My mother, on the other hand, refused to learn to type because she was NOT going to be a secretary, and it all worked out, since she never did become a secretary, except she still can't touch-type.

All those classes sound awesome to me. I did take typing in HS, because I had to fill up a time slot and it was all I could got. Typing and in the off semester “business machines” which I ended up dropping so I don’t know what it covered. What I do know is that both of those were considered basically a waste of a class by most of my (informal) academic track peers but I’ve been incredibly glad for the skill.

I have to vent about myself and my inability to not lose things.

I had my bank card in the pocket of the dress I wore yesterday. As I was preparing to leave the house, I retrieved it, with my headphones. I put on my jacket. I put on my mask, I put on my backpack, then I checked for the bank card. No bank card. Not near the headphones, not in any pockets. I have not moved, except for the motions of putting stuff on. It is not in the backpack. What I do find nearby on the dresser NEAR where the mask was was my OLD BANK CARD which I lost in March, hence the NEW BANK CARD. I can’t even with myself. Luckily, I actually have a backup bank account and card for when this happens because it happens so often, but I am getting tired of it.

There was a partner at the Big 4 accounting firm I worked at who told me that for most of her career, all the way until she made partner, she never let anyone see her type. She was a speed demon, but she knew as a woman in a male dominated industry she would immediately get categorized as note taker rather than active participant in every meeting.

I was just trying to think why I never took typing, because a lot of my friends definitely did, and it's because I always took voice classes as my elective. I would take whatever she was teaching in the time slot I had free.

There was a partner at the Big 4 accounting firm I worked at who told me that for most of her career, all the way until she made partner, she never let anyone see her type. She was a speed demon, but she knew as a woman in a male dominated industry she would immediately get categorized as note taker rather than active participant in every meeting.

I knew a woman who was a programmer who refused to change the toner on the printer for the same reason.

1. Honestly, I think the reason I hung on to my theatre job so long is that I wanted to write Costume Designer and not secretary as my occupation, and what enabled me to leave was being able to write Insttuctional Designer

2. On the other hand that it problematic, because good secretarying and AAing is really hard and should be valued more and probably pay and be recognized more.

3. It used to drive me crazy when people refused to learn something for that reason (nurses with the fax machine, for example.)

4. But for awhile after I got my new job, I refused to be the one setting up group meetings, getting the room and taking notes, because I thought I would get stuck.

5. I still have a lot of guilt because I think I did a much better job and had more responsibility/power and authority as an AA. Being the assistant of a woman I was so on the same wavelength with was amazing for me, and since she had power and trusted me, it was easier to get things done.

6. I think I took on a costuming job for the summer. I think I already regret it. A friend of a friend was advertising, but it is Shaw and unpaid, so probably terrible. I said I would either stage manage or do costumes, and I think I would rather be stage managing. But we shall see. I am hoping COVID lets up, Nigel will travel, and Katie will let me use the costume shop/stock as I am so used to throwing money at costume problems, so it will be another change. Also, personalities in community theatre tend to make me nutty. I get that they don’t usually get a real designer and want to do their own thing, but sometimes it hurts my eyes when they are all together...

Sophia, I get all of those 1-6, completely! In a perfect world people would be respected and treated fairly. Alas, this is not our world. None of it makes any sense.

I go back and forth on getting involved in my community theater. I've only shown my support with donations and attendance, even when I wasn't that fond of what they were performing. They have pretty much stayed performing, but it is like a couple dozen people in the audience, or less. Maybe next fall when I get back from NY I'll actually volunteer.

When I was in academia, there was always a passive agressive war about who takes notes. Sometimes I would be in a meeting with a bunch of PhDs, who would look to the non-doctorate in the room for that bullshit. I once had to say something like, "I'm happy to take my turn occasionally, but I can't participate in the meeting and take the kind of notes that would helpful to anyone but me. If you think that there is more value in me taking notes than participating in the meeting, then it sounds like I don't have anything meaningful to contribute and my time would be better spent elsewhere."

Which sounds like a huge flex, but it was in response to the asshat who would "misremember" what was decided in the meeting and just do what he wanted. When that shit happened (with stuff I cared about), I would respond "my notes say . . ." He said "well, if you take such good notes, why don't you do it for every meeting?"

Thank goodness my job doesn't involve a whole lot of meetings. That's another reason to be happy with it.