Again with the anniversaries. A year ago I arrived on the Isle of Wight and started my three months working on a farm. (My diary of that time is here). Tomorrow I’m working at the Sea Life Centre entertaining the queue. I’ve been warned this might involve dressing up as a shark.
Here, then, is my CV for the last 12 months: farm worker, catering assistant, chambermaid, cable puller, bin man, car factory production line, data entry, invoice processing, food warehouse distributer, lugger-of-boxes, mailroom assistant, building a stand at the NEC, distributing furniture around the NEC, street cleaner, drivers mate, tampon factory packer.
Seeing it like that it just doesn’t seem weird enough. I need more weird jobs. Hopefully the shark costume will come to pass.
Cool! I’ve tried to persuade Nattle to take the boys to see you, but she’s arranged to go to Thinktank and that’s that. If they let you have a wander round, make sure you check out the tunnel in the Titanic exhibit. It’s exceedingly ace.
I’ve only just realised this will be my first contact-with-the-public job since leaving the book trade, which is a bit odd. I don’t mind being all smiley and fake but I wonder if I’m out of practice…
I doubt I’ll be allowed inside, other than for breaks, and definitely not to wander around. This is queue management stuff – handing out flyers and sweets and stuff to bored families. At least I suspect it is. We’ll find out soon enough.
Sounds like fun! And you can always use a fin to smack that recalcitrant kid that won’t shuddup – not that I condone violence, of course. Just an accidental flip would suffice.
Well, I’m not expecting fun. I’m expecting to be in contact with the general public in a queuing situation. If fun does emerge then it’ll be a bonus. I am, however, quite looking forward to the potential of a costume…
Costumed jobs are great – I used to occasionally wear a huge bear suit on Saturday afternoons in the bookshop I used to work in. Once ‘in character’ your relationship with the public changes completely, little kids are either shit-scared of you or think you’re the greatest thing in the world and older ones just want to cause you physical harm.
On the downside, if the costume is anything like the ones I had to don then be prepared for it to be very unwieldy, way too humid and to stink of the sweat of the wearers that went before you.
Woody, what bookshop was that? It’s just I spent a lot of time in the book trade and it’s a very small incestuous world…
It’s an otter costume. Ollie the Otter. Full report to follow.
What complete and otter nonsense.
(well someone had to say it)
This bring’s back memories of a traumatic childhood incident with someone costumed as the Slush Puppie in Woolworths. I’ve yet to work it into therapy.
The bookshop was in Birmingham, too. Dillons on New St. I think it’s a Waterstones now. The bear costume wasn’t part of my job, as such, but I’d step in to cover whenever the usual member of staff was unavailable. This might explain why I have fond memories of it; if I had to do it more often the novelty might have worn off.
I remember meeting Boy George in the staff lift the first time I was in costume. He was signing copies of his autobiography in the store that day. I think we looked pretty good together.
To continue the “it’s a small world” theme, I have a mate who worked at the Sea Life Centre in Brum during his summer holidays when he was at Uni. I’m fairly sure he made the odd appearance as Sammy The Shark (or whatever his name is).
I have no personal or second-hand otter costume experience, though. I wish you luck…
Small world indeed. I worked at that branch in 1998-99 just before it went from D to W. I suspect you were there before me as I don’t remember a costume. Sounds like a classic Wortley scheme…
Email me sometime!