I currently work at a winery and absolutely love it. Never had I thought about working in the wine industry prior to… well… now. Here’s a little background on my situation.
I’ve been into photography for quite some time, and was told by many people that I should go to college to pursue this passion, and turn it into a professional career. I started looking around, and immediately fell in love with a particular school in Florida. Mind you, I knew I wouldn’t be at all dissappointed with the weather in Florida – but it was about the school (anyone who even remotely knows me personally will know that I’m a huge “un-fan” of the weather in Oregon. Sure, it has it’s ups and downs, but overall, I’m not impressed).
So, I had my mind set on the Art Institute of Fort Lauderdale. They had just what I was looking for – National Geographic type photography courses. I then started working on the application process and filling out all the forms, sending in all the paperwork, and had finally been accepted. Yay, right? Yes, of course! Now, for the dirty work: The money.
Sure, I could have taken out loans on the $120,000.00 education, but what would the interest be on something like that? Even at a ridiculously low percentage, I’d still be paying more than it’s probably worth.
Disheartened, I accepted the fact that I was not going to go to the Art Institute. I did, however, still want to move to Florida (again with the weather thing). So, what was I to do? Work! Of course. That lovely 4 letter word we all know and love.
I started work at Intel, on the production line and absolutely hated it. From day 4, I HATED it. Ok, here’s the scoop: I had to be in Hillsboro, OR at 5 a.m. and work until 3:30 p.m. This may not seem THAT bad, but trust me, it is. Especially when you’ve got to travel for nearly an hour to get to work in the morning. Not to mention, the price of petrol at the time was inching closer to the highest it’s been in the United States – ever. Pulling upwards of $4.50/gal, Intel was hardly worth the drive in my vehicle which gets 15mpg/ on a good day (normally, it’s closer to 12).
I lasted roughly two months. Not only did I have to be up at an insanely early hour, but getting paid a mere $9.00/hr certainly couldn’t have been worth it. I took a week offthen went searching for work, yet again.
A couple of my friends, whom I graduated high school with, told me I should go apply at their parents work. Express Employment Professionals. So, I applied, and soon after was working again. This time, the hours were MUCH more manageable, the distance to the job-site (which varied weekly, or even daily) was MUCH closer, and I guess after working at a place such as Intel, you really appreciate things like that.
Sure, this new job wasn’t all glitz and glamour, but it was work. And that’s what I needed if I wanted to stay on track for moving to Florida. I was put on to the bottling line for a number of wineries, through this Express company, and was really thanful for it. It wasn’t the hardest, or most mentally stimulating job, but like I said, it was a job, and it’s what I needed.
Another month and a half, to two months pass by and I go out to the winery I currently work at now, as a temporary worker, on the bottling line. The 4 days go off without a hitch. Hot summer winds from the North, and the bright summer sun make for a day that most people could not bare. Except I, who is usually a little off, loved it. Inside the trailer where we bottled, it would easily soar into the 90*s depite the AC that had been built into it. That was sounding a lot more like home (or my soon to be home, in Florida).
I leave that winery, and begin work at a different one, about 20 minutes away. I get a call on my lunch break from the last winery I worked at, saying something along the lines of, “Would you like to come back? We’ve got a bit of a project for you.” I had to run this by my scheduling supervisor, from Express Pros., since they were the ones that told me where to go every day for work. They cleared it, the day finished, and I thought nothing more about the call I had received.
The following week, I began working on that project that I had been called for. Initially, after hearing what it was, I thought I could do it in a jiffy. Two days, tops. Funny how two days turns into 4 days when you’re working with people you know, and moreso – friends. Regardless of how long it took, the job had been finished and no heads were rolling due to the timely fashion in which it had been completed.
That evening, as I was getting ready to go home, I was called up to the office. It was from this moment, that the whole track of my entire life was about to change. I did not know it at the time, but this would not only change my thoughts about work, play, and everthing in between, it would change who I was. It would show me that, though photography is amazing, sometimes you just have to leave a hobby as a hobby, and take the next best thing.
I was offered a position, and immediately took it. The place where I had just been hired was not 8 minutes away from my house, and I didn’t have to start until 9 a.m.
What a difference, eh? From getting up at three in the morning, and being at work, in a noisy, hot environment for long hours, to being able to sleep in three hours PAST when I was supposed to be working at that dreadful place we call Intel.
Work went on at the winery where I had been hired for a few weeks as usual (I was a tasting room associate / errand runner). Then, when the august heat died down, and the september breeze kicked in, it was time for harvest. The harvest leader had switched me from wearing a tie, and slacks to work, to jeans and a t-shirt. Gettin’ down and dirty with the grapes, if you know what I mean.
Sorting of the grapes lasted for a few weeks, then the work began to slow, yet again. Measurements on the grape juice that had been pressed had been taken, and wine had begun the process of being made.
One of the other employees was an intern, learning the Willamette Valley wine industry, from New Zealand. We connected really well, (not like I didn’t connect with the other interns) and one day he suggested that I apply online, overseas, to a winery in a different country, and on a different continent (that’s overseas, right?**)
I did, and was promptly responded to via email. To my astonishment, I had just landed myself a job in New Zealand, at a HUGE winery. Try on 35-45,000 tons of grapes for size. A bit different than what I had learned over the just-finished harvest, which was only roughly 150 tons.
So, I’ve got my passport, and my ticket. I’m ready to go!
Sometimes we just have to take any opportunity we get. Life isn’t about living and dieing, it’s about the experience. You don’t go on a road trip just to get to a destination, you go on it to see all the many things along the way. I think that this is going to be a great opportunity for me to take a detour from my original plan of moving to Florida. I get to travel the world, work at all these different places and – best of all – make alcohol! Just kidding, that’s not the best part. Substance shouldn’t decide what you do with your life. It’s the people you meet along the way that seem to influence you the most.
Equipment
Canon EOS 5D
Canon 75-300mm f/4-5.6 III USM
Canon 50mm f/1.8
Canon EF 17-40mm L
Canon Wired Remote
Tripod