I'd Make a Great Grim Reaper

It's true. I've watched every episode of Dead Like Me and I know that this is a job I'd be cut out to do.

Very few people love what they do. I happen to be very lucky in that I love my job - and not just for the place I work for currently (which has way more positives than negatives), but in general. From the start when I fell into the HR department at PNY Technologies, I knew that this was what I was meant to do. Sure, there was a lot of learning and trial and error but it was all worth it. I hold a great position now. And the thing of it is that I earned it. I worked very hard to get to where I am. For someone with zero college, this is a huge accomplishment.

But let's look at the job of the Grim Reaper. Or in this case, reapers. In Dead Like Me, the main character, George, is someone I identify with a lot. I'm not 18 and wasn't killed at that age, but her general manner and a lot of the different things like being a joiner and hiding to really hide and all that, well, that is me all over.

There are several things that I identify strongly with.

Not seeing the forest for the trees. If you want someone who sees the big picture, I'm not it. I immerse myself in the little nit-picky details and can focus on them and pick them apart and that is my absolute strength. If you want to me to step back and see overall things, or project more than a month (well, ideally a week) into the future, I'm not your person. There are two kinds of people: those like me, who only see trees, and those like Vana, a colleague, who only sees the forest.

Not being a joiner. Fortuitously, my parents were never ones to force the issue - they did not step in and sign me up for things or list me with an after-school activity or group, unless I asked to do it. Say what you will: some people are joiners and some aren't. Making your kid a joiner is not the right thing to do. I hate that people sign up their kids for piano lessons, soccer practice, dance lessons, take your pick, when the kid clearly does not want to go. I'm OK with the fact that my parents did not force me to partake. I did join one or two things, but only on my own terms. I took an art class; I did work as a stage hand on "Pippin" in high school; I took Astronomy (and got to see Halley's Comet through the big telescope at Garrett Mountain in Paterson). So I did do some things. Every where that I have worked I have avoided going to bars with my coworkers (always a good choice being in HR but even prior to that I never went for that). I'm not a joiner that way and no one seems to be too hung up on that.

Hiding. I never played Hide & Go Seek with the idea that I would be discovered. I really wanted to be invisible and not be found. That is just the way I am.

Family affairs. I am not a family-oriented person. I love my parents and Luis and I have a very close relationship with them. My secondary family is OK and I like seeing them once a year. I do like my cousin Reneé more than that and I like Luis' sister Anna much more. And they both made excellent choices in men. Reneé married Alex Bradley and he is a really wonderful person. Anna is still with Kirk and I hope she never lets him go. The rest of my family is OK with the marked exception of my father-outlaw, who just makes me crazy on a consistent level. I don't feel that visiting family is ever classified as "vacation" but an extra stressor. I do not feel obligated to say yes to every ridiculous invite that comes down the pike. (I am fortunate in the fact that my family is very small and so this comes up very infrequently. But I know people whose dance cards are always full because of "family obligations". If I feel obligated to go and don't want to, guess what. I don't go. I hate the idea of being obligated to go - it is a nice way of saying I am so not interested in being there! So... I don't!

Weddings. OK, what is it about weddings that make women turn into raving lunatics and men heave a sigh? I'm with most men - "oh, ye gods, not another one of these!" And then there is Luis. He signs up to go to EVERY wedding he gets an invitation to from coworkers! Oh, stop! If they want to go through all that, send them a card and be done with it! I only want to go to really close friends' weddings and that is it. By the same token, I would only invite the closest of friends to my nuptials - not every acquaintance and coworker. I can only think of one person at my current place of employment that I would invite.

Work joining. I'm not a joiner in any aspect of life, why should work be any different? I won't be joining the work soft ball league or bowling team or anything like that!

Team sports. I never liked team sports and seeing what joiner I am, is this any surprise?

As for being a reaper, I would be good at this because people dying doesn't bother me. I have in fact discovered that it is dealing with survivors at the scene that bothers me and makes me emotional. But dead people are just a fact of life. Maybe that sounds cold. I have walked enough people to the grave to know that this is some thing that does not bother me. Old or young (and young is not as easy but it is still easier than the survivors), sometimes it is just their time to go. So reaping the souls of those about to die would be an acceptable thing.

And I can deal with being "invisible" and sort of fading into the background and not being obvious. I am someone who does that at large-scale events, events where I know very few people and high-end events. I am never comfortable dressing up, being presentable and having to follow acceptable social norms for the upper crust. I never know what fork to use, how to put my napkin and which side is my bread plate versus my partner's. These sort of social graces are lost on me and I find them a waste of time. Take me as I am or don't. It is that simple.

The hours might be a little weird. And it's not the kind of thing that makes one's résumé look normal (it will make it stand out, but not in a good way...). But it would be interesting! Never a dull moment. Then again...

...I have that now! And I get paid well for it. Not a bad deal at all...