Whats YOUR Secret Identity?

[spock-tm]

...and there I was, just sitting, wondering, we all come from so many walks of life, would it not be interesting to see what everyone does in their Day jobs.


So to sum that up, how do you pay the rent?

What is your occupation, don't have to say the name of your company if you don't want too, just the sort of job you do.
Then one that that you HATE about it, the thing you dread doing,
and another thing you absolutely LOVE about it, the reason for staying.
Then, if you want, how comics effect your typical day.






I'll go next ;) Sounds like some sort of school essay doesn't it? :D

[tad]

Some of you know some of this:

Animation producer/director/writer

I hate that despite my experience, at the end of a project I have to shop ideas and myself to various studios and networks as if I was a newbie... not always but often enough.

I love storytelling in animation and working with a team of artists and writers making something bigger than any of us could do on our own.

Comics are a common reference point when working on an action adventure show.

[spock-tm]

Some of you know some of this:

Animation producer/director/writer

I hate that despite my experience, at the end of a project I have to shop ideas and myself to various studios and networks as if I was a newbie... not always but often enough.

I love storytelling in animation and working with a team of artists and writers making something bigger than any of us could do on our own.

Comics are a common reference point when working on an action adventure show.

That's sounds like alot of fun, not so much with the shopping, but being able to be that expressive, really cool :D


Me, Nothing fancy, just a Sales Consultant and part time artist (not that that pay many of the bills)

I hate that with all the knowledge I can give someone, it always comes down to price, it's how I make my money and everytime I give some away I take less home ~ then writers/ artist block.

I LOVE playing games earlier than the release date on massive televisions hooked up to awesome sounds on a comfy couch.... and imparting my knowledge on others and knowing that it means something to them ~ then creating something from nothing, a story, a piece of art, some random colours that make a cool picture, such a nice feeling.

Comics.... somehow I get asked about them all the time at work, somehow, just happens; memories of a good book/ series can get me through a rough day at work, and knowing that they are there to give me inspiration is something that helps all the time

[fred]

I'm a programmer. I work on web sites.

I hate that the size of my company leads me to have to do the boring work too. In other past jobs, I've been tasked to work on "the hard stuff", which is much more interesting.

I love the way it pays.

Comics have no impact on my work life.

[xyzzy]

What is your occupation, don't have to say the name of your company if you don't want too, just the sort of job you do.
Attorney - Civil litigation. Mostly employment defense, with some corporate.

Then one that that you HATE about it, the thing you dread doing,
Doc review. Having to go through boxes and boxes of paper to figure out what needs to be produced to the other side. And, in turn, going through their production.

and another thing you absolutely LOVE about it, the reason for staying.
Making someone cry in a deposition. Kidding, sorta. Litigation is a battle. Being smarter and cleverer, out-maneuvering, out-arguing and then crushing opposing counsel is what it's all about.

Then, if you want, how comics effect your typical day.
People sometimes ask me about them if they're on my desk.

[paper]

I'm a about to graduate, currently working a data entry and quality control job. I'm also going to include that I'm trying to become a freelance writer.

I dislike that my office job is seasonal and that, at the moment, I don't have any health benefits. It's not a job where I can flex my creativity. I will also need to find another job during the off-season. On the freelancing end, it's annoying that I will have to deal with rejection letters and try to squeeze all this writing in when I get home from the pay-the-bills job. And that the cooler venues will not look at my work until I've been published in the more innocuous publications.

I like my office job in that the co-workers are friendly, the workload is always manageable, and that I never take any of it home with me. As for freelancing, writing is what I do. I may not enjoy the act of writing all the time (though it's occasionally awesome; discovering things and finding the right hook) I've always taken a lot of pleasure in having written.

Comics are escape. They're also experimental. I love serialized storytelling, and I love when people try something new. Bendis will take risks sometimes. BKV will throw curve balls. Words and pictures are a malleable format. It's a fun industry filled with great people. As for how comics effect my job? Well, we'll often talk about comics during the filing jobs. A lot of young creative types work this job, and when placed in a room with a mindless task, we get to talking. In terms of my writing, I'd like to write about comics and I also look to comic readers as a primary audience.

[mattk]

I'm a 7th Grade Math teacher at an urban school.

Hardest thing is some of the disrespect i get (kids these days! ;)) and when the students refuse to do something or a lesson bombs that you work hard on.

Best thing - every day is sort of different which makes things interesting. I love the challenge of trying to bring up low kids or invest in the lives of some students who really have no one else to talk to or have some really bad family situations.

Oh, and comics - well since i teach math I don't touch a lot of the Lit side, but i see a lot of Manga and we talk about those volumes.

[chunkydrunky]

I'm a unix admin for UC Berkeley.

I absolutely hate dealing with management. That and the rare occurrence of being on call when a box gets compromised.

I love working in Berkeley and most of the people I work with.

I get to walk by Comic Relief everyday from BART to work. Oh how I love thee Comic Relief!

[xyzzy]

Go Bears!

[cormano]

I'm a material handler (grunt work) at RR Donnelley. I work in the catalog press room. We print a lot of catalogs… I went go college for Graphic Communications but haven't graduated yet. I'm doing my internship right now. The job is related to my major, but it's work anyone off the streets could do. Looking for a job sucks, everything seems to either require no education, or require education and work experience. So I'm building up my work experience, I guess.

Thing I hate… SWING SHIFT! I was locked in to day shift for a few months, but they just sent a bunch of people to a different plant and screwed that up, so it looks like I'll be on swing shift the next couple months.

Thing I like… I work with some cool people and it's always cool to have a finished product, or a few hundred thousand catalogs, which is about what we do in a shift. It makes you feel like you've at least accomplished something.

And comics don't really effect my job now, it would be awesome to one day work somewhere that prints comics, but most of the mainstream stuff is done in Canada and they're already having a lot of problems so I doubt I'll ever get that chance.

*edit* Although I do read comics at break and have met a couple other comic readers, including one who works part time at a shop that I still need to go check out sometime.

[itsbecca]

Might be changing in the coming weeks, but currently I'm a Branch Administrator with a Home Improvement company. I handle everything that connects the physical paperwork of the job to our computer system basically, so scanning, a little data entry... cutting checks and the like.

I hate that I am the primary person who answers the phone. It makes it difficult to listen to music which is how I usually get through a menial job like this. I also get customers yelling at me constantly when I generally have no authority to help them whatsoever and just need to transfer their call, but they don't give a shit and ramble on and on and on..... ugh.

I love my co-workers. I was friends with several of them before I even started and it's just fantastic working with these people. I laugh so much on a daily basis it's almost criminal.

I am the go to comic person at work.
The good: When I get fielded questions about comic related movies, or when people just pick up a random comic I have and chill around my desk. One of my friends got hooked on Faker and would actually bug me about when the next issue was coming out. It's just bizarre and I love it.
The bad: People think I can tell them the worth of their old collection from when they were a kid with the drop of a hat. My general answer is "Not as much as you'd think. Sorry."

[casually-drowned]

In the middle of last year I quit my job as an Information System Analyst, sold most of what I owned, and drove across the country from Florida to Colorado to go back to college in the middle of nowhere. Since I am basically starting from scratch, I am treading water full-time at a community college until I can apply for residency and have the cost of tuition come down. I also work at the college in a computer lab helping the professors with questions they have about teaching online, and answering questions about general computer miscellany. If it is possible, that sounds better than it is; I spend the bulk of my time cleaning up code for online courses. I love the fact that my job is so close to where I live because I am still getting used to driving in the snow.
When I was in Florida I was extremely social. I even had a part time job as a cocktail waitress/beer tub girl. Here I don't know anyone and spend most of my time on a computer or studying, and I don't really get out much. Comics are something that I started to get into before I moved, and now I have the time to really enjoy them.

[kahunablair]

Echoing Becca's "Might change in a couple Weeks" sentiment, here we go.
What is your occupation?
I'm the Internet Sales Manager for an Auto dealership. It's great. I'm not paid to rip people off. My job is to say, "Here's our invoice. Here's how much we actually own the car for without all the extra crap Dealership throw on there. Would you like to buy this car?" I'm pretty much an Online Information booth.

What do you hate about it?
New "higher-ups" have lead to some major changes. Pretty much every single one is against me.

What do you love about it?
Being able to be brutally honest with people. Being able to hop on this site through out the day. Before the management change, I was pretty much left to run free.

How does comics effect it?
It really doesn't change anything for me, except help me cool down and relax. Plus, I'm prone to sketching or doodling on MSPaint here at work. So that is just another little stress relief.

[shaundaniels]

I am a owner/manager of an campground Resort in Foxboro MA www.normandyfarms.com. We are more resort then an campground we have free wifi, three outdoor pools, one indoor and a bunch of other stuff. Also curently trying to be a frelance writer, comics, tv, cartoons. I did do writing for production company for awhile but it was corporate videos with some fun spec commericals.

I hate having only one day off a week in the summer and working insane hours during the summer.

My favorite part is that I have a lot of freedoms that I would not have had if it wasn't my/family business.

Comics help me relax when I'm not working.

[kahunablair]

Do you guys remain open during the winter months, Shaun?

[shaundaniels]

Do you guys remain open during the winter months, Shaun?

We are open all year round

[shaundaniels]

what type of dealership is it you work at.

[kahunablair]

Really? All year? Do you guys get a lot of winter business up there? I had a buddy that moved because they decided to close down his resort/campground from lack of Winter business.

what type of dealership is it you work at.
I'm at Acura, but I help people with 9 other, different brands.

[shaundaniels]

Really? All year? Do you guys get a lot of winter business up there? I had a buddy that moved because they decided to close down his resort/campground from lack of Winter business.


Acura.

We have about 10 people who live year round. We did away with people living with us but grandfathered a few in. We have 40 people who live with us just for the winter because other parks close in the winter. Then we have a winter wonderland package where you get 10 free nights and storre your unit on site. It's a lot of fun in the winter. We have two big hills for sleding, the indoor pool 2 hottubs, exercise room, sauna



http://normandyfarms.com/facilities/swimming3.html
http://normandyfarms.com/recent%20photos/recent_fitness.htm

[kahunablair]

Nice!

[shaundaniels]

Nice!

thanks, where was your buddy staying?

[kahunablair]

He was working at some big resort/ground we have near Atlantic City. I can't remember the name now.
He moved down South to Georgia though. Lucky bastard.

[jon_samuelson]

What is your occupation, don't have to say the name of your company if you don't want too, just the sort of job you do.
I'm a graduate student at Penn State. I do experimental (and a teeny bit of theoretical) earthquake geophysics.

Then one that that you HATE about it, the thing you dread doing,
My experiments are really laborious to set up, and that really gets to be a drag. The set up/tear down portion of my experiments will take several hours for an experiment that might last 30-40 minutes. And when the experiment gets effed up after all those hours of set up...:mad:

and another thing you absolutely LOVE about it, the reason for staying.
I love that it's different every day. It's not at all like a regular job, I just get to think about stuff and tinker around experimentally.

Then, if you want, how comics effect your typical day.
Pretty much not at all, other than taking shit from my friends about cutting out early on Wednesdays for new comic day. I do occasionally think I should have gone straight physics/chemistry though. It's an easier segue towards super-villainy.

[jasontodd]

What is your occupation, don't have to say the name of your company if you don't want too, just the sort of job you do.
I'm a claims examiner for a health insurance company in Kansas City, MO. Basically, I do investigations into health insurance claims that seem a bit "off" to see if they need to be paid or not.

Then one that that you HATE about it, the thing you dread doing,
Basically, I'm the bad guy in Michael Moore's "Sicko". My job is pretty demonized, but basically I go by the book for the insurance company that people signed up to use.

and another thing you absolutely LOVE about it, the reason for staying.
I love the people that I work with, and the fact that it's a laid back environment.

Then, if you want, how comics effect your typical day.
Nothing directly. It's just escapism for me and something that I really enjoy. Most of my best friends don't even know that i'm into comics. My wife doesn't really even know the extent of it. My brother is the only person that I'm close to that shares my passion for comics.

[quentin]

I am a sales consultant for a wireless telecommunications company.

I dislike the fact that my work number, is my personal number as well. You could be at the office all week, and get no calls, but on your day off, it rings off the hook.

I love what I am exposed to and learn about at work. It's cutting edge technology, and I basically get to play with all the toys. My first mp3 player was a motorola rokr, and I would have never found the ifanboy podcast if I wasn't looking for something free & legal to listen to on it, and show off to customers. So you know, stuff like that.

Comics are part of my nightly, and sometimes I'll enjoy them in the morning w/ a cup of coffee too. More often than not, they are an escape, a way to let go of the work day. I don't think there's any entertainment medium that I get more enjoyment out of these days than comics.

[esophagus]

I'm currently unemployed.

I hate this because it means slightly less free-flowing money (thanks to a rigid savings plan, and the small amount I spend I barely notice), and a bit less to do.

I like this because it obviously comes with a lot of freedoms, and allows me to stay on top of my school work.

Well, that's basically just asking how comics change every aspect of my life. Escapism, reading material, learning about a new format I'd love to write in, and occasionally coaxing me to give art anoter shot.

[kwok_talk]

I work for a company's financial reporting department. Essentially I'm somewhat of an accountant; which then people assume I count things and can magically do everyone's taxes. The latter is very much not true.

One thing I hate is that generally the mid-January - March months are busier and some late nights before a report is due. Also, I work with all women, so I now know more about pregnancy and post-pregnancy than I'd like to know.

One thing I like is that the hours are TONS better than my prior job (public accounting), whose sole goal is to basically break the spirit of new college accounting graduates.

Comics are completely unrelated to my job and don't really come up at all. But they are a fun escape for me and nothing's better than coming home Friday to a box from DCBS.

[the-sword-is-drawn]

What is your occupation, don't have to say the name of your company if you don't want too, just the sort of job you do.

I won't name my company directly, but I work for one of the largest UK Videogames publishers - in their QA department. So, in layman's terms I test videogames all day. It's not really quite like that, and a lot more finding problems than ACTUALLY playing games, but that's what I do.

Then one that that you HATE about it, the thing you dread doing.

Poking developers, and their programmers, when things slip behind. Usually it's not their fault, but I have to do it. It's part of the job.

and another thing you absolutely LOVE about it, the reason for staying.

Working with a great bunch of people, who even after working almost 24 hrs straight in the rough periods still manage to keep me cheerful.

Then, if you want, how comics effect your typical day.

Scanning news sites, reading old books, and maintaining a blog which is slowly taking over my life... Receiving numerous emails and PMs to the effect of "You're the guy who runs that British Marvel blog - Can you tell me who's on the new Excalibur lineup?"

The answer is a polite 'Sorry, but no'. If I did know that kind of information (And that doesn't mean I do) do you really think I'd compromise the creators by sharing that kind of information on a public messageboard? Sorry, guys, I don't mean to be rude, but we'll all just have to wait for Marvel to announce it.

Sometimes surprise can be a good thing, yes? ;)

[jgg0610]

Occupation: I'm the Business Unit Manager for an agchem business which basically equates to a regional controller.

Thing I Hate: I'd rather manage processes than manage people but my job requires me to manage people more and more and that sucks up time.

Thing I Love: The people I work with are great. It's really more like a family than a company which in a multi-billion $ company is rare.

Comics have no impact on my job. It's what I do after work and on Wednesday's at lunch.

[jgg0610]

I work for a company's financial reporting department. Essentially I'm somewhat of an accountant; which then people assume I count things and can magically do everyone's taxes. The latter is very much not true.

I get the tax thing a lot, especially being a CPA. I barely even do my own taxes. I f%ucking hate taxes with a passion. There's no logic to them. You have to know what mood the congress was in the day they passed the bill. It's absolutely ridiculous to try and figure out the tax code.

[kwok_talk]

I get the tax thing a lot, especially being a CPA. I barely even do my own taxes. I f%ucking hate taxes with a passion. There's no logic to them. You have to know what mood the congress was in the day they passed the bill. It's absolutely ridiculous to try and figure out the tax code.

Hi-five brother! I don't know HOW MANY times I've told people I don't do taxes, only to have them say the same thing next year. I've just given up and just nod along sometimes.

[mjm05k]

I just graduated from law school and you may have inspired me to find a job doing tax work - because somehow the tax code actually made sense to me in that class! I forgot how much most people really hate doing their own taxes.

[jgg0610]

I just graduated from law school and you may have inspired me to find a job doing tax work - because somehow the tax code actually made sense to me in that class! I forgot how much most people really hate doing their own taxes.
When I started school, I was originally planning on being a tax lawyer becuase I knew how much most people hated doing their taxes. I took that first corporate tax class and that was the end of that. Ever since then, I've avoided taxes like they were the black plague and I was a rat.

[k33k3r]

I am a Systems Analyst for the reporting team of a major health insurance provider.

I only started with this company about a month ago so I don't really have any dislikes.

Likes: I can walk to work and better pay.

My job has no links to my comics reading.

[spock-tm]

Wow, such a huge response (bigger than I thought would happen), so many people from so many places, crazy stuff, keep it up :D

[xyzzy]

I just graduated from law school and you may have inspired me to find a job doing tax work - because somehow the tax code actually made sense to me in that class! I forgot how much most people really hate doing their own taxes.

Do lit. It's awesome.

[brandmed]

I'm a marriage and family therapist in training. I'm still in grad school working towards my degree until June and I won't be licensed for another two years at the earliest, but I do have about 15 clients and a group on my case load right now.

I hate the paperwork and the phone calls. Boring, tedious, and time consuming.

I love the clients and getting to share in lives of so many different types of people whose experiences are so different from my own. I also love my supervisor and the staff I work with.

Comics don't really affect my job that much. I do have a ten year old client who's into not comics exactly, but Spider-man, Star Wars, Transformers and other stuff that my geek cred allows me to converse knowledgeably about. Really helped build the rapport there.