‘I had to prove myself’

Image: Nine IJf

Jolanda de Graaf (33) lives with Thijs (34) and is mother of Finn (1.5). She works as a service technician in lightning protection.

“You know those antennas on roofs that conduct lightning to the ground? I visit individuals and companies to check and repair those lightning arrester installations. When I tell that at parties, eyebrows shoot up, but I’ve always found thunder to be interesting. My mother woke me and my brother up early to watch the spectacle. The flash – who will spot it first? — and then wait for the thunder.

For this work I travel all over the country and come to special places. For example, I could watch monkeys from an apartment complex in the adjacent zoo and I stood on the roof of Paleis Het Loo. I often go to churches too. Then, with a bit of bad luck, I just start to strike while I’m at work – and unfortunately nine times out of ten I forget my earplugs – but the view of the city and the sunrise is fantastic.

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Prove

In the beginning I went along with male colleagues and I had to prove myself a lot. They now know what I have to offer and I do most of the jobs alone. I have a pink toolbox and blue work canister with lightning bolts on it. People who overtake me on the highway look twice: Damn, a blond tail behind the wheel? If they keep looking it gets uncomfortable, but most of the time I raise my hand in triumph. I think it’s cool to be one of the few women in this world, but admittedly: it also has drawbacks.

“I think it’s cool to be one of the few women in this world”

Try driving a grounding hammer of 25 kilos into the ground with a grounding hammer, or climbing up the roof with a 20 kilo roll of copper on your neck. Then a helping hand is so nice. In the beginning I was crying in the shower from the muscle pain and I went to the gym to get stronger, but now the work itself is my workout.

Another challenge is going to the bathroom. On most construction sites, one Dixie represents two hundred men. Logical, because why put a powder room if I’m the only woman, but nice is different. In such a case I prefer to drive to a gas station – it is often even cleaner there.

tinker

Sometimes I meet my friend on the way. He also works as a service technician, but in wells for water management. With such parents, it’s not surprising that tinkering is already part of Finn’s work. Instead of a teething ring, he sucks on a wooden screwdriver and recently he put his walking car on one side to turn the wheels off. There is a good chance that he will become a car mechanic later on.”

This article appears in Kek Mama 08-2022.

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