I’ll have to file this one under: Things I never considered doing after the age of 35.
I’m embarrassed to admit it, but I make less money than my 18-year-old daughter who works for Wal-mart. Unlike my 18-year-old daughter, I’m loving the work and the experience is worth every penny I’m not making to be there.
What am I doing?
I’m mostly sucking-up air and burning dead dinosaurs while I fiddle around with web design and research (and sometimes write about) things related to the Jordan River, water management, planning, and riparian restoration. Laura, my boss at the Jordan River Commission, was kind enough to give me the title of Outreach Coordinator.
Technically, I’m an Americorps Volunteer placed by the Utah Conservation Corps with the Jordan River Commission. It’s complicated and I’m not totally sure I understand how it works.
I’m a volunteer. I’m performing service. I’m an intern. I’m compensated.
Leave it to the guvmt to distort definitions.
Confusion aside, I’m pretty excited about the next year and all that I’ll be exposed to. I have ideas about what I’d like to accomplish. (read: things I’m can do for the JRC. See, I’m not totally selfish). How cool is that? I don’t know that I’ve had a job volunteer gig that allowed me explore and implement ideas that can benefit the organization. If you experience that in your workplace, consider yourself lucky.
In the coming months, I hope I’ll be doing a little more writing and/or linking to things that I’ve written for the JRC blog. I hope you’ll enjoy learning about rivers and wetlands and beavers, oh my!
P.S. I’m a little embarrassed to be labeled The 40-Year-Old Intern?
And I love everything about this.
Galen,
It’s always good to be working. It’s great to like what you’re working on.