Chriss' Case

A professional
Today, I received an important package. Well, it was important to me anyway.

It was the information on my first professional membership. You would think as an educated woman who worked as a radio announcer, a MHMR case coordinator and an advertising designer would have joined a professional organization some time in the last 14 or so years. But I didn't. Maybe it's because I never really considered those other jobs as my profession.

When I graduated from college with j-degree in hand, I expected to be a reporter bringing down scandalous politicians ala Woodward & Bernstein.

I couldn't find a newspaper job in my hometown. So I took a job as a radio announcer for a tiny station. Every other paycheck bounced. But I will say this for it, it brought my husband and I together. I got offered a job at a small-town newspaper, but turned it down for love.

Finally got tired of the paycheck situation, so I switched careers to social services. I worked with people with mental retardation for a couple of years. While that was rewarding, it wore out pretty fast. So I took a job at a classified paper.

While I did get to do some designing it was all ads. Plus I had to work the front counter during the slow time -- which I hated. But I put up with it for almost 8 years.

When I tried out for my current job, I didn't think I would get it. Journalism school had been a long time ago and everything had changed. But from the very first day, it was like I should have been there all along.