Working in the fish co-op - updated

After my first hike on Stewart Island I was informed I could work processing fish. I had very limited information other than lots of heavy lifting. The job indeed was lots of bending over picking up crates, picking up crayfish and placing them into crates a very labour intensive job. The job does not require a lot of thought just a lot of repetitive motions. During this job I thought to myself what am I doing? A lady I was working with asked me about my background which I told her and she told me “to go back to it” I replied “this will drive me back to an office”. I have done various jobs with this company since besides crayfish I have dealt with blue cod and paua doing various task. The money is really good for what I am doing.  It has made me think what am I doing this for, I could be in the office doing work jeeze I have a degree and 2 diplomas all business related. I am a well-educated person with a great personality and I have presented on health and safety, wellness which included discussing depression/social anxiety in a crowd of over 200 including vice presidents and the president of my former employer. I don’t know what it will take but I will make a living being a presenter it is where I truly belong being in front of people. Very few people have the ability to talk in front of everyone and it is something I really truly enjoy. I would love the opportunity talk in front of groups of people again. 3 of my biggest passions traveling, the outdoors and presenting.

Today I worked my last day doing crayfish. This job had me up at times at 3:30 am to do the crayfish pack. During the shift I would be lifting a couple of thousand kilos in a few hours time. I came to Stewart Island in hopes of getting back into shape well after a few hikes and working in the fish factory I am well on my way there. 

The job gave me some new skills, I got to meet  a few new people and was introduced to a new industry. This was the first job I had in a long long time that had me working as part of a small team. This was also the first time I have done any work since I started traveling back in January. 

My next posts will be about saying goodbye to Stewart Island and my first WWOOF experience.  

Tuna Tom