Last occupation was 25 years as a Wedding Photographer, this enabled me to retire from full time work early.

Gave the game away in 2003 when digital became popular    did a few weddings using digital cameras but the amount of work involved drove me nuts, give me film for wedding photography any day

Quote from: bees on January 27, 2012, 12:41:08 AM
I've spent the last 11 years driving buses around Manchester, spent the last 3 years of that driving the 130 from Manchester to Macclesfield.  Not an exciting job but i really enjoy it!!!

Three years to get from Manchester to Macclesfield wow ! the traffic must be really bad nowadays. 

Quote from: 4x2 on January 27, 2012, 12:55:16 AM
Is it me, or do buses and trains always end up together (steady - keep it clean  ).... despite being rivals !

Aye, the Class 142's were the result of a bit of close intimacy following the two of them being left alone one night at Bradford Interchange.

Quote from: point blank on January 27, 2012, 11:38:42 AM

Quote from: 4x2 on January 27, 2012, 12:55:16 AM
Is it me, or do buses and trains always end up together (steady - keep it clean  ).... despite being rivals !

Aye, the Class 142's were the result of a bit of close intimacy following the two of them being left alone one night at Bradford Interchange.

It's the transport equivalent of the council estate teenager offspring - not planned properly, nobody wants it, but it's our taxes that keep it going 


Paul

As i posted earlier im a coach driver, but an impending move upto North Yorkshire with my mum, ill hopefully going back to driving the artic lorries, as to quote the venga boys song "i dont want to be a bus driver all my life" lol

Initially I made the decision to avoid this thread completely - thought it was a bit of an intrusion - but curiosity got the better of me.

Wow, what a diverse mixture we have here. Maybe one of the common demominators is that most of the work we do does not involve making anything that uses our creative juices so making our own little universe (that just happens to include trains) is why we are here.

As for me; I've been in quality all my working life. I started before this quality assurance thingy existed but now I own and run a small business doing ISO 9001 certification. (Salesman hat on, we were the first South African, totally independent company that was internationally recognised.) We also do safety and the environment but quality remains my first love.

The only problem with my job is that you end up never being really satisfied. For instance; there's another thread running at the moment about pet names for cars in which I confessed to purchasing a new Honda. When I was selecting a car, rather than seeing a selection of super dooper cars, I saw a row of paint defects ! So it is with my modeling exploits. Most of it's OK but very little is great to my eyes. On the other hand to non-model railway folk, they think it's great; but then very few viewers in South Africa know anything about British Rail particularly summer 1976 !

Anyway - keep on posting, you now have my attention !

BobB

I spent 33 years as a primary school teacher but as the job became unreal and was more about league tables and 'manufacturing' results, I had enough!  It was the hours of wasted time in meetings and gathering of reams of  pointless paperwork that eventually finished me.  I took early retirement, obviously on a reduced pension.  Add to that the fact that my pension was actuarily reduced by 25% so I have ended up on not very much.  BUT it is worth it.  I now teach one day a week.

I can now spend more time on my other 'work' which is running a pop choir in the town where I live.  It takes hours of my week and is unpaid but the satisfaction is IMMENSE!  We could do with two or three more men.  Any volunteers who like to sing songs by ABBA, Beatles, Beachboys, Queen, Take That ...........?

Steve

Sorry Steve I can't hold a note but my dad does sing with these lads  http://www.efmvc.org.uk/

Quote from: Steve Viney on January 27, 2012, 07:25:56 PM
I spent 33 years as a primary school teacher but as the job became unreal and was more about league tables and 'manufacturing' results, I had enough!  It was the hours of wasted time in meetings and gathering of reams of  pointless paperwork that eventually finished me.  I took early retirement, obviously on a reduced pension.  Add to that the fact that my pension was actuarily reduced by 25% so I have ended up on not very much.  BUT it is worth it.  I now teach one day a week.

I can now spend more time on my other 'work' which is running a pop choir in the town where I live.  It takes hours of my week and is unpaid but the satisfaction is IMMENSE!  We could do with two or three more men.  Any volunteers who like to sing songs by ABBA, Beatles, Beachboys, Queen, Take That ...........?

Steve

Hi Steve and welcome.
I too am a teacher and I think I'm right saying there aren't many of us at all on here, not as many as I thought there might be anyway. Steve, I'm with you all they way in what you say about the job. I am assuming you taught in England or Wales as you don't state your location? I've got 23 years experience behind me and I was planning on entering my final ten years of teaching. As it the Govy have distinctly different ideas. Like you, I will have to leave early because the job is becoming increasingly intolerable and getting worse. Its not the kids, just pointless paper work and stupid league tables, as you say. Teaching has just become a politicians plaything, with endless hoops through which to jump. What was the latest one I heard, ah yes, new Chief Inspector of schools (Ofsted boss) said something like if a Head teacher is causing stress, anxiety and worry in their staff, then they must be doing something right. What kind of attitude is that but one which gives Heads a licence to bully. Digusting.
Rant over.

Kirky

Kirky,
I could go on for hours about our topic on education but......
Ofsted ...... the inspector who fell asleep in my wife's lesson!
Children ..... we can't make all children equal ... some will always be behind bless them, but the government(s) seem to think that we can make them all cleverer!

Anyway, I'm sure you have planning to do!!

Lawrence,
I'm afraid I'm far too far from Fife for your dad!  (Try saying that one quickly!)

Steve

Quote from: Steve Viney on January 29, 2012, 06:02:44 PM
Kirky,
I could go on for hours about our topic on education but......
Ofsted ...... the inspector who fell asleep in my wife's lesson!
Children ..... we can't make all children equal ... some will always be behind bless them, but the government(s) seem to think that we can make them all cleverer!

Anyway, I'm sure you have planning to do!!

Steve

Yep, planning to do, but I'll be doing it in the morning. I'm much better at 6.00 am than I am at 6pm, so early mornings for me.

At the moment I'm using will power NOT to open a bottle!!

Cheers
kirky

Quote from: Jerry Howlett on January 27, 2012, 10:53:11 AM

Quote from: bees on January 27, 2012, 12:41:08 AM
I've spent the last 11 years driving buses around Manchester, spent the last 3 years of that driving the 130 from Manchester to Macclesfield.  Not an exciting job but i really enjoy it!!!

Three years to get from Manchester to Macclesfield wow ! the traffic must be really bad nowadays. 

Sometime's it does feel like that, lmfao.

Reckon that bus needs a service 

Started life as an apprentice electrician on the railways before being made redundant at end of it due to change in government so joined the fire brigade and have not looked back. That was 20yrs ago Best job ever, my friends joke about me not having a real job saying we just sit around and play billiards and the like.

Quote from: 1936ace on February 01, 2012, 09:30:45 AMnot having a real job saying we just sit around and play billiards and the like.

You mean you don't have a big train setup there and the DCC 'stop' button wired to the call out bell ?

Alan