As a profession, self-storage attracts an incredibly diverse crowd. Our owners, managers and even suppliers hail from all walks of life, all manner of business and personal backgrounds. Some even keep "side gigs," hobbies or businesses outside of self-storage, to make a little extra cash. Sometimes it's for charity or fun, other times to pay them bills.

An active thread on Self-Storage Talk, "Hobbies on the side to make extra money," demonstrates some of the amazing things storage folk do to keep busy in their spare time. One manager makes gorgeous gold and silver jewelry to sell to customers. Another does flower-arranging and makes Christmas decorations. Yet another makes cakes and chocolates. Here are a few other things operators are doing to make a little scratch:

One manager even volunteers as a paramedic. There's an impressive spectrum of talent in our self-storage pool!

Speaking of which, I'd like to give a shout out to Bruce McCardle, vice president of eastern-division operations for Mako Steel Inc., who was recently highlighted as a featured artist in Southwest Art magazine. Bruce is a self-taught painter of about 10 years. His pieces focus on spiritual language and symbolism from traditions including Judaism, Kabbalah, Buddhism, Hinduism and others. "Over the past year or so, I have returned to my Southwestern roots," he says, " and have been inspired by the beauty of the New Mexico landscape and Native American culture and art.

What about you? Have a side business or hobby of which you're particularly proud? Share it in a comment to this blog, or jump over and add to the thread on SST.