Why Don’t You Just Get a Job?

A gem from Dickon Edwards’ diaries: A frequently asked question: Why don’t you just get a job? Answer: Because I’ve got too much else to do. Answer: Because I’m too busy to get a job. Answer: Being unemployed is a full-time job in itself, involving skills and time in order to survive. So I do have a job. It’s just atrociously paid. Answer: Because I’ve never lasted in the many Wage Slave-type jobs I’ve had in the past. It’s only a matter of time before I’m dismissed, or have to leave to avoid collapsing in tears on a daily basis. Answer: I _am_ trying to find something, it just has to be something I can do well, as opposed to pretend to do well. Answer: I’m too far gone. Answer: This _is_ my job. It’s a kind of busking with text. I just haven’t managed to earn money from it. Yet. Answer: Don’t you know who I _am_? Having said all that, of course, I do engage in a small amount of perfectly normal things for the Green Party: envelope stuffing, posting leaflets through hundreds of…