Whoa, boys - you got another "Civil Servant" here. I'm proud of my work, and yes, it does get frustrating to know that because I've been in my position for more than five years I won't ever get another "merit" raise. No matter HOW good a job I continue to do. And yes, it gets frustrating when a private contractor comes in, sees me "scooping poop" (I'm a Zookeeper) and asks if I really needed a college degree to do THAT. I asked him if he needed an engineering degree (which he has) to change lightbulbs (which is what he was doing when he asked). My ex-husband used to complain that I smelled like my charges when I got home from work. I work almost every weekend, and more than my share of Holidays. I can't remember the last Christmas Day I spent with my family. And we get picketed every now and then because the animal welfare people don't like to see animals in captivity. (Some of them wouldn't even be ALIVE if they were still "in the wild".) But the pleasures still outweigh the drawbacks, or I wouldn't be there any more. I enjoy the school groups - they are our future. I have a "knack" for finding lost children in a crowd almost before they have realized that they are lost - and I find myself doing that even when I'm not at work. Today I released a Canadian Goose that we fixed up after something almost "got her" - to cheers from a few onlookers as she swam away. So yes, you hit a sore spot. Everybody has bad days, but, when I'm in the public eye, I have a smile on my face no matter WHAT I feel like inside. Its part of the uniform.

I'm sorry if you've had bad experiences with "civil servants" - but I've had bad experiences with bank tellers and store clerks, too.

campfire