Me and Julio Down By The Schoolyard

If you want to be underemployed, Lalaland is the place to be. Well, it is compared to Silicon Valley, sheesh. I don't feel like so much of a schmuck out here at 2:00 p.m. with nowhere to go and nothing to do. It has everything to do with the proverbial company you keep.

The typical underemployed male in Silicon Valley was most likely a dot-commer, has clunky square frame glasses, bad sneakers and considers Izod polo shirts formal wear. He's involuntarily underemployed, and has no other skills than code-writing and an immense knowledge of Babylon 5. He may have a girlfriend (probably a bit chunky, also wears glasses, may have her own loom -- but if they love each other, then more power to them). But, given the heinous ratio of men to women (if there's a 2:1 ratio at the local bar in Sunnyvale, begin kissing the feet of whatever goddess that hath provided), he probably doesn't. He may spend Tuesday afternoon at the local Kinko's faxing out his resume with his fellow underemployed males (by the by, next to the Los Angeles Superior Court - Stanley Mosk Courthouse and East Palo Alto laundromats, the Sunnyvale Kinko's on a Tuesday afternoon is the most depressing place to be).

The typical underemployed male in Lalaland is, well, actually, there's no real typical underemployed male in Lalaland. But even odds on the underemployment being somewhat voluntary. I mean, the typical underemployed male in Lalaland wasn't pushed out by a right-sizing. In all likelihood, he's underemployed because he's chasing a dream and that dream hasn't quite panned out yet - he wants to be an actor, a screenwriter, a photographer, a musician, a filmmaker. He may not be totally happy, but at least he's pursuing what he wants to do (unlike the Silicon Valley guys who, I'm sorry, but I don't know a single guy who thinks coding and server processing is "the dream"). Oh, and the typical underemployed male in Lalaland tends to have better fashion sense.

Bit of snobbery on my part. Well d'uh. But I don't feel like so much of a jackhole out and about at 2:00 p.m. running errands knowing there are plenty of folks doing the exact same thing. Oh, plus the eye candy at 2:00 p.m. in Lalaland is of a much higher quality than that of Silicon Valley. Helloooooooo Nurse!