Workin' for a Living

I do think the Friday Five gang are running out of things to ask. Didn't they do questions about work already at some point? And, man, I seem to be talking about work quite a lot lately. Well, at least compared to the amount I usually talk about it, which is not at all. Anyway, here we go:

1. Where do you currently work? At the National Radio Astronomy Observatory's Array Operations Center in Socorro, New Mexcio.

2. How many other jobs have you had and where? I had three jobs while I was in college: working the circulation desk at the college library, working in the campus print shop, and doin' the fast-food wage-slave thing at Blake's Lotaburger. And that's it. I got my current job shortly after graduation. (Thank goodness! If I'd had to stay at that burger place much longer, I quite likely would have forgotten my pseudo-pacifistic ways and shown up with a weapon of mass destruction someday.)

3. What do you like best about your job? Oh, I think this requires a sub-list. Let's see: A) The hours, weirdly enough. I hate working morning shift, but I do like both evenings and nights, although I'd hate to do either one for extended periods. So, now that we're back on a reasonable rotation, I actually like doing the shift work. (And it'll get even better if they ever undo the hiring freeze and get us the fourth person we're supposed to have.) B) The fact that it's mostly very low-pressure and doesn't require much of me. A lot of the time, I really just need to be awake and in the room, so I can read or surf the web, or amuse myself however I want, which is pretty cool. But there are also times when problem-solving or good judgment in a (minor) crisis are necessary, so I don't feel like I'm useless or wasted. C) I like the people that I'm working with and for. In particular, my bosses give me exactly the right amount of guidance and the right amount of autonomy. (I've worked for people who tended to micromanage and for people who left you floundering around wondering what was expected of you -- both at the same time, in fact -- and they both suck equally.) Even better, when I do something wrong, I get told about it without recriminations, and when I do something right, I get praised for it. That's worth a lot. D) I do feel like I'm contributing to something worthwhile, even if I'm only a very small cog in the machinery of scientific advancement. And, E) There is a certain coolness factor involved. People are impressed when I tell them what I do (even if in reality is isn't all that exciting). My work area looks like it would make a great setting for a Doctor Who episode. There's a sign on the door that says "Control Room." And I've gotten to go out and crawl around on radiotelescope dishes. I mean, how nifty is that?

4. What do you like least about your job? Ooh, 'nother list. A) It does get really tedious sometimes, and all that time for reading and web-surfing is also time which you can spend thinking about all the other things you'd really like to be doing instead of working. B) It involves sitting in a chair in more-or-less one position for long periods of time, which is something I've always found difficult. C) It's kind of a dead-end job, without much in the way of room for advancement or anything. I mean, it's really a job and not a career. Which I actually don't mind all that much, not being a terribly ambitious type, but that very lack of ambition, and the way my job evidences that lack of ambition, does bug me a little. D) We're pretty much at the mercy of the US government for our operating budget, and lately they've been very stingy with it. Add to that the fact that our division is fairly low-priority for the Observatory these days (compared to the big new projects they've got going), and it adds up to a monetary pain in the ass. Hiring freezes, difficulty in keeping our equipment maintained, reduction of benefits... It really kind of sucks. E) There's a tiny bit of a job-security issue. Five years from now, my job might not remotely resemble what it is now, due to the introduction of new technologies. Or, in a worst-case scenario, it might not even exist. And my set of job skills is very narrow; the number of "correlator operators" in the world can't be more than a few dozen, at most. Not that there's a big worry there, but the thought does niggle a bit.

5. What is your dream job? I'd like to get paid for sitting around watching DVDs, reading science fiction novels, and discussing TV shows with people on the internet. OK, more seriously, I've always secretly fancied the idea of running a used bookstore. Except I know that in reality that would involve long hours, little money, and far more financial acumen than I in fact possess. The being around books all day part probably wouldn't be worth the headache.