Men skipping college
July 5th, 2017 at 2:20:58 PM permalink | |
Evenbob Member since: Oct 24, 2012 Threads: 146 Posts: 25010 |
It's a tradition that dates back to when the expected life span was late 40's. You chose your career early and died when you were 50. The tradition hangs on when life expectancy is in the 70's now. Now a person can have 3 careers, in 1890 this was not possible for most people. Even John Rockefeller retired in his 60's because that's just what you did. He kept going to the office till he was 98, he was the exception. If you take a risk, you may lose. If you never take a risk, you will always lose. |
July 5th, 2017 at 2:37:38 PM permalink | |
Nareed Member since: Oct 24, 2012 Threads: 346 Posts: 12545 |
yup.
Many people wind up choosing a mayor or a career for its prospects alone. Some do well and like the job, others hate it. I've met both kinds.
Literature, yes. History, no. I've been a voracious reader since I was 12. But back then my non-fiction reading was almost entirely science and current events (my brother had subscriptions to both Newsweek and TIME). Worse, I had no idea what I could study or do that would help me write. as it turns out, history was one thing.
But perhaps the real problem lies with money. People are steered into careers that maximize their earnings potential, or most are. Be it in choosing a college and field, or not. Now, having money is great, and can help a great deal with achieving satisfaction out of life. But it's not the only way, and getting it might make you miserable. In his memoir, Asimov said he wanted to study history in college. But settled on chemistry instead, because if he pursued history the best he could expect, professionally, was an academic post at some small college. Ironically after many years of study culminating in a PhD, he found himself employed in an academic position at Boston University (associate professor of biochemistry at the medical school). I should remind you Asimov had a sky-high IQ, a fantastic memory, and was a workaholic to boot. He had writing to fall back on. he was a prodigy from an early age, too. He wrote his most acclaimed work, the Foundation Trilogy, in his 20s while working at a Navy lab during WWII. But I digress. Money is important, but life satisfaction, happiness, is more so. And that's what we should be teaching children to pursue. Donald Trump is a one-term LOSER |
July 5th, 2017 at 2:45:13 PM permalink | |
AZDuffman Member since: Oct 24, 2012 Threads: 135 Posts: 18136 |
I did not but might have preferred it. Call center was hell. Loser after loser looking for loans they couldn't qualify for. Ask loan purpose and they say "bills." Or could not understand why we would not finance ten grand of negative equity. Drunks you do not get Charlie listening in at any moment. The President is a fink. |
July 5th, 2017 at 2:46:19 PM permalink | |
Evenbob Member since: Oct 24, 2012 Threads: 146 Posts: 25010 |
Joseph Campbell said about college, follow your bliss. Follow what makes you happy. He could easily gotten a doctorate but never did because he thought it would over qualify him for what he really wanted to do. If you take a risk, you may lose. If you never take a risk, you will always lose. |
July 5th, 2017 at 4:15:23 PM permalink | |
kenarman Member since: Oct 24, 2012 Threads: 14 Posts: 4470 |
Totally agree with your post petroglyph. I have tried to talk many of the high school grads into going up to Fort MacMurray the centre of Alberta's oil patch. Even with no skills but a decent work ethic they can make $100,000 plus a year. Work for a couple years and and don't buy the $125K pick-up and you can almost enough to pay for college if you still want to go that route. My grand daughters partner has work ethic and skills but no ticket paid $86K in income tax last year working in the patch. The last line in your post really resonates with me. No friggin employees. Had 50+ at one point have 0 now and I will never have an employee again. "but if you make yourselves sheep, the wolves will eat you." Benjamin Franklin |
July 5th, 2017 at 5:21:14 PM permalink | |
kenarman Member since: Oct 24, 2012 Threads: 14 Posts: 4470 |
I might have thought the same at your age Face. I now believe that I am privileged to have the physical ability and chance to be working. 100's of millions of people in the world put their life in danger to have the life I have. We privileged North Americans often lose sight of that fact. Obviously at my age many of my friends have tried retirement. The majority get bored and don't stay retired very long. Pensions for most will keep a roof over their head and food on the table but leaves no "fun money". Fun money comes from going back to work even part time. The other thing that I believe that makes life pretty easy at this stage Face is that you choose to be happy. This is true for me but it might not be true for you and the demons that want to share your brain. If you wait for life to make you happy you can wait for a very long time. If you just decide 'f...k it' I am going to be happy regardless of what life throws at me it makes life much easier, and I probably deal more efficiently with the bumps in the road. Since I have spent my whole life with the same brain I don't know if that is the luck of the brain draw, if it came from being blessed by a Buddhist monk and the religious artifacts or from something inside me. Whatever it was I will happily take it. "but if you make yourselves sheep, the wolves will eat you." Benjamin Franklin |
July 5th, 2017 at 5:36:19 PM permalink | |
petroglyph Member since: Aug 3, 2014 Threads: 25 Posts: 6227 | May they get the chance to have their immediate success depend on a group of employees, just like them. It's good to want things. Of course work sucks, that's why they pay you to do it. [but it don't have to] The last official act of any government is to loot the treasury. GW |
July 5th, 2017 at 5:51:35 PM permalink | |
petroglyph Member since: Aug 3, 2014 Threads: 25 Posts: 6227 | I saw more than once and it saddened me. Going out on some fishing charters for halibut on Cook Inlet, we would hear and old fella regale us of how he worked at the mill for 40 years, "and always wanted to come to Homer and go halibut fishing". A short time later get him hooked up with a nice fish, and the old guy is to worn down, to reel it in. There he had waited his whole life. Maybe people need to regularly examine their priority's? The last official act of any government is to loot the treasury. GW |
July 5th, 2017 at 6:27:44 PM permalink | |
petroglyph Member since: Aug 3, 2014 Threads: 25 Posts: 6227 |
In five years, that can be a life changing amount of money. [through these eyes] Good on him, it takes moxy to work the patch. It's a pretty strait crowd that works the oilpatch these days, not like the Ak. pipeline. He can definitely further himself with the energy company. Who doesn't want a good hand, with experience zest and youth? If he survives the first few market ups and downs, he can probably stay there till he retires if he wants. The oilfield, as well as the trades, has/will see really high attrition rates till they kick the rest of us boomers to the curb. The last official act of any government is to loot the treasury. GW |
July 6th, 2017 at 6:15:58 PM permalink | |
Face Member since: Oct 24, 2012 Threads: 61 Posts: 3941 |
I like to think I remain aware of "1st World Problems" when I'm bitching about one. Face, or who I feel is the "real" Face, has a handle on s#$%. I can reread my fishing thread and see it, as there was never a moment of "oneness" in my life as during that time. It's the depression, man. It's a trip. I totally get that being happy is a choice, and I for the most part believe it. But when your head's not working, the choice simply doesn't exist. It's not a matter of deciding an obstacle is an opportunity to promote happiness, it's lacking the mechanism that allows happiness to exist. It's a very f#$%ed up situation where you can't really comprehend anything, because your emotions, your driving force, is cattywompus. I can't see a problem and decide what to do, I have to see it and decide what this other, wiser guy would do. I dunno. As everything in my life is pretty swell and it's just a case of being unhappy, I reckon I've been doing it right.
You just broke through it for a moment, and made up my mind. Thanks. Whether the gratitude is genuine or sarcastic will remain to be seen =p Be bold and risk defeat, or be cautious and encourage it. |