Or they'd be pushing paper somewhere else.

I'd believe that, if they weren't already paying the architect salary to have us do interior design. They hire us, then shackle us.

That doesn't mean if you get rid of insurance jobs, they would be nurses.

Haha! Exactly! I do some coding, too, but I can't think like a UXer and a dev at the same time.

It's the "making it pretty" part that makes me bitter. That is the LEAST part of what we do.

It's like asking an architect to come in and fix the building after it's already mostly built. Bad PMs insist on seeing us like interior decorators, but we are primarily architects.

Speaking as a UX designer, probably because some "product manager" decided it was too expensive to override the auto- sort that was applied before the designer was brought in to "pretty things up."

There is no tone of bitterness in my comment, honestly there isn't.

As a UX designer who decided not to be a doctor though I could have, I don't think this is how it works.

This is anecdotal, but I've loved animals my entire life. I was going to be a vet, but changed careers because my internship made me afraid it would ruin my love of animals.

I've had a very rough twenty years. I was married to a man who turned out was abusive to animals, so I gave up my dream of having pets. When I bucked my entire culture to divorce him, I fought my way back to enough financial security to own them again.

My first pet was 5 when I got him. I had three years of his endless health problems, but I loved him and he died. Then I got a couple of puppies and I love them, but...I don't think I'll own any more dogs. Dealing with other pet owners has been a nightmare. Off leash, poorly trained, outright dangerous dogs everywhere.

But even more to the point, I'm a terrible owner for them. I'm allergic, so I only play with them before my shower. And my mental health has me barely able to function some days. And I'll never be able to own the property they need to truly flourish. They deserve better than me. So I agree. Poor mental health can be exacerbated by pet ownership.

Plants also react to being harmed, so it's arguable they don't feel pain.