Your Other Life...or...What's Your Line?

[loise98]

I love this thread. My first job was piecework in a clothing factory. It was summer work while I was a student. In college, I studied Home Ec. I took all the clothing courses offered (Of course!). I worked for a short time as a Home Economist for an electric company. Then I married and worked in public relations for a university medical school. That job supported us while my husband finished school. After that I was a stay-at-home Mom for nearly 20 yrs. I did lots of home sewing and gardening during that time. I did that for nearly 20 years until my youngest child was 15 yrs old. Then I went back to school and got a Masters in Social Work. Since then, I have been doing counseling. My other passion, aside from quilting and all things fiber, is learning about the resiliency of the human spirit. I am fascinated by how creativity keeps us all afloat during life’s tough times. I am positive that as a group Quilter’s are among the most mentally resilient on earth. All of you prove that to me over and over again. It’s been a pleasure getting to know all of you.

[Zarah]

trans channeler

Sarah, what's that? The curious want to know!

Sure, I will let him speak for himself. He (and my brother) made this video introduction about 2 years ago in my garden.
http://gregorypossman.dk/wp/?page_id=480

He also has an American website http://gregorypossman.com/

I totally forgot to tell about my big garden, which I enjoy during summer. During winter I dance Danish Folkdance. Actually I should be there now but a flu forced me to stay home today.

[Lorchen]

Lotti, please organize an exhibition in England so that we can meet!

I taught German for 23 years to more or less anybody who wanted to learn. My youngest student was 5 years old, and the oldest was 98. Quite a lot of my work was one-to-one with senior managers of companies as diverse as chemical and pharmaceuticals, lace manufacturers, jet engines, and importers of bananas (). I worked with a lot of very big egos, and felt I needed a change of direction almost 10 years ago. Since then I'm working with special needs teenagers at the local secondary school. I work across most of the academic subjects (putting my excellent German education to good use), and deal with anything from severe behaviour problems to physical disabilities.

Between the age of 12 and 20 I spent a lot of time showing guys that this girl was no push-over. I put away my black belt in Judo when we moved and I couldn't find a local club.

My father was a safety engineer for Texaco and my most exciting childhood memory is the day when - during a school holiday - he took me to work with him. We flew by helicopter to at off-shore oil-drilling platform in the North Sea. Today 'health and safety' laws are so tight that this would never be possible.

[Lorchen]

Hmm, I am starting to feel insignificant ladies. OK--I have done many jobs: key punch operator (remember that?), secretary, bookkeeper, waitress...then I got married. Moved to Indiana from Chicago. Was a stay at home mom until my youngest was 4 months old and then I went to college for the first time. After two years of going to school for six days a week and caring for a 4 year old and 4 month old, I was graduated as a certified Medical Laboratory Tech. I like the work but not the hours and I needed to be home with my girls as I was a single mom at this point in life. I went back to school for an associates degree in Medical Lab. Tech. because I was told I would make more money. What I love to do is teach. I have learned many hand crafts and it seems that I did them until I was really accomplished and then went on to a new craft. So, I teach whenever I get the chance. I would love to teach beginners quilting. So far instead, I substitute teach at the local middle school. It gives me money to spend on my addiction--quilting.

[loise98]

Ritzy, I beg to differ! I see nothing insignificant about your life. Look again! No small accomplishment getting educated and caring for small children on your own. Look again. Hugs!

[loise98]

Well this is fun! In my "other life" I work in casino tablegames. About 20 years ago gaming came to south Mississippi. I got a job in housekeeping at a casino. Lost 20 lbs doing that job. Went to an in-house dealers school as soon as they would let me, and started dealing blackjack. The tips were incredible! Went from $5 or so an hour cleaning toilets to being able to buy a decent car and go grocery shopping without my calculator. Now I'm a floor supervisor (babysitter/referee). I watch the dealers, watch the players, keep up with the cash and the chips on tables, and make sure everybody follows the rules. Most folks refer to me as a "pit boss". Its a good job (but very not glamorus) and has enabled me to take care of my family financially. BUT...I'm looking forward to the day when I never have to set foot in any casino anywhere. Ever again. Folks get drunk. Folks get grumpy when they lose. The noise level at my casino is sometimes deafening. Quilting has been my escape and therapy for a bit over ten years now. I probly would've lost my sanity without it.
DH and I have been together for about 26 years and have three sons...one in the Air Force, one living in Alabama, and one is a Marine. We also have three nephews in the Army, and one nephew in the Navy. Life is peaceful and pleasantly boring now that the nest is empty!

[clhdabb]

I grew up on the high plains of northeastern Colorado. After graduating from college with a degree in secondary education, I got married, moved to Albuquerque, moved to Chicago, got a degree in Dental Hygiene, divorced, taught at a Chicago area college, and worked in a practice on north Michigan Avenue for years. I loved Chicago and thought I would be there forever. Then I met my husband who swept me off my feet, out of my profession and all the way to the left coast. We have been working together for 30 years manufacturing and marketing our "gee whiz" stair climbing powered hand trucks. We spend a great deal of time traveling and exhibiting at trade shows. I have 2 step sons and a granddaughter in addition to being the doting auntie to several nieces and nephews-- all of whom love their quilts!

[djane]

What a great thread. I am enjoying reading about all of your life adventures. As some have stated already, I feel that I have led a pretty dull life but it is what it is and I am happy. After finishing high school I went to Bible College where I completed a three year diploma. I gained very valuable life skills plus met my wonderful husband. After college I worked as a secretary while my husband finished college. Over the next seven years we welcomed four daughters into our family. When our youngest daughter was six months old my husband got sick and has been ill for the past 22 years. This presented a challenge as I loved being a stay-at-home mom (my dream job!) but I knew I needed to go back to work because my husband was unable to work. I took an office administration course and then started my current job as an admin assistant (still a secretary just a different name for it now!) at a high school where I have worked for almost 17 years. I was able to spend all day with our girls as they attended the high school I worked at! Definitely a bonus for me.

In my high school home ec class my teacher told my mother at Parent-Teacher interviews that I would be able to sew quite well if I would just follow instructions. Little did she know that I did follow instructions--just not her's. My mom was way better at sewing tips and I listened to her instead. Now I love to sew -- quilts that is. I always say that being in my quilting space is my "day at the beach".

I love being mom to our four daughters and one son-in-law, Grandma to our two grandchildren and a wife to my wonderful husband.

[romira]

Margo, this is a terrific idea! Love reading everyone's story!
Here's mine:
Born in Cleveland, Ohio. DH & I met in high school, married, left Ohio & never looked back!
(Well, not exactly, because we do visit family.) Have lived in Florida, Alabama & South
Carolina. Moved to Georgia 35 years ago for DH's job & have lived here since.
I was mostly a stay-at-home mom with 2 (DS & DD).
Always loved being creative, and studied art in college (at age 47!).
Also studied sewing then. I learned a bit in 7th grade, but mostly self-taught in the
early years.
I worked in a fabric store, but had to quit because I was spending more $$$ on fabric
than I was actually earning! ops:
I really enjoyed working behind the scenes with local theater groups on sets & costumes.
Have studied millinery and even made a hat that was worn to the Kentucky Derby.
Another place I worked was in a photo shop (in the olden days when film was
developed). Have loved photography since I got my first camera 40 yrs. ago.
Love to travel & will be doing more of that since DH will be retiring this year.
We are planning a trip to Alaska!
Especially looking forward to spending more time with grandkids, 3 boys, 1 girl & wee
unborn babe, due in June.
And hope to come visit as many of you dear ones as possible!
Quilting has intrigued me for a long time, though I'm a beginner at sewing them!
I have so many quilts in my head, I wish I had a magic wand to wave so they would
appear! Right???!!! :lol: :lol: :lol:
You are all such an inspiration and I'm blown away at your talents & productivity! :mrgreen:

[MaryQuilts2]

Interesting stories, ladies! Here's a bit about my life. I'm a native Minnesotan who lived for short periods in both Iowa and Chicago, but have spent the majority of my life in the Minneapois/St. Paul metro area. I've outlived two spouses and have been happily married to my current husband for over 10 years. My husband's wife succumbed to breast cancer. My family includes a son & daughter in law who have 2 boys and 2 girls, a daughter & son in law who have 2 daughters, a daughter who is engaged to a great guy and a stepson and his wife. My grandchildren range in age from 18 months to 14 years and are a joy to me. We're so fortunate to have them live in the area, so we can spend time with them and enjoy their piano concerts, soccer games, swim meets,etc. When she was 9, my oldest granddaughter (now 11) and I made a quilt together.

As an RN, my working life was primarily spent in nursing with jobs in clinics, hospitals and long term care facilities. I mostly worked administrative positions in the hospital and LTC facilities. I left nursing in 1998 when my second husband had a liver transplant and was hospitalized at the U of M for 7 months until he succumbed to a deadly infection. He had many complications and infections during his 7 month stay. It was a tough year. After his death I worked with my son, a real estate appraiser as his bookkeeper and assistant (I had done bookkeeping for my husband in his appraisal business). I also did bookkeeping for a preschool and a friend who had a decorating business. My son is now an airline pilot.

My quilting journey started with my first quilt, a baby quilt for my 14 year old grandson. I became a "quilt addict" around 8 or 9 years ago and have had a great time learning & growing in creativity. My mother and grandmother were both sewers, knitters, crocheters and my grandmother also made quilts, so the "quilting gene" was passed on to me, yay!! I became interested in quilting my own quilts on a frame so started with a shortarm which I "outgrew" in a couple of years. I went to the AQS show in Paducah in 2008 and shopped machine systems, Gammill won out and I became the owner of a Premier (18" throat). I was only going to quilt for myself and do charity quilts, but after having my arm twisted by my favorite friends in my small quilting group, I caved and started quilting for them, the rest is history! My business quickly grew by word of mouth and the following year I went to the 2009 MQS show and traded for a Gammill Classic Plus and it was the best move I made! I love longarm quilting and have not only won pretty ribbons for some of my quilts but also some of my customers have won too. Can you tell that quilting has taken over a good portion of my life? My husband is not only very supportive, but is now a certified Gammill service tech serving Minnesota for our dealer. He got bit too! :lol: Course, he's very mechanical and it's right up his alley.

Life is good in my senior years so far, and by the grace of God, I hope to quilt for a long time!

[RGold]

What an interesting question and what fascinating responses! I was editor of both my high school and my college yearbooks (the only all-nighter I ever pulled in college was for yearbook deadlines :roll: ), so those experiences started me on a publishing path. I've worked for college textbook publishing companies, both as a full-time employee and for the past 20 years as a freelancer in copyediting, designing, managing, and production capacities—basically using both sides of my brain, though sometimes at different times (good practice for my quilting now :wink: !). I also worked for Apple Computer for a couple of years, where I was able to earn an MBA through a program in which Apple was trying to "grow" its own managers so professors from San Jose State University came to the Apple "campus" for our classes. After I graduated with my MBA, my DH finally decided to realize his dream of becoming a college professor (as long as I've known him, I've felt he should be a professor; we've been married 28 years) so we moved to Wisconsin in 1994 so he could get his PhD. After 10 years there, we became what DH calls "migrant workers"—he had four one-year positions in Springfield, Missouri, then one year in Tulsa, Oklahoma, before landing his tenure-track position here in eastern New Mexico almost five years ago. Fortunately, it was easy to move my freelance business with each move (most of the work comes in via email), though the moves were hard. At one point, we made four moves in five years, three of them interstate. Ugh! Hard work and expensive, too! Now my freelance business is winding down, and I'm happily devoting much more time to quilting.

[gynconnie]

Ladies, thank you for sharing your stories...they are all fascinating!

I am a recently retired obstetrician/gynecologist, after 35 years practicing medicine. My husband also retired from his job as an emergency room physician last year, and we leave next week for our first post-retirement adventure...a 3 week trip to Florida to see birds and wildlife in the Everglades and the Keys. Our family motto is "Never travel light!"' So we will be taking 2 bikes, 2 kayaks, a whole bunch of cameras and electronic toys, and (of course) a sewing machine with us. Anyone know of any must-see fabric stores in south Florida? .

We have 2 grown daughters, one SIL, no grandchildren (yet!).

I have sewn since childhood, when my Aunt Sophie helped me with my first sewing project, a turquoise wrap skirt. My parents encouraged my interest with the purchase of an $88 Sears Kenmore sewing machine (which I sewed on for the next 20 years...I have a "few" more machines now!). Sewing was on hold during medical school and residency, but started back in a big way when my girls were born. After they outgrew smocked dresses and dance costumes I became a quilter, starting many projects, but finishing few. Now with retirement, I'm hoping to put a big dent in my pile of UFOs!

I love quilting because it allows my right brain and my left brain to play happily together! I also love flower arranging and bird watching. My husband and I have a "bluebird trail" with 17 nest boxes that have hatched dozens of bluebirds in the last 2 years. Life is good!

[ajclapp]

Going back in time, my first job was picking strawberries on our family produce farm in Idaho along with some of my 8 siblings. We actually got paid, but the money was put in a jar to buy our school clothes for the next year. I remember the trips to Boise to shop and the pretty new store bought dresses. I did make most of my clothes when I was older though and even had a few jobs sewing for others including a couple teachers, but never considered that I could do that for a living. After graduating from high school I moved to Oklahoma to stay with an aunt. The only job I could find there was working at a dry cleaners doing ironing and mending. The following year I moved back home and got a job at a printing company where my sister worked. After tiring of that I moved to Texas where my aunt now lived and worked in the contributions department of a children's hospital. Then I met my husband, quit my job, got married, and had 3 children who have blessed me with 10 grandchildren. My older son, the father of 4, is a professional engineer and has been working on a very interesting coffee table style book that I hope he will finish soon. My daughter has a masters degree in linguistics and spent quite a few years in college. Her husband is a pastor working for Chi Alpha on the college campus. She's a lifesaver for me, helping with the bookkeeping, and enjoys doing the payroll part the best, but mostly she takes care of her 3 children and loves to bargain shop. She's been a big help with the shopping for my new home. My younger son grew up to be a great dad of 3 wonderful children. He's what you might call a jack of all trades, and supervises the construction jobs. He's the animal lover in the family and they recently brought home some blue ribbons from the stock show for a rabbit. His older daughter wins multiple ribbons riding horses and his younger daughter wins multiple ribbons in gymnastics. That is one busy family!

[Keith]

In elementary school - I learned German like a good Lutheran and I raised guinea pigs and showed them at the county fair.
In junior high - I played football and squared danced with my parents' club and sewed my own tee shirts and got expelled from 8th grade.
In high school - I bowled (a LOT), played Dungeons and Dragons and rode motorcycles in the desert.
In college - I took a semester of New Testament Greek and tried to be a pastor. Unsuccessfully. I wore a mohawk.
Shortly after college - I got my CPA license and audited governments by day and danced in the clubs by night.
Now - I'm a little boring. I still audit (25 years and counting) and I bowl semi-professionally. I still dance - though much differently now, and almost always at home.
Very soon - I shall spend my pension on brandy and summer gloves.
And I don't even know what summer gloves are.

[romira]

"...and got expelled from 8th grade."
:? :?
Whoa there, Keith, you seem to have buried the lead. Elaborate, please?