Job Hypocrisy

So, if you've been following this blog, you know that I'd been working at a high-end lotions and potions shop selling things I would never rub into my own skin. For me, the job carried with it a great deal of hypocrisy. I was selling people ingredients I believed possibly caused cancer, nervous disorders, skin problems, reproductive problems, etc. There was certainly no worry that I'd turn around and spend my paycheck where I worked!

Well, after over a year there, I finally quit. There were extenuating circumstances, but I won't get into those here. I'll simply say that it was high time I left, so I did. And the weight of the hypocrisy I'd been carrying around was suddenly much lighter.

So, where does a naturally-focused, unschooling vegan girl who doesn't want to feel like a hypocrite and only needs a no-stress job for a couple of days a week turn? Why, to her friend who works at the secular, non-profit thrift store within walking distance from her house, of course! And that's where I am, now.

In a lot of ways, it's wonderful (and eye-opening). I had no idea how busy these types of thrift stores were; there's never a moment to rest! And, the customers are the polar opposite of my previous customers. That's nice, I have to admit; I was growing increasingly tired of their entitlement attitudes and the way they threw their money around. But, there's one problem....

I am vehemently opposed to workplace drug testing - especially without cause. I believe it is a blatant violation of a worker's civil liberties, and I've turned down jobs because of this belief in the past. At this job - this lovely, non-profit, walk to work, helping humanity sort of job - they randomly drug test their employees.

Of course, if my number were chosen (approximately one percent of area employees are randomly chosen each month), and the HR woman were to (surprise!) show up at my store to cart me off to a lab for drug testing (yes, this is how it's done), I would refuse and state my many reasons why (resulting in the immediate loss of my job). But, still, until that point (which may never occur), I'll be living with the hypocrisy....

Ugh. What's a girl to do? Even with half a Master's degree, it's not like I have a whole lot of options, really. Between my brother, hubby and myself, we have one car, and unless I work again with hubby up at the outlet mall (like I was before - blah), getting to work would be difficult. There's just not a lot within walking distance (unless you count a couple of fast food places and gas stations). This thrift shop is pretty much it. The jobs I've been able to find that are work from home have been either selling things over the phone (which I'm terrible at - believe me - and which often involves hocking products I don't support, for one reason or another) or grading essays children take for that No Child Left Behind crap. I did that once, felt truly awful, and vowed never to do it again. The pay was nice, and staying home with my little one was wonderful, but, as an unschooler, the guilt was overwhelming.

Which leaves... what, exactly?

Actually, I know what it leaves - the option of working from home on my own projects, again. I've done it in the past (and fared well, for the most part), and I'm headed that direction, once more. We'll see how it goes. In the meantime, however, there's the thrift store... and their drug testing.