My love affair with Jobs.

My wife and I have had our share of jobs in our lifetimes. We have spoken with many of our friends and it seems we all have similar experiences with employment. My relationship with a job has changed as I grew older. When I was young I was glad to have a job, any job. It was fun to meet new people. It was educational to see what other people did for a living. Then I went to college and was lucky to get a teaching job. Nirvana! Love at first paycheck. That lasted for thirty years. One of my longest relationships. Unfortunately, like all love affairs it ended in divorce. You see, I had aged  and became much wiser. A job is like a pair of shoes both are meant to wear out. Then you get a new one. All jobs, regardless of what type they are all are the same. Same people, same Peter Principle executives and managers running  the show. We see the paychecks and the security of the relationship and miss all those red flags our mothers told us about. You know the ones, lack of respect, bad communication, playing one against the other, seeing how much the other person can get from you, taking all the credit  for your ideas. Well that's where being around the block a few times is important. I never knew what right to work meant until I moved to Florida. It means that an employer can terminate your wonderful relationship at a moment's notice with no prior warning like you were today's trash. I guess we owe that partner the same regard. I like to think that now when I take a job I go into the affair with eyes wide open and I control how I'm treated.  Breaking up isn't hard to do, it's just a reality of life.