My Venezuelan husband would say “ I hate how in America they always ask you ‘What do you do?’” In Latin America they ask “ qué me cuentas?” - “what can you tell me?”
Nice. “What are your interests?” is my personal fav. Though living in Hong Kong for some years, I got used to many forms that equate to, “how much are you worth?” Once that was out of the way, all was good, but rather grated that before a shirt might be complimented, the designer had to be identified. Heightened my sensitivity to performative conformity.
I feel a large barf 🤮 coming on… how much are you worth? Will god or St. Peter or your dad or your 4th grade teacher ask you that? When you approach the pearly gates or the giant light at the End of the Tunnel of Light?
Yes, progressing through life with an open heart reveals early how little a person's worth is related to their economic standing ... yet money remains a critical necessity and maybe that's why so much is wrapped up in consumerism as a communication tool. All one needs is enough...and that varies, of course. Living in Bangkok, the philosophy of taxi drivers outside our home was clear: earn enough daily, then be with friends and family, or nap on the roof of your cab. Tomorrow is another day, you'll earn enough then, too, and be happier for it.
Brasil here. As a retired marketing manager (🙄) now, when people ask me '- What have you been up to?' I answer, with a placid smile: 'Nothing. Nothing at all'.
Thank you! I am studying Spanish, preparing for a trip to Mexico ... but I'm going to keep this in English also. Brilliant and so counter our work-oriented culture.
Same! In France where I live, outside of the city in the countryside, NO ONE asks you what kind of work you do. Because that's boring. Who wants to talk about work? No one.
Not right away at least. It can depend on the circumstances of the encounter. In big-city Paris it might be different... When it's in the environment of a common passion like a music concert, hunting (a major rural activity like in the rural US), hiking, etc, the focus is much more on sharing what one enjoys together than figuring out one's social status.
A lot of French society does remain very segregated socially, though.
Actual real hunter gatherers spend a lot of time doing nothing. Just sitting, conserving energy, maybe working on some crafting. Telling stories. They're not out there continually running down antelopes so they can say they've run down more antelopes than Pete in accounting this year. And most of us don't even have to run down antelopes because Ronald McDonald does it for us. Our crafting should be legendary.
Here in Australia we have “right to disconnect” legislation being considered by the government. It will protect workers who chose to ignore the queen bee after working hours. That this legislation is needed, and that the various business lobby groups are trying to get it shut down, says everything you need to know about employer-employee relationships! Rise up comrades…
Not sure if it is the same for all species worldwide, but male Australian native bees just lounge about doing nothing much, until one day the females kick them out of the hive to go and find another Queen to breed. And then they die.
Yes, another good essay that would have been better without the gendering. Citing the rare example of a female in power in nature, whom are not the norm at all is intellectual low hanging fruit. A difficult more nuanced example, would have been silver backed gorillas, but would that metaphor have served the hidden and deeply embedded gender bias? Nope. It might have required a detailed examination of power, and that most abusive bosses are men. So why conflate what is already a complicated argument. Humans are not bees. But that’s funny I guess. Blame Canada and the Queen 🐝.
I’ve been thinking in a similar vein. I’m still finding my career, so I’ve been trying to figure what's most important to me. And frankly, the answer is pretty obvious. Family is important, friends are important, charity is important, having fun is important. The point is to make life good. The rest is either necessity or detail.
But the thing is, making life good takes diligence. And in some ways, I think it’s more challenging than professional work. So I think sometimes, maybe, we opt for work because it’s actually easier than living life, and/or because it’s a ready-made excuse for failing to live well.
Is it me or is Bill an epic dick? He also seems pretty dumb at not understanding a simple word. Who made him boss?
In any case, here in Sweden I have learnt to not look at my emails past 17:00 (even when the children are asleep) and people look at you like you are retarded if you claim proudly that you work on the weekends.
so what did boss do when you said no, you don't have a sec? did his monocle pop?
I worked at a tech startup for almost 3 years a few years ago and I worked remote. I was "on call" 24/7. I did get some dead time here and there: a morning off, or most of a day here and there, but I regularly worked all nighters and every weekend. In year 2.25, I decided fuck you, I'm taking a weekend off. They called me all weekend and I just didn't pick up. On Monday the little twerp who was my boss because he started at the startup before I did tried to dress me down for not being available. I told him I've been "available" every weekend for over two years and this one I wasn't. Are you seriously going to make a thing out of this? He STFU fast. And what a clownshow the entire company was: poor planning, bad/no design, young coders who had no experience managing a team running teams of 20 while those of us with decades of experience running teams watched them continually fuck up. The place was a total disaster and I only stayed on as long as I did because I got to work remote all the time.
I love working from home, hate offices and fluorescent lights like the devil, but I'll never let a job make my hours for me again.
I've worked on-call 7 days a week before. That shit is more stressful than working 80 hours a week lol. You're literally always sitting and waiting for the call. I couldn't even walk my dog properly because I was anticipating the call all the time 😐
I worked for the Army when they went to the class rewards. If you worked hard, got a bonus, it was shared with everyone else in your pod. They also.used the Beehive analogy. I raised my hand and said "You DO know you're using a classic example of socialism, don't you? And by the by, if I work my butt off and get a bonus, I want it all, I don't want to share it with people not pulling their weight.". I almost caused a mini revolt. Quite exciting! 😎. They told me I could go back to my office, I didn't need to stay for the rest of the presentation. Bonus.
I want to send this to everyone I come into contact with at work. I also work for an agency (from home), and the workday doesn’t end. Clients email all night. It’s incredible how people never turn it off, as if they’re on the verge of curing cancer when they’re just marketing some product or other. It’s like mass psychosis. Last night (Friday), I got an email, a phone call, and a text within 15 minutes from the same person. I ignored them all.
Sigh…it begins in grade school with homework and feels like a ball and chain. As a retired person, now, my full-time job is to stay alive and enjoy life! But, damn productivity.
If your work is fulfilling in a way that complements your life? Be-bop ‘till you drop. I enjoyed my job,while I could do it. I knew it was time to go when it tried to cripple me. I earned my retirement and enjoy it immensely. 40 years was a long time to experience the grocery industry. Now? There’s no service in the service industries.
"As troubling as AI is, I’m less concerned about technology turning machines into people than I am about technology turning people into machines."
I work as a freelance translator. My colleagues and I sometimes receive e-mail enquiries from potential clients that start with "Dear resource ..."; we're already living the (dystopian) dream.
My Venezuelan husband would say “ I hate how in America they always ask you ‘What do you do?’” In Latin America they ask “ qué me cuentas?” - “what can you tell me?”
Nice. “What are your interests?” is my personal fav. Though living in Hong Kong for some years, I got used to many forms that equate to, “how much are you worth?” Once that was out of the way, all was good, but rather grated that before a shirt might be complimented, the designer had to be identified. Heightened my sensitivity to performative conformity.
I live in LA - "How much are you worth?" is implied.
I feel a large barf 🤮 coming on… how much are you worth? Will god or St. Peter or your dad or your 4th grade teacher ask you that? When you approach the pearly gates or the giant light at the End of the Tunnel of Light?
My opening Q is “What do you love?”
Yes, progressing through life with an open heart reveals early how little a person's worth is related to their economic standing ... yet money remains a critical necessity and maybe that's why so much is wrapped up in consumerism as a communication tool. All one needs is enough...and that varies, of course. Living in Bangkok, the philosophy of taxi drivers outside our home was clear: earn enough daily, then be with friends and family, or nap on the roof of your cab. Tomorrow is another day, you'll earn enough then, too, and be happier for it.
Brasil here. As a retired marketing manager (🙄) now, when people ask me '- What have you been up to?' I answer, with a placid smile: 'Nothing. Nothing at all'.
Ha! I love that! We in US need to do that more, push back against the machine!
I reply: as little as possible!
Thank you! I am studying Spanish, preparing for a trip to Mexico ... but I'm going to keep this in English also. Brilliant and so counter our work-oriented culture.
So true! Even Italians.
If you tried that here, people would answer, “Well, I can tell you what I do”
Same! In France where I live, outside of the city in the countryside, NO ONE asks you what kind of work you do. Because that's boring. Who wants to talk about work? No one.
Ha! Totally! So they don’t instantly size people up in France based on their income & educational level? 😝
Not right away at least. It can depend on the circumstances of the encounter. In big-city Paris it might be different... When it's in the environment of a common passion like a music concert, hunting (a major rural activity like in the rural US), hiking, etc, the focus is much more on sharing what one enjoys together than figuring out one's social status.
A lot of French society does remain very segregated socially, though.
Actual real hunter gatherers spend a lot of time doing nothing. Just sitting, conserving energy, maybe working on some crafting. Telling stories. They're not out there continually running down antelopes so they can say they've run down more antelopes than Pete in accounting this year. And most of us don't even have to run down antelopes because Ronald McDonald does it for us. Our crafting should be legendary.
Here in Australia we have “right to disconnect” legislation being considered by the government. It will protect workers who chose to ignore the queen bee after working hours. That this legislation is needed, and that the various business lobby groups are trying to get it shut down, says everything you need to know about employer-employee relationships! Rise up comrades…
I'd love to hear their argument against it. "The slaves, I mean employees, are happy to work all night?"
Something to do with flexibility…blah blah blah.
Of the slaves, ofc, never of the slavemasters.
No, I wasn't and failed an interview in law for saying so!
In France that legislation is already in force.
Yes, Belgium also!
We’re not working from home, we’re worked from home.
I think we could link it to the discussion about the lost of the third place. Now we’re losing the first and second also.
P.S. Worker bees are all females.
Not sure if it is the same for all species worldwide, but male Australian native bees just lounge about doing nothing much, until one day the females kick them out of the hive to go and find another Queen to breed. And then they die.
...and do not breed. and the drones are all males and do not sting. sounds about right.
And spend a great deal of time getting drunk on nectar and lazing about!
Yes, another good essay that would have been better without the gendering. Citing the rare example of a female in power in nature, whom are not the norm at all is intellectual low hanging fruit. A difficult more nuanced example, would have been silver backed gorillas, but would that metaphor have served the hidden and deeply embedded gender bias? Nope. It might have required a detailed examination of power, and that most abusive bosses are men. So why conflate what is already a complicated argument. Humans are not bees. But that’s funny I guess. Blame Canada and the Queen 🐝.
Eeew…. The fact that you read gendered bias in this essay says something about you I think. Lighten up. It’s not ALL bias you know.
He is a big boy and can stick up for himself. Eeew to your playground politics. Excuse me for having a different and nuanced opinion about gender.
𝙼𝚘𝚍𝚎𝚛𝚗 𝚃𝚒𝚖𝚎𝚜 𝚠𝚒𝚝𝚑 𝙲𝚊𝚛𝚕𝚒𝚎 𝙲𝚑𝚊𝚙𝚕𝚒𝚗 : 𝚜𝚝𝚒𝚕𝚕 𝚊 𝚖𝚘𝚟𝚒𝚎 𝚏𝚘𝚛 𝚝𝚑𝚎 𝚛𝚎𝚜𝚝 𝚘𝚏 𝚞𝚜 𝚋𝚎𝚎𝚜 .
One of my all time favourites. Everyone should see this if only for extreme joy of laughing with and at our shared humanity for over an hour. Genius.
I’ve been thinking in a similar vein. I’m still finding my career, so I’ve been trying to figure what's most important to me. And frankly, the answer is pretty obvious. Family is important, friends are important, charity is important, having fun is important. The point is to make life good. The rest is either necessity or detail.
But the thing is, making life good takes diligence. And in some ways, I think it’s more challenging than professional work. So I think sometimes, maybe, we opt for work because it’s actually easier than living life, and/or because it’s a ready-made excuse for failing to live well.
I have a friend who was recently fired. Her boss said to her, “If you’re not going to come in on Saturday, don’t bother coming in on Sunday.”
There was an episode of the Simpsons where Mr Burns tells that to Homer - who then cheers, "Woo-hoo, 3-day weekend."
Is it me or is Bill an epic dick? He also seems pretty dumb at not understanding a simple word. Who made him boss?
In any case, here in Sweden I have learnt to not look at my emails past 17:00 (even when the children are asleep) and people look at you like you are retarded if you claim proudly that you work on the weekends.
It’s not paradise, but it’s home.
so what did boss do when you said no, you don't have a sec? did his monocle pop?
I worked at a tech startup for almost 3 years a few years ago and I worked remote. I was "on call" 24/7. I did get some dead time here and there: a morning off, or most of a day here and there, but I regularly worked all nighters and every weekend. In year 2.25, I decided fuck you, I'm taking a weekend off. They called me all weekend and I just didn't pick up. On Monday the little twerp who was my boss because he started at the startup before I did tried to dress me down for not being available. I told him I've been "available" every weekend for over two years and this one I wasn't. Are you seriously going to make a thing out of this? He STFU fast. And what a clownshow the entire company was: poor planning, bad/no design, young coders who had no experience managing a team running teams of 20 while those of us with decades of experience running teams watched them continually fuck up. The place was a total disaster and I only stayed on as long as I did because I got to work remote all the time.
I love working from home, hate offices and fluorescent lights like the devil, but I'll never let a job make my hours for me again.
I've worked on-call 7 days a week before. That shit is more stressful than working 80 hours a week lol. You're literally always sitting and waiting for the call. I couldn't even walk my dog properly because I was anticipating the call all the time 😐
My Danish daughter says to me:
Europeans work to live.
Americans live to work.
I worked for the Army when they went to the class rewards. If you worked hard, got a bonus, it was shared with everyone else in your pod. They also.used the Beehive analogy. I raised my hand and said "You DO know you're using a classic example of socialism, don't you? And by the by, if I work my butt off and get a bonus, I want it all, I don't want to share it with people not pulling their weight.". I almost caused a mini revolt. Quite exciting! 😎. They told me I could go back to my office, I didn't need to stay for the rest of the presentation. Bonus.
A-fucking-men!
I want to send this to everyone I come into contact with at work. I also work for an agency (from home), and the workday doesn’t end. Clients email all night. It’s incredible how people never turn it off, as if they’re on the verge of curing cancer when they’re just marketing some product or other. It’s like mass psychosis. Last night (Friday), I got an email, a phone call, and a text within 15 minutes from the same person. I ignored them all.
Sigh…it begins in grade school with homework and feels like a ball and chain. As a retired person, now, my full-time job is to stay alive and enjoy life! But, damn productivity.
And there are some in certain circles who say people shouldn’t be allowed to retire. The nerve, am I right?
Those "some" should do my industrial job for a month: digging sludge out of tanks, hoisting up + pounding slag off steam coils, and other such joys.
Let's see them try it; and then try and tell me to do it until I'm 70 or dead.
They might wind up in the slag pile themselves.
"Job?" those Some would ask. "What's a job?"
If your work is fulfilling in a way that complements your life? Be-bop ‘till you drop. I enjoyed my job,while I could do it. I knew it was time to go when it tried to cripple me. I earned my retirement and enjoy it immensely. 40 years was a long time to experience the grocery industry. Now? There’s no service in the service industries.
"As troubling as AI is, I’m less concerned about technology turning machines into people than I am about technology turning people into machines."
I work as a freelance translator. My colleagues and I sometimes receive e-mail enquiries from potential clients that start with "Dear resource ..."; we're already living the (dystopian) dream.
Dumb terminals like bank machines with very few functions.