Make a Career of It

Entering Day 2 of the New York Transit strike and there is no word on how long it will last. Millions crowd over the Brooklyn Bridge and are literally packed onto LIRR trains as subways and buses continue not to run. It has me thinking about what North Carolina would do if suddenly all roads were shut off and people had to depend on walking and biking to get to work. What would happen? A state of emergency, I imagine, with the Governor standing in front of the capital building and explaining how terrible it is and for people to just stay put. New Yorkers have more resiliency than that. I was in awe of the people willing to cross the bridge in temperatures that are hovering around 14 degrees with windchill and probably even more on the water. I was impressed with people who walked from as far as 107th street to come to work in the twenties. Even kids got to school. And the UPS man came last night, surprising the hell out of me and making me wish I had gotten some shipments together.

People here are very career oriented. It's on of the biggest focuses in this city. It's the first question asked when picking up or being picked up at a bar, and no matter how drunk someone is, they remember to ask it. It's kind of like in the South when people want to know what sorority you were in. It makes a difference. And, also impressively, you can make a career out of almost anything here. Where people at home work at department stores as a part time job, or until something better comes along, there are salespeople at Saks who have been there thirty years and will receive retirement benefits when they go. Retail is a career here. There is no shame in announcing you work at the Gap,even. You can move up fairly quickly and become an important part of that industry.

Whole majors at FIT are dedicated to fashion and to things that may be considere minute- like window design. Saks, Bloomingdales, Barney's all pay a small fortune out to people who spend their days working on the latest displays and trying to make sure it's the best it can be. These people are professionals. When I worked in retail we were responsible for redoing window displays in our spare time. In New YOrk, it's a job, not a hobby.

I've also noticed the dedication of older students during this strike. One poor girl had walked from Prospect Heights all the way into Manhattan carrying her make-up kit for class. Being a make-up aritst is not something left to counter people at Belk's, like in NC. It's an actual degree that will hopefully lead to a specialization in things varying from personal make-up artistry to theatre make-up. People spend several years working on a degree that will land them a job in the profession that they love.

Why aren't people in other places like that? No one at home can believe that you can make a career out of window design and eyeshadow. They are confused by people that choose to spend their best years following customers around Barney's. There isn't as much acceptance within the arts and alternate career paths that people choose here. Maybe that's another reason I love the city. I truly can do whatever I want and at least try to make a go of it. If I wanted to pursue photography again, I could actually do it as opposed to just using it as a hobby and not breaking even with equipment, etc. It's an incredible feeling of freedom. Where other people see oppression, I see opportunity.