What do you do?

I used to transfer tiny amounts of liquid from one tiny tube to another. Now I get abused verbally by 11-18 year olds.

I do freelance consultancy, training and interim work for charities and social enterprises. I’m also a trustee of two charities and sometimes do voluntary mentoring for charity managers.

Resell redundant (mostly used) healthcare equipment from the UK around the world. Not glamorous or even super interesting after the initial novelties wear off.

I’m the head of media wholesale for a large online retailer. Also helping with sustainability for the company. Looking at everything from the packaging we use, to waste management, staff education, scope emissions and carbon reduction plans.

Stuff, unless I don’t much feel like it.

Semi-retired with aspirations to be Tobermory’s first dotcom millionaire – I’ll probably die trying. You can find me on Mondays hawking my wares.

For over 30 years I worked in the engineering and defence sectors, increasingly becoming overly-familiar with the incompetence of Government and Civil Service.

Medical engineer: I used to fix useful machines in hospitals, now I mainly drive a computer and look after the other engineers.

Site engineering, Marking out where to dig holes and fill with concrete then build stuff can be vagually interesting but often frustrating cos someone driving a computer says it will work but often wont!. Its better than teaching ( DT)wot i used to dobut having a well equipped workshop is one thing i miss.

I look after three big energy companies for a very, very big American technology company.

The fun stuff is helping them do things that have never really been done before, but a lot of my time is dealing with random questions, finding people to help answer the questions and reading documentation when those people aren’t around.

Yard person for generator hire company, cleaning equipment before dispatch, loading and unloading using a big ass 18 ton forklift.
Occasional fuel deliveries to building sites etc.

Manage the bakery for a small, artisanal (sorry..) Cornish biscuit company.
Although it seems we can bake them quicker than we can sell them, down to 4 day week, so time for a change I think.

@IHN I wish I was that svelte at the moment.

I used to transfer boxes of grapes and pineapples from one place to another. Now I get verbally abused by 11-16 year olds.

Mobile App developer / Head of Development. – looking for an ios developer btw.

Was an overpaid government-employed security guard. Now an overpaid private sector security guard.

The only time I ever get asked what I do is when I get stopped by the police (there will be random stops of vans travelling back from the Highlands then theres been a tip off that drugs might have come ashore somewhere)

So every now and then I get pulled over on some remote backroad for a bit of polite small talk and one of the questions will be ‘whats your occupation’. The trouble is I don’t really know – or I do but its difficult to summarise. But when an officer of the law asks it feels like the answer matters. On the last occasion:

“well officer I’m sort of an artist but I don’t make art very often so usually I work in film and tv but thats not what I’m doing today’

“what are you doing today?’

‘Long story.’

‘OK…… do you mind if we have a look in back’

‘Be my guest’

Opens van door to reveal a severed head and a burnt corpse.

–

My accountant quite enjoys going through all my receipts and trying to figure out what I get up to “you bought £2k worth of wildflower seeds, and £28k worth of high explosives in the  same week – were they for the same job?” “Yes”

My accountant quite enjoys going through all my receipts and trying to figure out what I get up to “you bought £2k worth of wildflower seeds, and £28k worth of high explosives in the same week – were they for the same job?” “Yes”

Surely there’s a killing me softly joke in there somewhere…..

Eat: Haddock and new potatoes.
Drink: Red Wine
Listen: Friday Night Comedy.

actually I *am* a rocket scientist

Make the lights and other things work on motorways/highways and build solar farms – just finished on the biggest one in the UK

Wind people up on here

Uni I became a tree surgeon for about 9 years. Then I got my rope access tickets and dodged around the railways, industrial and commercial projects now I’m leading a team structures examiner on the railway.

Here’s a picture from my glory days when I used to properly work

test software
did start getting into cybersecurity but got pulled back to work on covid stuff
now just counting the days till retirement and unfortunately it’s a big number to count

Aerospace Research Engineer/Scientist focusing on generation after next math, science and technology for aircraft, spacecraft, rotorcraft and all the bits that design, build, connect and maintain them.

I love my job…most of the time.

My job title is ‘Scotland Director’.
Don’t tell Nicola.

you bought £2k worth of wildflower seeds, and £28k worth of high explosives in the  same week – were they for the same job?” “Yes”

One way of scattering the seeds I guess.

I´m a government approved Austria guide.
Currently working a lot in the Wachau Valley, Linz and Mauthausen concentration camp.
I do many varied tours, walking, biking, alcohol based, historical, art, gastronomy and much much more.
I have my own company, I´m my own boss and love my life.

I do many varied tours, walking, biking, alcohol based, historical, art, gastronomy and much much more.

Winning.

I spent 15 years building, testing, commissioning, warranty and handover training for Sunseeker yachts, now I look after service and training in the EMEA region for Seakeeper stabilisers.

Rubber technologist…

Civil Engineering design. Used to design roads and sewers for residential and industrial developments, now flood defence. Feels much better.

I do many varied tours, walking, biking, alcohol based, historical, art, gastronomy and much much more.
I have my own company, I´m my own boss and love my life.

This sounds amazing. Well done, @iolo!

I’ve always wondered if people on here guessed what I did. There are some whom I’ve met and know, but discounting them, I’ve tried to keep it subtle.

@stretch… we may well have crossed paths, and you won’t need more than 2-3 guesses for who I work for!

Rubber technologist…

I’ve a BIL who is global engineering lead for rubber products….

I’m a Mountmaker.

Create displays for museums.

@alwillis are you based in Wiltshire by any chance?

Industrial/process engineer in Automotive. Surprisingly interesting most of the time,  but get dragged in to too much politics between manufacturing plants recently.

@matt_outandabout – I may even know your BIL – it’s a relatively small industry 😀

I draw things, usually cars but occasionally other things too. I draw things using pens, pencils but mainly using computers, I also 3D model the things I draw using computers and then make them look nice and shiny and almost real, I now do this using VR (which is nothing like it seems in the movies). Occasionally I muck about with 3D printers and a variety of CNC machines (which is a lot slower than in the movies but still very cool). Some of the things I have drawn have been turned into real things that, to my constant amazement, actually work. A few things that I have Drawn/CAD modelled/made shiny/played with etc. are driving around. Some of my time I spend teaching students how to draw, play with CAD, make stuff and think about things too.

I also drink a lot of coffee and read the internet.

Automotive Environmental Test Engineer (bit boring now) and EV HV safety engineer (quite hands-on and much more interesting).

Explaining it was a lot better when I did chemistry cos very few people understood it.

“Synthetic organic chemist”

“Yes but what do you do?”

“We make chemicals for university research labs, pharmaceutical companies and so on”

“What sort of chemicals?”

“We have about 25,000 in our order book, do you want me to explain it all?!”

That usually changed the subject fairly quickly. 😅