decrease families dependence on the state welfare system and increase their independence, home security and self-confidence to achieve something in life, be that from becoming Prime Minister, to simply getting out of bed every morning and making it to a place of work.
0 Comments
The days have flown by this week as I have gazed bleary eyed from train and coach windows at the wintry landscape. I am concerned slightly for myself at the minute however, as I manage to fill my hours eating copious amounts of bread and procrastinating from doing anything other than what I should be doing! In the last 7 days I have visited no less than 4 UK cities all along the M4. I spent a quick Friday night in Cardiff and then on to Swansea for Saturday to while away the 'big wide world' fears and pretend I was an undergraduate again just for one night. I then travelled briefly back to Kent before popping to Bristol for a couple of days. I have always wanted to live in Bristol as my view of it is a busy eclectic city still small enough to bump into friends in the town, so this was a great opportunity for me to learn more about the area. After one cocktail and a couple of ciders I was into my friend-making zone and danced the night away with some lovely random people in a small graffiti-covered bar. I relish the opportunity to make new friends and see life from a different point of view; think of all the billions of people you'll never ever meet in the world, at least I'm almost scratching the surface! Aside from the intoxication of my week and weekend, my biggest revelation was walking from Victoria Coach Station to Charing Cross in London along the Embankment and through Westminster. Despite the gloomy weather and drab concrete smothering the lifeless grass, I smiled as I remembered all of the other European cities I visited last year, and how amazing London really is if you look close enough. I have lived 40 minutes outside of London all my life, and yet it is only now that I am beginning to appreciate its history and value, despite the weather. I often think there is a joke about a person being 'touristy' especially if they are local to an area, however really we are all tourists, and should grasp the opportunity to discover new places and learn more about where we are from with both hands. I suppose in writing my blog I'm not only telling a story to you, but also to myself; putting my thoughts down on paper so they become more palatable and can be used for your and my personal development. In this case my lesson of the week is that being comfortable in what you are doing is not enough, you must 'do one thing that scares you every day' (Eleanor Roosevelt). |
About meI enjoy writing and have had experience from my degree and through working on news posts. I hope to use this blog as a summary of extraordinary things I've discovered or witnessed in everyday life. Archives
March 2020
|