checkered career

checkered career

A history of employment characterized by many different kinds of jobs or by many alternating periods of success and failure. I had a checkered career after high school, taking any kind of work that I could find. I don't know if I would trust your finances to him, he's had a rather checkered career from what I've heard.
See also: career, checkered
Farlex Dictionary of Idioms.

checkered career

A background that includes many changes, especially of employment. For example, Heather's had a checkered career, hopping from one city to another and one job to another . This expression, first recorded in 1881, uses checkered in the sense of "constantly alternating," much like the squares on a checkerboard.
See also: career, checkered
The American Heritage® Dictionary of Idioms by Christine Ammer.
See also:
  • career
  • checkered
  • DC
  • Ac
  • AC/DC
  • AC-DC
  • in and out
  • back and forth
  • Truth, Justice, and the American Way
  • the Rust Belt
References in classic literature
Well, others had sought Malbihn for similar reasons in the course of a long and checkered career. He fingered his rifle, and waited.
I have coursed many creatures in many countries during my checkered career, but never did sport give me such a wild thrill as this mad, flying man-hunt down the Thames.
Just watching Joy at work in her employer's apartment, I felt more exhausted than she was - taking care of a special child and her nonverbal grandmother, running away from cops, finding time to squeeze in a bit of "me" time to breathe, have fun with friends and a suitor (Alden) with a checkered career. The HK pictured here is cramped, tiring, joyless, especially when the calls come from the family back home asking for new rubber shoes, for financial and emotional support.
In a checkered career of 34 years, Iftekhar has held important positions in local private and international banks including Banque Indosuez, Standard Chartered Bank and AB Bank.
Ending up with an 86, easily his worst score in a checkered career Pagunsan, 40, wound up tied at 104th among 131-players with a 19-over 263.
He then follows its checkered career through revolutionary Russia, fascist Italy, Cold War America, Gaullist France, Thatcher's Britain, post-colonial India, feudal Japan, Maoist China, and eventually arriving in the worlds of Merkel and May and Bush and Obama.
Skipper Remy Palma has said she doesn't want to end her checkered career with the Lady Tamaraws on a sad note.
By Match on Tuesday Editor RONNIE HAUGHEY AS with a host of managers I can claim to have been happy to call on the talents of Wayne Brown at certain times during his checkered career.
Commenting on Terry's checkered career on AU's "Wall of Separation" blog, Director of Communications Joe Conn observed, "Randall, get a clue.
Kricfalusi)--to pitch "Handicaps," the latest project in his checkered career as a reality-TV maestro.
As an aspiring actress author Ayun Halliday wished to keep her business commitments and work life flexible: her Job Hopper: The Checkered Career Of A Down-market Dilettante provides both a funny and thought-provoking review of these many jobs which avoided regular paychecks, hard work, and a dress code.
This book deals with the life of Charles Dickens's youngest son who had a checkered career in the Mounted Police.
But during his checkered career, Chavez has developed close relations with many of America's most dangerous enemies, including Iran, Iraq, Libya, and, most notoriously, Cuba.
His troubled childhood and early checkered career in the Marine Corps form a good portion of the first half of the book.
From tooled belts and holster rigs to you-name-it, every piece displayed an eye for design and finish I have only seen on a few occasions in my checkered career dealing with leather.