Dan and I worked out one time that we had relatives covering all of the above.
Dan’s great grandfather (surname Barry) came from Ireland, and the family there did sell items, as far as we know.
Dan’s grandfather, where the Frydman connection comes in, was a tailor, in the east end of London.
My great grandfather (Gawthorpe) was a career soldier, though all our grandfathers were soldiers too, in World War II.
My father (Mackenzie) can lay some claim to being a sailor too, having been in the Merchant Navy.
I’m not sure if the rhyme offers you options, or whether it’s effectively all down hill from there on in…rich man, poor man, beggar man, thief…is probably not one you want to lay before a careers officer as a possible job progression.
The reason for writing this has been musing on how certain job characteristics might be passed on, in some way. I’m well aware that my grandfather (Mackenzie) was a diplomat, and although I didn’t aspire to doing that, my own job, with its international perspective, has echoes of that.
My grandmother (Mackenzie) trained as a teacher, as did her two sisters. Even though Granny didn’t do as much actually teaching as her sisters, education is still part of that side of the family, and the main focus of my work is on education, which I am happy about.
More recently, I have come to wonder about what skills I have inherited from my parents. In my teens, when I was a bit more aware of Dad’s job, he was working for an agricultural cooperative, looking after the parts department. You name it, they sold it…gas canisters, chicken feed, equestrian blankets, nuts and bolts for combine harvesters.
Sounds less immediately like my job. But it does suggest a certain liking for systems, cataloguing, stock control…all of which I find myself responding to. The university careers advisor suggested that one area linguistics graduates had gone into was logistics, and that is quite a good way of viewing the work I do with languages students.
Dad gave me some other helpful pointers in this department: stamp collecting, cataloguing audio cassettes, carefully noting who had given what on Christmas morning so we could all write our thank you letters.
Mum trained as a secretary, working both in a hospital and in school. Dealing with pupils, parents, teachers, governors, the local vicar, other community members…sounds a bit like the mix of groups I work with too!
The best way I could sum up the collecting and ordering things was in the term quartermaster, overseeing provisions for an army. I like food shopping, but sometimes even better than the actual food shopping is the putting it all away afterwards, looking on at well-stocked cupboards.
However, the real test will come later in life, when I have to decide whether or not to succumb to subscribing to Which?, the UK consumer magazine that is meant to help you sort out which hedgeclipper to buy, amongst other things. Grandpa did. Dad does. It may be only a matter of time…
Meanwhile, the secretary side of me continues to write posts. Should you send in your subscription for the PTA, I’ll know you’ve been reading carefully.