It's amazing, although not surprising, how one event can put your entire life in perspective. While sitting here about to go to a funeral, I'm reminded of how lucky I am — how lucky we all are. I struggle to find anything else worth saying, quite frankly, because nothing really seems to matter when you're faced with these harsh realities.
It's funny how work is not the worst distraction. I think there's an undeniable truth in our industry, one that I hear time and time again. All of us who work in production or what we have come to call “entertainment technology” — in design or programming, as techs or stage managers, in sales or PR, and yes, in publishing — really love what we do. And all of the hard work, tweaking, deadlines, madcap load-ins, and production disasters cannot take away from the fact that we are fortunate just being able to go to work every day doing something we enjoy.
Paul Dexter shares an experience of how a loss can change the entire course of many people's lives (“In The Trenches,” p. 48). The show must go on, of course, but in the face of all that can go awry, at least we get to go to the show we've chosen to attend each day. Hey, that's why they call it “a production,” right? I know very few people in this business that feel stuck in what they're doing as a profession.
What is it about this industry? It's the people, to be sure. I think it takes a rare breed to be in this trade. There's such an amazing combination of artistic and technical talent, as well as perseverance to get the job done, that makes the job exciting, worth doing. I, for one, am glad to be a part of it — to be in an industry where creative minds and a true spirit of collaboration make it all worthwhile.
With all the people out there in dead-end jobs, I take comfort in the characters that surround me each day at work (and if you think that means you, then it probably does).
Thanks for keeping it interesting.