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Iceberg Cowboys, Professional Mermaids, and More Jobs You Didn’t Know Existed

Get to know a rent-a-stranger, a flavor inventor, and more people with the best answers to “So what do you do?”

Kimi Goffe

Read when you’ve got time to spare.

When you were a kid, what did you want to be when you grew up? A teacher, a writer, a doctor? You probably didn’t think you could be a falconer. Or a mountain-bike trail builder. Or a full-time Disney princess. (Well, maybe you did think you could be that one). There are so many jobs in the world that we’ve never heard of. Read on to discover some of the coolest ones.

Image by Robbie Goodall/Getty Images.

Rent-a-Stranger: This Japanese Man Makes a Living Showing up and Doing Nothing

Shoji Morimoto doesn’t talk much but he will sit and listen and be there for events people fear to share with someone they know.

Meet the Falconer Who Earns $20,000 a Month

You do what? A Long Island native traded book publishing for birds and never looked back.

A Day in the Life of a Flavour Inventor

Without help, flavours don’t always work well or last long. So scientists enlist all manner of agents to impart certain tastes in processed food.

A Day in the Life of a Mountain-Bike Trail Builder

Building some of the country’s best trails isn’t just about crafting flowing ribbons of singletrack. It’s also about navigating miles of red tape.

Secret Life of a Mermaid

Their lavish costumes and group swims provide a community they could never find on land — so much so that they don’t identify as human.

Here’s What It Takes to Be a Full-Time Disney Princess

Keeping the magic is sometimes all about having the right shade of lipstick.

The Designer Putting the Extreme in Extreme Obstacle Courses

Coolest travel jobs: what it’s like to design extreme obstacle courses.

The Iceberg Cowboys Who Wrangle the Purest Water on Earth

My journey to meet the people herding frozen leviathans on the maritime frontier.

A Pickpocket’s Tale

The spectacular thefts of Apollo Robbins.

What It’s Like to Be an Avalanche Forecaster

It involves skiing, helicopters, and dynamite (really).

The Squelchy, Messy Art of Video Game Sound Effects

Foley artist Joanna Fang powers up video games with her eclectic arsenal of sound-simulating weapons.

He’s Baseball’s Only Mud Supplier. It’s a Job He May Soon Lose.

Jim Bintliff collects the Delaware River mud that is smeared on Major League baseballs to make them less slippery. But that tradition is in jeopardy.