The Truth about my Job....

Sure I bitch about it all the time...and that's largely because it sucks, but the truth about my job is I kind of like it. Kind of, mind you. I don't like it in a "wow, I'm fulfilled, because I put away a lot of paper today" kind of way. I like it in a "I'm really good at this bullshit" sort of way.
I think that statement actually sums it up pretty well. I know it's bullshit. I can do better (more interesting, more lucrative, perhaps) stuff, but it's bullshit I have complete mastery over. I'm the king of Shittown, if you will (and I hope you will). There's a certain satisfaction I gain from knowing exactly what I'm doing all the time.
The things that really bother me about the job are when my expertise of it is called into question. I can't quite explain why it is that I take pride in knowing so much about organizing legal materials for quick recall, but I kind of do. And truthfully, it's not a hard job, but there is enough nuance and thoughtfullness that has to be understood and invested that you can't really just pull someone off the street and expect them to do this shit. (Especially here, where the sytstem is "quirky" like Andy Dick.)
And an odd thing about my job is that everyone sees I'm smart. I don't really keep it hidden. (I read F. Scott Fitzgerald in the breakroom sometimes. I'm asking for it.) And because of this, they ask me to do more than someone else who would fill my position. Part of the bi-product is they're asking themselves to do less, and that bothers me, but also makes me feel special. I've been trained to look for approval at work. It feels good to have your boss ask you (see how I slip into second person when I'm trying to make it seem like it's not just my problem. It's charming, no?) to do more, because it's an acknowledgment that you (I) can do more.
But. This can't go on. And I've gotta go (or at least feel like I'm on the move). Soon.
It looks like any move I make through my outsourcing company is either downward or it's something I'm currently underqualified for. They claim they're all about training me, but I talked to someone today about a position and when I mentioned training, she seemed to be sort of shocked at the thought. So.
It looks like I'm on my own to figure out how my skills translate to somewhere better (probably not a lawfirm). That's kind of difficult. I'm sure they translate somehow and somwhere, but I don't know that I see it. And I don't know if I want to take a big pay cut (little would be okay, though) just to get out.
So.
It looks like I've got to open up other doors for myself. Which means I'm probably going to have to start taking classes. In something.
I've noodled with some ideas (plumber and paralegal being the two most probable; human canonball being the least likely, but still my favorite) about how to make a change. It's odd trying to imagine myself doing any of the jobs though. I have so much inertia here in the legal field (probably why paralegal certification will win out. But even if it does, that doesn't mean I have to work for firms). I'm such a creature of routine sometimes that it's hard for me to lift my head up and look around and see what other people do for money. And see if it's something I want to do.
Eh. I'll mull it over and start looking into things. Wheels are in motion.