Changes, New Horizons and Cuckoo Clocks in Ecco Domani

I have recently made a career change. It came about organically really. I was in need of a second job. My primary career in restaurants and hotels was at a dead end; I didn’t know how to recognize it from the inside out. I had been stuck in those jobs for sometime, became successful and well known. But, that’s just my personality. I am like my mother; I can never half-ass anything. At first I enjoyed throwing pizzas and the general camaraderie of either hippie or Italian Pizzarias while I was in or around college. I was saving up to finish my classes (I have some $35,000 in student debt,) but time and time again I was hitting a wall; like I was tugging against a leash towards finishing my classes. My explaining that I was to be taking classes to my coworkers was generally never taken well. To them, it seemed, it was like we were racing and I was cheating to get ahead by taking classes and leaving the Service Industry behind in my dust. Misery loves company. Edmond Dantes’ Pardoning scene, Oh race of crocodiles. I would eventually be, in their eyes, the pompous know-it-alls they have to serve. (One key to my success in the business was that I did not hate the “pompous, privileged, know-it-alls” I was to be serving or cooking for. I was able to network that way.) I had also been passed over for promotions I had been more qualified for due to the fact I had went to college. Often that world is filled with felons, high school, or college drop-outs where I was a on more of college sabbatical.

      I am generalizing a bit, because I have made great friends in the business but, more often than not, they had been to college for Hospitality or were like me and working their way through classes. My best experiences were, as I mentioned before, Italian Pizzarias, Mellow Mushrooms (depending on the owner,) Home 2 Suites by Hilton, small family owned first or second generation Americans (namely Asians, Thai and Japanese, and Greeks,) a New Jersey native, South Africans, and Alabama Little Caesars guys. My worst experiences by far were with traditional Southern Americans, BBQ, Seafood (Oysters,) and Burger Joints. They tend to overcompensate with power and generally have no respect for Worker's Rights, or Individuality (being different, or artistic. Obviously those figures are averaged because I found good times, and friends at all of them.)

     And so, I took a leap of faith. I saw an add to work at a Mental Health Hospital. I am over all, with some minor setbacks, very happy and fulfilled in my new journey. The Doctors, Nurses, and Psychiatrists took to me quickly, and encouraged me to become a Male Nurse. I am allowed to be intelligent, book smart and can use my college experience without being ostracized because I read books and use big words.

(To Be Continued…)

Cheers Mates!
Zampano

Last updated March 24, 2023