Another IT Geek here...
I worked my way thru school as a waitress (started my senior year in high school.) I enjoyed it so much I worked the dinner shift after I started my career...that lasted about a month.
For the past 18 yrs I've worked in IT for a national newspaper (thankfully the company has expanded to digital...since newspapers seem to be going the way of the dinosaur, or maybe just the bald eagle?

) Prior to that, I was a programmer for a non-profit org for about 7 yrs. About 15 yrs ago I did a stint in retail (sales associate) during the Christmas holiday to earn some holiday spending money.
Thru all this, I've raised three kids... now that they're grown, I'm "raising" my mother.

I think she waited for the kids to move out so she could move in!!
Now that the kids don't need me as much, it seems my part-time (unpaid) job is TUG'ing. But spending time here keeps me away from the idiot box.
BTW - thanks for bumping this thread... I recently discovered the "New Posts" link at the top of the main page, and now that's the first thing I check on the site. Previously, I limited myself to a few sub-forums...now I get exposed to much more fun. I also enjoyed the thread where people posted pictures of themselves and their families... I stumbled upon that a few months back.