Hangin' with George Costanza...

My daughter, Monica, is working in London where she managed to get a great job at a fancy bank as a "risk modeler". She's a mathematician. She was a student so long, going to grad school, that she watched many friends go off to find great careers while she was still hitting the books living the life of a poor student. Now it's finally her turn. She goes to work each day in a business suit and nice pointy shoes and deals with other people in suits as they all handle enormous amounts of money. I can't picture it, she's a hiker, a biker, a creative cook, a fabulous photographer, an outdoorsy camper kind of girl.

Then I think of myself. At home I wear jeans and a hoodie with a tank top underneath. The minute I'm in the door off come the work clothes and heels. In a rumpled heap on the floor is my professionalism. There have been times I've taken off my panty hose in the car waiting for a train to pass. I'm not into hair and make up. It's not unusual for me to leave the house with my hair still wet. A drip dry lifestyle suits me fine. So I know where my daughter gets it.

I came across a picture taken in November, when Monica and I went into the city to get her tattoo done. (Her tattoo was my design!) We had a GREAT day! We were clowning around at the tattoo parlor and Monica snapped this picture of me in the waiting area and later added the infamous beefcake photo of George Constanza from Seinfeld.

I laugh every time I see it! It captures me (and my personality) more than most pictures do. It's true... Girls just wanna have fun!

So every day, Monica dresses in her suit and hides her tattoos and true-est self and merges into the world of business and finance. And I put on my skirts, boots and fancy clothes, keeping the playful me safely tucked away when I meet with clients who expect me to decorate their homes in "good taste". I wonder if people sense anything when they meet us, something there that they can't quite pinpoint, telling them there's more to us than meets the eye.
Sometimes I'll look at a person and sense that "something" about them too. I'm drawn to such people, intrigued by the complex, fascinating combination of qualities they possess. They are people who are full of life, interested in almost everything, excited to learn new things... and they exude a certain confidence and happiness. They know who they are, and they also know how to get what they want in life.

For some people, the job IS the person. Work is their life. For others, the job is the means of paying the bills, making it possible to live a great life apart from the job. As much as I love my job, I love not working even more.

It took me awhile to figure that out! I suspect my daughter's learning it now..