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Not Having a Passion in Life Is the New Taboo
It feels like everyone around me is living their dreams — but I don’t even know what mine are
The CBD oil I take for anxiety kicks in right as my husband, Merrill, and I walk into an Animation Guild party at Clifton’s, an ultra-hipster/tiki/taxidermy bar in downtown Los Angeles. Merrill is a writer, and I often join him at events like these. I get free drinks, and he gets moral support.
All the industry professionals here are living out their childhood dreams of making cartoons for a living. One guy, in a Professor Zoom shirt and sports coat, gets misty-eyed telling us about a ThunderCats script he wrote. “I can’t believe I got to write Cheetara,” he says, wonderstruck. Eventually, someone in our group turns to me and asks, “So what do you do? Are you in animation also?”
Fuck. There it is. The question I’ve come to dread in all social situations.
I wish it was because I have a secret kinky job, like I’m a camgirl or a professional cuddler. At least that would be interesting. But the truth is I hate that question because I’m not in love with my job.
“I’m a freelance marketing consultant,” I say, with the same enthusiasm I’d use to answer the question, “What was the first day of your last period?” from my…
