10 Weird Jobs That Can Actually Make a Living

In the age of networking and virtual everything, making money doing odd jobs is becoming a trend. There are those that make thousands of dollars beta testing video games or making mundane phone calls for those without the time or want to make them themselves. But some jobs that may shock and surprise the traditional worker. Nine to five jobs have taken a new meaning when it comes to what people are willing to make a wage doing.

10. Professional Apologizer

Mass communication degrees have never entirely been used so effectively until now.  Companies and civilians alike search far and wide for qualified people to work as a professional apologizer.  Employers run an array from airlines hiring a single, college graduate to make phone calls when a flight becomes canceled, or a piece of luggage goes missing. The job description is relatively easy. Be willing to say ‘I’m sorry’ and with authenticity and believability and one fits the mold to be a professional apologizer. Some companies will pay upwards to a sixty thousand dollar a year salary plus benefits to merely write letters, offer coupons, and verbally apologize for malfunctions or inconveniences.

9. Pet Food Taster

“Foodie” takes on a new definition. Pet food manufacturers hire people, willing people, to taste test their pet foods. The thought is if the individual consumer enjoys the taste and texture and does not die, then the food and snacks are suitable for pets around the world. Companies may pay up to forty thousand dollars a year to taste and approve the new cutting edge blends, packaging styles, and texture of new pet foods.

8.Breath Odor Evaluator

Wine taster is not the only job that requires refined olfactory abilities.  People work as bad breath evaluators, everyday.  A solid whiff and a moment of consideration and one can advise their client how best to better their breath or give a firm thumbs for the freshness of the client’s mouth. The salaries for breath specialists vary from a reported twenty thousand a year up to fifty depending on the client. Honesty is the major prerequesite for the job of telling another person that their breath is rank and to pop a mint. Doing such without permission and pay is doing so at one’s own risk.

7. Standing in Line Instead of Someone Else

When someone sees a long line, it is human nature to either avoid it or weigh how badly they want what is at the end of the line against the time it will spend to inch their way forward. In the age of virtual assistance, people are speficially being hired to stand in line for others with busy lives or something better to do than wait half a day or better for the newest phone or those concert tickets that are longed for. The job of standing in neverending lines generally pay by the hour but people are willing to doll out twenty five dollars or more an hour in order to avoid having to stand in one place, themselves.

6. Living Mannequin

People may not think that standing still is a consumable skill, however, those people are mistaken. A real-life mannequin is a real-life job title. Granted, specific body types are wanted by different stores but with the diversity that shops and apparel outlets are beginning to display, any body type can be displayed. The signpost freeze is taxing on the body but the ability to wear a new outfit at any given hour is certainly a perk. Oh, and perhaps the random ‘boo’ moment someone may be allowed to give an unsuspecting shopper a startle. The stationary job of becoming a mannequin can rake in a hundred plus dollars an hour.

5. Bed Warmer

Lying down on the job is rarely in a job description unless someone is a bed warmer. There is few things more startling than crawling into a cold bed. Oft times that keeps people awake longer than necessary. There is an answer.  Adding a bed warmer to the network of services one may have is a  sure fire way to ensure that flopping onto the bed is met with warmness rather than that crisp cold that snaps people awake. Bed warmers are hired by hotels, bed and breakfastes, and personal clients. The pay tilts depending on who the person is making the bed snuggly for, however, companies that offer these services may also offers benefits to their employees.

4. Iceberg Mover

An iceberg took the Titantic down to her death and since that cold night in 1912, iceberg movers have been in demand in the corners of the world where they exist. The tow-ships of ice patrol units pull and remove hazardous chunks of ice out of the routes of ships and barges. The iceburg removal specialists are in place to divert boating disasters as well as perserve the glacier. Every good glacier needs a home and movers assure they find a less dangerous one. There is danger involved when tugging glaciers away from waterways and companies compensate for it. With an estimated average of seventy thousand dollars a year, assisting nature and ensuring safety seems like an adventure rather than a job.

3. Human Scarecrow

A job that requires no specific body type, however, still requires skill is the human scarecrow. Human scarecrows work much like the manniquin version except the scareperson is being paid to keep pests at bay. Whether standing still or shouting ‘boo’, a human scarecrow’s job description includes the ability to tolerate weather and bird waste. Animals do not take breaks from destroying crops so the human deterent may not catch many, either. Human scarecrows can make nearly fifteen dollars an hour watching over gardens and fields. Pay is generally related to the crop being watched over by someone with a brain.

2. Ear Cleaner

Originating in India, ear cleaners are actually in high demand. They line the streets in India but the trend has also found its way into the world. The holistic specialists use a cotton-covered needle and relieves the ear of wax and other debris that could cause infection or problems. Whether an old wives tale or not, the tradition continues and both tourists to India and others around the world go to the ear specialists for a good cleaning. Ear canal examiners do not make the big money that other odd jobs do because it is based on a tradition rather than a strange occupation that requires unique talent. Though proping a clients ear carefully is a skill within itself.

1. Oshiya (Train Pushers)

Train pushers work during peak commuting hours. They are also exactly what their title insinuates. An Oshiya’s job is to ensure that commuters make it to their destinations on time by shoving passengers onto their subways and trains overloaded. The tradition began in Japan. However, New York subways have seen their fair share of those willing to give their fellow man or woman a push onto a whistling train ready for take-off. In the age of phones in the face, perhaps this occupation will be headed into the realm of greater demand. The nearly eighty-year profession has wages that are determined by what transit employs them. Because they primarily are utilized Japan where commuting is the daily way, most train-stuffers are employed there.