Body Painter. Photo credit: YOSHIKAZU TSUNO/AFP/Getty Images
For most of the odd jobs in this week’s lineup, I was able to find a link with a description of some kind; but, not surprisingly, “one of these is not like the others” (a Sesame Street throwback…) – the only illegal job of them all; it seems to have found a niche market in a black market sense of the word. In a weird way, it reminds me of “lines of desire” – where there’s a will, there’s a way.
I find it interesting to include “Blacksmith” in this list; what was once a trade found in any town worth its salt, and testified to by the number of people with the surname Smith, is now a rarity.
- Bereavement Coordinator
- Bike Courier
- Bicycle Fishers (Amsterdam)
- Bicycle Mover (as in, moving company)
- Bingo Manager
- Blacksmith
- Body Painter
- Body Part Model
- Breath Odour Evaluator (bubble gum/mouth care companies)
- Car Plate Blockers (Iran): In Tehran, the capital, only cars with certain license plate numbers are allowed on the road on certain days; so people just pay someone to stand behind their plate and cover it. It makes me wonder how fast traffic actually flows… the employed would either need to be extremely fit, or just hang on for their lives.
By the way, I’m running a similar series on my history blog under the heading “Odd Jobs of Bygone Days” in case you’re interested.
Stephanie Huesler 