"Cosby Show" Star Geoffrey Owens Responds to Job-Shamers with Work Ethic Wisdom
Former Cosby Show star Geoffrey Owens recently made news. For working at a Trader Joes. Yeah, I dunno who he is without Googling either. But after someone in media Googled him too, media started "job shaming" Owens. How can a star on one of the most successful shows of all time FUBAR his life so bad, he had to bag groceries? LOL at that guy, amirite? Media thy name is compassionate understanding.
No one is laughing after this interview. Where Owens sounds not unlike LwC favorite Mike Rowe (see Mike Rowe Schools Media on ‘Undesirable Jobs’ Again. And It’s Perfect… and Mike Rowe: ‘We Don’t Appreciate the Value of Work Anymore’). Owens view of his job -- and work in general -- needs be shared:
FULL INTERVIEW: @GMA EXCLUSIVE -- "There's no job better than another...every job is worthwhile..." Actor Geoffrey… https://t.co/KngupuPz3p— Good Morning America (@Good Morning America) 1536061332.0
"...this rethinking about what it means to work. The honor of the working person and the dignity of work. I hope that this period we're in now where we have this heightened sensitivity about that and a reevaluation of what it means to work. Or that some jobs are better than others. There is no job that is better than another job. It may pay better. It may have better benefits. It might look better on a resume. But it's not actually better. Every job is worthwhile and valuable. And if we have a rethinking about that because of what's happened to me, then that's great. No one should feel sorry for me.
Amen to that.
Also, he or she who has not thought of throwing away their stressful, albeit high-paying desk or "prestigious" job, for something as simple and zen as bagging groceries, cast the first boxed Santa Fe chicken salad. There's something to be said for the simplicity and satisfaction of just bagging groceries and telling a customer to "Have a great day." Have you seen the people working at Trader Joes? They're often smiling. Have you seen people who make six figures? They're often stressed out, constantly on their phone, sending text messages to colleagues, their boss(es) and a possibly a therapist.
Owens makes a great point. Work is work. The only shameful thing about work is not doing it to take care of yourself. I have far more respect for Owens working at Trader Joes than the myriad of college students majoring in Whining while racking up college debt in a study with no practical application. You with me?
