scmrak's Full Review: Nancy Rica Schiff - Odd Jobs: Portraits of Unusual...
Odd Jobs - Nancy Rica Schiff
At a party not long ago, I was introduced to a young man who, our mutual friend declared, "has the most unusual job!" Turns out that my new acquaintance was office manager for Asleep at the Wheel (a nationally-known western-swing band for those of you into hip-hop or alternative). That's unusual? Well, maybe he got to sit in the same room as famous people once in a while - Tim McGraw, Huey Lewis, Willie Nelson, Marcia Ball - but that doesn't change the fact that he's an office manager, fer goshsakes! One of, what, two million office managers in the country? Now a man I once met on a plane out of Houston had what I call an unusual job: he chaperoned moon rocks for NASA, and not many people have that job!
If you'd like to meet some people who have Odd Jobs, do I have the book for you (compliments of Ms scmrak, thanks)! Nancy Rica Schiff, a New York City-based photographer, crisscrossed the country looking for people with strange occupations in her spare time. When she found one that struck her fancy, she took a black-and-white portrait and some notes. After years of indulging her strange hobby, she's put together her favorites to share with us in Odd Jobs: Portraits of Unusual Occupations.
And the Winners Are:
Seventy-two people with seventy-two different jobs - some of them of the "I always wondered..." variety and some more along the lines of "they actually pay someone to do that?" Each is accompanied by a paragraph or two explaining the job (some of them really need explaining) and how the person pictured ended up doing this kind of work. There's no particular order, just a random sampling of a list of strange jobs and the people - also strange, sometimes - who perform them.
Since Rica Schiff didn't organize them, I will:
Jobs that are Actually Unique (One-of-a-Kind) --------------------------------------------- Stanley Cup Keeper - he chaperones the NHL's Stanley Cup whenever it leaves the Hockey Hall of Fame. Duckmaster - he escorts five ducks through the lobby of the Peabody Hotel in Memphis Tennessee to a fountain in the lobby (down a red carpet, no less)! Coin Polisher -- the St. Francis Hotel in San Francisco actually launders their coins, and this is the guy who does it.
Jobs You Always Suspected Existed --------------------------------- Bingo Caller Golf Ball Diver Dog Walker, and, of course, Pooper-Scooper Dinosaur Duster Doll Doctor
Jobs You Wouldn't Want for All the Money In the World ------------------------------------------------------ Knife-Thrower's Assistant Porta-Potty Serviceman Snake Venom Collector
Jobs that Require a Trained Nose (or Tongue) -------------------------------------------- Dog Sniffer Perfumer Odor Judge Beer Taster
Jobs that Sound Salacious ------------------------- Tampon Tester - male, of course ("Few men can relate to women as intimately as he does") Condom Tester - female, of course. Men's Room Attendant - also female, of course. Bra Designer - male, of course Semen Collector - female, of course (she's collecting from bulls)
And Jobs You Can't Pronounce ---------------------------- Ocularist Solfeggist Theriogenologist
The Contents
It's fairly obvious from clothing styles in the portraits that Rica Schiff has been at her hobby for a couple of decades - some of the people pictured have since retired and one has even died. But for the most part she's done an excellent job of capturing the essence of the job by picturing the worker surrounded by his or her tools of the trade, whether they be ducks, pipettes, condoms, or a very large hose (the porta-potty serviceman, not the colonics technician). The Men's Room Attendant smiles prettily as a three-piece-suited gentleman "does his business" (back to the camera) at the urinal behind her (special note for ed_: it looks like the bathroom is completely tiled in a dark marble with white veins). The Headmistress and one of her clients - a portly balding gentleman clad in merry widow, thigh-highs and sling-back pumps - create a... an interesting tableau, to say the least.
The text, though rarely more than seventy-five or a hundred words, captures the essence of the task at hand and the jobholder's qualifications; plus a little quirky information about the daily grind. Many are humorous, with double-entendres and a few groaner-level puns.
The Rub
Several of the jobs may have seemed strange to city-bred Rica Schiff - artificial inseminator, semen collector, horse anesthetist - but on the other side of the Hudson they're not all that unusual. A few jobs that may have seemed unusual at the time are far more commonplace today - I'd wager that in the city of Austin alone, there are well over a hundred each of video-game testers and body piercers.
Still, the photographs and some of the job descriptions are enough to keep your interest for the hour or so necessary to scan the book. Put it out on your coffee table, and I guarantee that your next visitor will be engrossed within minutes after opening it (and, given the photograph on the cover, people will open it)!
Besides, maybe it'll give your kids ideas for something to do other than become the next Ken Lay (or Ozzie Osbourne).
ps - since the cover photograph isn't shown on the Epinions listing, I put a copy on my profile page!
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