"It's fun": 5 people who love their work

Passion, circumstances, odd opportunities and twists of fate: All and more lead people to their occupations.

The stories of how and why people do what they do are as varied as the jobs themselves. High-rise window washer. Singing-telegram performer. Aerospace engineer.

There are myriad jobs in America. The federal Bureau of Labor Statistics sorts them into 23 major categories for its Standard Occupational Classification System. As of May 2005, the latest numbers, most workers fall into the Office and Administrative Support group (22.8 million). The other two top groups are Sales and Related (13.9 million) and Food Preparation and Serving (10.8 million).

Some jobs are highly regarded. The Gallup Poll asked 1,003 adults in April 2005: "Suppose a young man came to you for advice on choosing a line of work or career. What would you recommend?" The top answer was doctor (17 percent); the second was computers (11 percent). For "a young woman," the answers were doctor, 20 percent; nursing, 13 percent.

But countless other jobs, each important in its way, are practically unheard-of.

All are done every day by American workers.

Here are a few of their stories.

Willie Ruff, 75

New Haven, Conn.

Jazz performer and professor of music at Yale University

I came to music naturally when as a small child I realized that I was a slave to my ears, and passionately in love with my shackles.

Pros: I love learning how music connects people across great distances, how commonalities in human spirit are reflected in the way folks sing, dance and play instruments.

Cons: I hate that I have only one lifetime in which to indulge my ears, for they stimulate my heart and imagination.

Christopher Tinney, 34

Grand Rapids, Mich.

Award Window Cleaning Services Inc.

My cousin asked me if I wanted to try my hand at window washing. Initially, I was scared. It took them probably about six months before they put me on the side of a building. They slowly broke me into it and got me familiar with the equipment.

Pros: It's just a new job every day. We're never doing the same thing. We're always changing up, doing different buildings. We get to travel a lot.

Cons: Probably the amount of spider bites we get. We get chewed up. That's probably the worst thing. There's more up in the air than you can imagine. There's more in the air than in the basement of your house. It's bad.

Jonathan Gibbs, 22

Seattle

Aerospace engineer, Boeing

I have been fascinated with aviation since I was a small child. In high school, I started writing computer programs to teach myself how to fly using Microsoft's Flight Simulator because my parents couldn't afford flying lessons. I loved flying, but I started moving toward engineering, thanks to my guidance counselors. They recommended me for the summer Minority Introduction to Engineering and Science program at the University of Virginia.

I eventually decided to enroll in the Massachusetts Institute of Technology's aerospace engineering department. I learned how to understand and synthesize all of the technical disciplines that are used by aerospace engineers and participated in some exciting research. I also took part in several summer internships, one of which led me to Boeing.

I am helping to develop the high-lift system for the new Boeing 747-8. The most recognizable parts of this system are the flaps that extend from the wing during takeoff and landing.

Pros: Diving into many complex technical problems with a great team of people.

Cons: I haven't gotten to do much flight testing yet.

Claudine O'Rourke, 27

New York City

Big Apple Singing Telegrams

I'm a professional performer. I'm a singer-dancer-actress. I've been doing it since I was 14 (growing up in Willoughby Hills, Ohio). I've been working with this particular singing-telegram company, because us actors can go from gig to gig. I always call myself a musical-theater slut, because I'll do anything for, like, 50 bucks, as long as I'm tap-dancing. I've been with this company for two years.

Pros: It's fun, and it's good money for the five minutes that you do it. I've done so much worse for so much less.

Cons: What's difficult is dealing with people, sometimes, the booking of the job. Sometimes people have an expectation that is impossible. Sometimes, you can't please anybody.

Mike Rowe, 44

San Francisco

Host, Discovery Channel's "Dirty Jobs"

I wanted to do a show that was the opposite of "Lifestyles of the Rich and Famous." I think that in general, regular anonymous people are more interesting than celebrities, and a whole lot more accessible.

So I pitched an idea called "Somebody's Gotta Do It" and presented it as an honest tribute to real people who do the kind of uncelebrated work that makes civilized life possible for the rest of us. Discovery bought it, changed the name to "Dirty Jobs," and I've been filthy ever since.

Pros: I love that the people on "Dirty Jobs" are real, and are for the most part completely unimpressed with the fact that a camera is being pointed toward them. I love that the show is entirely unscripted. But the best part has to be the variety. So far, I've done over 100 different jobs, no two alike, all miserable and memorable and fun in their own way. No one in television, or any other business that I know of, has come close to the unparalleled diversity of trauma that I've experienced hosting "Dirty Jobs."

Cons: Anyone who gets their own name in the title of a hit show has no business complaining about anything. However, there are certain realities worth acknowledging. In no particular order: ostrich kicks, shark bites, extreme nausea, alligator bites, snake bites, very little sleep, constant travel, daily exposure to multiple toxins, spitting alpacas, rabid bats, cat-sized rats, catfish bites, tetanus, chronic exhaustion, dehydration, sunstroke, frostbite, homesickness, sprains, pains and regular doses of televised humiliation.

Other than that, it really is a dream job.