Movin'
Your Groove
“If
you don't like what you're doing now, you can always pick up your
needle and move to another groove.”
Timothy
Leary
There's
a stunning thing going on right now—people are suddenly nostalgic
about all things “mid-century modern,” the time (1950's &
60's) when Timothy Leary would have written this quote. Who knew your
grandma's old Formica-topped, bent-metal table would come back into
vogue, or vinyl records, or anything Howdy-Doody! If you have any of
these, you're sitting on a gold mine. Yesterday, I was listing a little old
tin full of “gramophone” needles—Taj Mahal brand, made of
steel. “Extra loud”, it said. Even though I lived through that
era, I never knew those needles came, 100 or 200-count, in an aspirin
tin. But now I do. One tin that I have to list on eBay is actually
full of needles. They are short and rather blunt.
Moving
to another groove is not really as easy as picking up your needle
these days, especially in terms of work. But there may be a clue in
that mid-century era, too. When I was in high-school (50 years ago),
kids could opt for college track or trades track. If you opted for
the trades, you could take shop classes in wood-working, mechanics,
drafting, construction, secretarial or administrative skills, and/or
book-keeping. By the time you graduated, you could get a job in a
trade. We need that now.
One
obstacle to moving to another groove is a psychological one—we have
a hard time accepting that we worked hard, made the grades, spent all
those years in school, and still can't find an interesting job in our
field. We keep pounding away at the same old thing with diminishing
success. Or we stay stuck in a dull, low paying job for fear we can't
do better. I heard an interview on NPR last week with a young man who
was so fed up with the job he had, he decided to quit and work for
free doing something he loved. His thinking was, if I love what I'm
doing and do it well, it will eventually turn into a job that pays.
And, that worked for him; granted, he did have Mom and Dad's basement
to live in while he conducted his experiment. Psychologically, that's
like jumping into the abyss, trusting that the landing will be soft.
It requires nerves of steel, a willingness to fail, and an unshakable
support system.
One
has to weigh the consequences of “moving your groove” against the
responsibilities resting upon one's shoulders, but I can't imagine
anything worse than going to work for eight hours a day and hating
every second of it. However, I guess starving might be worse. There's
always Ramen Noodles...and prayer...and Mom 'n Dad's basement..
In
the Spirit,
Jane
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