Date: 2006-10-31
To: Prep #57--Identity
Miles today: 0.0

Well Happy Halloween everyone! Yes, I admit, I've eaten my fair share of chocolate today....I didn't have a choice...really...I didn't! I heard a story on the news this morning as to why Halloween has evolved into such a $ making consermist holiday that is so popular now, especially for adults. They said it was because it is the only holiday in which it's all about you. We don't give gifts or flowers to anyone, but we get to go around and ask for free candy. We get permission from society to "play" with our identities for 1 whole day of the year, even if it is something silly like being a can of your favorite beer or a super hero. But it is all about how you choose to represent yourself, and it's the only day of the year in which it is safe and acceptable to break the rules. I can understand that.   I didn't dress up today...oh, wait in a way I did, I dressed up as a temporary secretary! I think I can safely say that I've had more "careers" in my 30+ years of life than some people do in a lifetime. And for clarity, when I say -identity- I mean how the outward world perceives you, not how you perceive yourself. I personally define identity as the culturally-assigned definition/explanation of who you are. (my professor would kill me for defining it that way!) And what I've learned is that what you do for a living is the first thing people go to in order to define you. That's not always a good thing, because asking that question completely misses the boat when trying to find out what makes a person tick.I've had jobs that are considered lower-level jobs that only high school drop outs would have (and I had a Master's degree at the time). Then I've had jobs in which I didn't even have to try to earn a person's respect, it was automatically given to me when I told them what I did.....hence the picture in this post, from my time in the Marine Corps. What amazes me is that through all of my jobs, I've always been the same person in regards to my values, beliefs, ethics, sense of humor, likes/dislikes, philosophy of how we should treat one another, etc., but the way I was perceived by others and the way I was treated by them varied immensely according to what job I had at the time.How is it that we can justify treating others as "lesser" simply because of their job title or who we perceive them to be? I can say that I have been treated as if I couldn't spell a one-syllable word at my current position, and that is because as a temp secretary, I'm perceived to have little professional value, because let's face it, if I were educated or skilled, why would I be "there". People at work are always shocked (visibly I might add) when in the course of a conversation, they find out I've brought the experiences and credentials I have to this position. They literally treat me differently from that point on. I find it odd, though, that nobody ever asks me what I THINK about a certain topic or issue. I believe that if you really want to get to the core of a person, know them for who they really are, that is what you should be asking, not, "So what do you do for a living?" So for now, everyday is Halloween for me. I put on my secretary hat and go to work so I can answer the phone, email people, manage my boss' calendar, and gossip with my friend Heather about how petty people can be in an office setting. In 3 months and 27 days (Oh Yeahhhhhhhhh) I'll put on my "unemployed hiker hat" and I wonder what type of reaction I'll get from people then. Will my new culturally-assigned identity be that of a worthless bum? Will I be perceived as worldly and daring, or will I be considered just another selfish 30-something that is taking 6 months to do something for myself instead of contributing to society?Only time will tell I suppose. Until then, I'll dream of being my favorite super hero on this Halloween night....none other than Wonder Woman.