Category Archives: Free Agent Nation

Candy and popcorn

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When I’m working a seasonal assignment, it’s for one thing and one thing only. “Show me the money, man!” Perhaps that’s why I’m sensitive to efforts to turn work into a carnival, or something approximating “Romper Room.”

Let me start out by saying that I’ve never been much on employers plying me with non-financial incentives. I’m not overly covetous (I don’t think) and I’ve had jobs that paid shit for wages in my past, but living in the U.S. of A. takes some ka-ching to keep a roof over your head and wheels beneath you. As much as I enjoy cycling, I can’t see the practicality or the feasibility of a business trip from Portland to Presque Isle by bicycle. Continue reading →

Moonlighting on Cyber Monday

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When consumers call, someone must pick up on the other end.

We live in an age of transitions; at least that’s what we’re being sold. Gone are the glory days of union-wage jobs and pension funds. “Bring on the free agents” cry the 21st century prophets (or perhaps, profiteers) that tell us that all we need is a better, or more diverse tool set to succeed in the new economy.

Moonlighting—that age-old tradition of holding a 2nd job in addition to your primary wage-earning position—is something that more than 8 million Americans are engaged in. I’m one of those, juggling multiple paying gigs, all adding up to one mess of 1099s and a coming tax-paying train wreck of an employment situation. Continue reading →