Laid off from a senior content role in June 2025, Leslie Friday took a $17-an-hour garden-center job as unemployment benefits ended and severance dwindled. She said it reset her mind; later, she became a health nonprofit communications director and kept some Sunday shifts.
Friday said the part-time job could not cover all her expenses, so she expected to rely on savings. She spent nearly nine hours outdoors on multiple days each week doing physical work and answering customers’ questions about flowers, herbs and vegetables; she said she was exhausted after shifts but loved the work.
