School's out for...ever?

[Wait Wut]

The fairly recent lack of respect for higher education disturbs me. In high school, like most teenagers, I dreamed of my future. That dream included a career as an attorney or psychologist. I knew enough then that I would have to work hard and choose wisely. Unfortunately, my father didn’t think it was necessary for his two daughters to attend college, but not only paid my brother’s way but also financed his 3 month trip to Europe after high school. Because of my father’s decision, I decided it was not necessary to remain in school and dropped out mid-Junior year. Instead of becoming an attorney, I became a graphic artist. A job I’ve hated since day 1 and have been trapped in for 27 years. What can I say? It pays well and I’m stupidly good at it.

Not every career choice requires a college degree, but to say it’s “unnecessary” is planting seeds of doubt in the minds of our children. To tell them college is a waste of time and money is telling them that education, in general, is a waste of time. That there is no need to put forth any effort in their future since “experience” is more important.

The majority of my 27 years in graphics has been in management. 9 months after being hired for my first typesetting job, I was made supervisor of the art department. I’ve hired and fired many people in all those years. To be honest, those with degrees in “graphic arts” were often the last on my list of applicants. Not the fault of the applicant, but the schools that were handing out degrees. There was no practicality in the teaching so their graduates knew nothing of the basics of printing, advertising, etc. However, if there were other traits in the applicant that I thought would be beneficial, the degree would actually become a deciding factor. Despite the fact that the degree alone was useless in the real world of graphic arts, it could be an asset when combined with other factors such as previous experience or supplemental education (business, etc.). In other words, in a pool of 3 applicants, 1 having no degree but experience in the field, 1 having a college degree with no experience, and 1 having a combination of a degree and either experience or other education, the latter would more than likely have been my choice.

Of course, there were always exceptions. A great attitude and better people skills than I possessed would earn major points. Especially if you were struggling to get started in a new career. I’m a sucker for ambition.

No, a college degree doesn’t guarantee you a job, but it could be the first step on a path to a better future. Instead of throwing higher education out the window, we should be fighting to make it more affordable and accessible. I’m going to go ahead and assume that there’s a sense of accomplishment when you receive a degree along with some life experiences.

Bottom line, the arguments I’ve seen here regarding higher education are disappointing. You may not believe that college is right for you, but I hope that when your children come to you with a brochure from the college they’re hoping to attend that you don’t sneer and toss it in the garbage telling them, “College is worthless”. It’s a heartbreaking and destructive gesture. Instead, sit down with them and ask what they believe they’ll get from a college degree. Be fair and explain both pros and cons. It might be your money they’re spending, but it’s their future you’re investing in.

[Maat]

1. Very well-written.

My education means more to me personally, as well as professionally, than I can express. I am sick to my stomach. Hubby and I each earned a four-year degree in California, during the 80s, for a few thousand dollars - total. Anyone remember when California used to have the best educational system in the land? You could go to community college for a health fee each semester. State university cost a few hundred dollars a year (maybe near a thousand). I am sad.

[Wait Wut]

4. Thank you, and I agree.

My nephew just finished his first year at Marquette. My brother and his wife had to take a second mortgage out on their home and dip into their already disappearing retirement. The kid is one of those people that wouldn't make it WITHOUT college. He has no technological, mechanical or people skills. He's majoring in business with a minor in finance (just like his dad). Last time I talked to my brother, they aren't sure how they're going to pay for the next three (or more) years.

And I know there are millions of stories worse than his. Kids stuck in poverty that don't even dare to dream of college, kids with parents that are unsupportive or worse, kids with kids.

Education is the foundation of our existence. It doesn't just provide you with book smarts, but critical thinking and social skills. The first caveman to beat someone with a rock learned about the usage of tools. Others learned from him...or her. From there, we've been teaching and learning non-stop. Now, education is meant for the elite in our society.

[justiceischeap]

2. Sometimes I can't help but put on my tinfoil hat

and this is one of those issues. I think government/big business are attacking education because of two reasons. First, it's easier to control dumb sheep than smart sheep, so they make it harder to access affordable education, they make it harder to get kids interested in learning in high school by firing good teachers and destroying unions. Second, it's also easier to pay "dumb" sheep less money therefore allowing big business to continue making lots of money for the CEOs and top management. It also allows big business to justify outsourcing jobs.

[kick-ass-bob]

5. Yeah, I don't think so. Sometimes I go down those roads...

but really I think it is an easy target for them. Some people rail on teachers because they "get three months off" or they "don't have kids so why am I paying for this" and they don't put out anything quantitatively measurable in a capitalist sense. There's no dollar sign attached to a kid who graduates at the most basic level.

As to the OP, this is an excellent post and I added a K&R :)

[mike_c]

3. your experience was much like mine, including a career...

...in graphics and printing, until I went to college and grad school in my mid-30's. Got my first professional job-- university faculty-- in my early 40's. What a magnificent difference! I LOVE my work, and the flexibility it allows me to pursue my other interests as well. As I write this, I'm taking a break from learning to weld so I can tackle an upcoming project. Tomorrow I'll be helping a grad student with data analysis. The next day I'll likely do some drawing or painting. It's summer, so no classroom teaching on my schedule until late August.

It's so different from my former career that it's hard to even describe the differences. It's like comparing apples to oranges. Yes, I still work for someone else-- in my case, the California State University-- but I make most of the decisions about how I spend my time day-to-day rather than having a "boss" who tells me what to do. Sure, there are job expectations-- quite high ones in fact-- but they're an interesting challenge, not a daily grind.

Higher ed was the key to making employment enjoyable for me. I cannot imagine returning to my old career or another like it where the only thing of value I have to exchange for wages is the limited number of hours of my life, sold at the lowest price an employer can get away with. No thank you!

[Wait Wut]

8. I'm so envious.

There have been several times when I thought about going back to school, but either financial or personal reasons would throw the wrench in. In fact, this time last year I contacted our local community college. I've several issues; financial, personal and medical that are screwing up my last ditch effort at some type of degree/career change. At 46 and going blind, I'm quickly becoming unemployable.

Your job sounds fantastic! The diversity will either keep you young or wear you out! I get the feeling with your attitude that you'll be running circles around the yungins for a long, long time!

I do have to say, though, you've inspired me to take another look at my situation. Thank you!

[lumberjack_jeff]

6. 78% of americans don't have a college degree.

I don't think lifelong learning and "college degree" are the same thing.

If you had pursued your first goal as attorney or psychologist, best case scenario, you would have begun paying off your student loans at an age at which you had (in actuality) been a manager for many years in a career at which you are "stupidly good".

If business experience is a prerequisite for employment at your company and a college degree is not, then from a purely employment standpoint, it's apparent which is the most valuable way to spend your young adulthood. Four years of your life and $60,000 in debt should count for more than a tiebreaker.

We pushed my eldest into college. It wasn't what he wanted. He dropped out and now works as a truck driver. He's 21 and he and his fiancee are buying a house.

Figure out what you want to do, then do what you need to get there. You can do the first part while flipping burgers, and you may find that you don't need college for the second.

It's been 27 years. Who has the bigger net worth, you or your brother?

I wanted badly to go to college too. After taking a couple of college classes, I lucked into a drafting job at age 18. It never made economic sense to quit working to go to school. I worked in the engineering field (sans degree) for 20 years. Made decent money and saved 20% of my income in my 401k. I then changed careers twice. Had I gotten an engineering degree, my peak pay might have been 30% more but my working career would definitely have been 20% shorter. It's not likely that it would have been a good economic move, and I would have had to move for work to stay in engineering - something I hate doing.

[formernaderite]

10. three of mine went to college one didn't...

they're all on equal footing now. In fact the one that didn't go probably advanced quicker in terms of salary and savings. Now, I'm also a big proponent of spending two years at community college and then transferring to a University. Community colleges are still a great deal, and readily affordable. Heck, most kids can earn the money working to put themselves through community college. It also gives kids a realistic view of how they'll do at a University. Two of my kids went to Graduate School, they had the grades and desire.

College isn't for everyone, but it's also not necessary to see a University degree in terms of a private education in order to succeed.

[Yavin4]

12. What Will Your Son Do When He Will Be Replaced by a Cheaper Worker?

Face it, a new immigrant can drive a truck for less than the min. wage. What will your son do for a living when he's replaced?

[lumberjack_jeff]

14. Which college-necessary careers do you consider immune to cheaper worker syndrome?

Law? Medicine? Teaching? Engineering? IT?

If I live in a neighborhood which has a high rate of stolen vehicles, it's better to own a cheap one. Almost every dry and warm career I know of is vulnerable to being stolen away in the name of global competitiveness.

If congress starts importing H1B truckdrivers, then it's not a big loss to change careers.

[Wait Wut]

17. I sold out...

I hate being a graphic artist and always have. I've been fascinated by law and politics since I was in grade school. I may have been well on my way to a promising career, but I missed out on a career that I would have enjoyed. That's being a sell out, although my circumstances didn't offer much choice.

My brother...by far. He graduated college with a degree in finance/accounting after switching his major from Forestry (I'm not kidding...bizarre). He was immediately hired at a local bank that was bought out by Citibank. They moved him downtown (Chicago) and put him in charge of his department (something to do with treasury). He married his boss and both were (at that time) making 6 figures each. His wife finally gave it up and became a teacher (at 51). Two years later, Citicorp disolved his department and offered to move him to New York. He refused and took an "early retirement". It was probably the dumbest mistake of his life, but he was thinking of his family. He's "semi-retired" now and does small bookkeeping and accounting jobs for supplemental income. His yearly pension is more than I make in a year. It's been a tough adjustment for them, though. Their lifestyle has taken a hit and they've been dipping into their retirement funds to pay for their sons college.

I was making very good money back in Chicago, but Arizona doesn't pay. I didn't listen to my brother when he kept hounding me to save money. I spent most of it on donations to charities and vacations. I don't own a home and probably never will. For the first time in almost 25 years, I'm driving a used car.

Yep. Wish I had gotten that job as an attorney.

I tried to convince my son to attend college. It just wasn't for him. He looked into community college, but was a skilled and licensed mechanic working for Lexus and was making good money with good benefits. College isn't for everyone, but it makes me a bit nuts when I hear so many people making blanket statements about how worthless a degree is today.

[lumberjack_jeff]

19. I've always seen career as a means to an end.

I've never seen it as central to my identity. I've been an engineer, run a tractor, bucked hay, been a grocery clerk, carpenter, mid management at a tech company, city councilman, and now own a company making boat kits. The boats are as close to a passion as I get.

In retrospect, I'm glad that I didn't invest so much money into college at age 20 that I couldn't afford to change careers.

My middle son (for whom school was a sisyphean ordeal) graduated yesterday and begins diesel mechanics school in the fall. His goal is to work on ships. If he decides that more education is necessary for what he wants to accomplish, I'm supportive.

I just think college is a suboptimal place to learn what you want out of life.

[JoePhilly]

23. Agre some, disagree some ... counter anicdote with comparisons

So first, I agree that the most important thing you can do is pick a field you truly enjoy. If you screw that up, you'll never be happy regardless.

Second, small point of clarification really .... a person in college can get "actual" experience at the same time. One of my friends got a job in the financial aid department and because of that, he learned a great deal about managing finances that he'd never known. My wife took an internship during the summers and not only obtained actual experience, but also obtained a relationship with her future employer. As a graduate student, I taught introductory psychology to undergraduates. So my point is that you don't have to trade experience for college, you can do both at the same time.

You asked the OP who has the higher net worth, he or his brother. I have a comparison that's relevant.

I grew up in the 70s and 80s and I was part of a group of about 14 or so guys through elementary and high school. We played a lot of sports together. Out of the group, 4 of us went to and completed college (a couple went and dropped out), about 4 took trade classes as part of high school, heading directly into apprentice positions in Unions right after (plumber, electrician, carpenter). IN that group, the father of at least 3 of the guys was in the same specialty in the union. Another got a job through his brother as a union sprinkler-fitter. After skipping from odd job to odd job, 2 of the guys started a furniture moving business (as an off-shoot from the one guy's older brother's company). A couple others also took the "odd job" route.

Some observations regarding the group 20+ years later.

The first to purchase his own a home was the union plumber. He's done ok. At one point, because he hated the periodic layoffs, he left to start his own company, couldn't get it off the ground, returned to the union.

The carpenter decided that the daily physical labor would kill him by 45 and was fortunate enough to get a job in a parking garage through his cousin. He's stuck with that for 20 years, and now manages 3 locations.

The 2 guys who started the moving business were doing well for a while. During the late 90s, they were claiming that within 5 years, they'd be millionairess. They were out of business by 2007. Both now move furniture for some one else. They are in the mid-late 40s and not sure how much longer they can do that.

The union sprinkler fitter likes the work. But the pay and layoffs suck. He has a special needs kid which means he has that added expense. He was an incredible athlete, and he's trying to get his sons though college on sports scholarships.

The electrician has plugged along, managed his money, generally in a solid position.

One I didn't mention earlier is now a high school football coach. He sells newspapers on the side for extra money.

Of the 4 who finished college. One is now a medical doctor, one obtained 2 degrees in finance, I have an BS, MA and PhD in experimental Psych (which in my case is a technology field), and then one is an Architect.

If I had to rank this group by net worth now, again, about 20+ years out from college ...

Group 1: By a long shot, 3 of the 4 who completed college would be the top 3 (the med doc, PhD, finance guy).

Group 2: The manager of the 3 garages would probably be next. Then the Architect (the 4th with college degree).

Group 3: A little behind, the electrician and the plumber (roughly even).

Group 4: Then a group with the sprinkler fitter, the 2 guys who had the moving biz, and then the high school football coach (all have been near bankrupt at some point in the last 5 years).

I can make this rough ranking because this group still stays in touch. And we get together about once a year (or at least a sub-set of us does). So discussions of mortgages, kids college, retirement planning, etc come up ... and at times, those in group 1 loan (or give) money to some of the others when they've had tough times.

Something else I noticed after making this list ... all but one of the guys who completed college also married a woman who had completed college. Those three college educated wives all work ... one is a Dr., one a director level technology manager, one a nurse (I think she now manages nurse for an entire hospital or something like that).

Only one of the guys without a college degree married a woman with a college degree (the garage manager), his wife worked for a few years, now stays home. None of the other wives has a college degree, and all but one is a stay at home mother.

I made the grouped list above based on what I know my friends do and roughly what they make ... if I add in the wives, the groupings don't change, but the distance between group 1 and 2 increases.

[JoePhilly]

7. The talking down of higher education has specific goals ...

1) The rich don't want your kids in school with their kids. All that does is create competition for their kids down the road. Why should a poor kid with great grades be the reason that GW Bush doesn't get into Yale?

2) For them, higher education is a perk intended only for the children of the rich, its one they deserve, because they are genetically superior to you.

3) The rich know that those with a better education tend to increase their earning potential over their life time. One of the reasons for this is that a good education often exposes a person to a wide array of topic areas, which means greater flexibility in career choices. The rich don't like the idea of a flexible work choices for everyone. They would prefer that most of the population be trapped in the same position because movement of employees is an added expense. Its better for them if you get locked in to a job you can''t easily leave.

4) If you are going to block people from being included in higher education, and you don't want them to be angry about that, you better get busy convincing them that higher education is a BAD thing. Explain to them that Bill Gates didn't finish college. Explain that college is filled with liberal hippies who hate America and its freedoms. Make sure they know that the "so-called egg-head experts" are just trying to trick them.

[Yavin4]

9. Although I Disagree with How Higher Education Is Structured, I Am Strong Proponent of Post-High

School training and continued training and development throughout one's working life. The only way to compete with workers abroad is to continually learn new things throughout your working life.

[lumberjack_jeff]

11. To compete with workers abroad, you have to continually learn new things...

... and accept 70% lower wages.

Better to be a plumber or truckdriver.

[InvisibleTouch]

13. Let me offer an alternate perspective:

I would say that a college degree is not *necessarily* necessary, depending on what each individual wants to do with their lives. Yes, if you wanted to be a psychologist or lawyer, you would have needed a college degree. Several, in fact. But for those whose passion lies elsewhere, it shouldn't be assumed that they should go to college just because "everyone expects it," or even because they are academically talented. I went all the way through grad school because I was basically forced into it by my family. My undergrad experience was good, and I'm glad I had it, but my graduate school experience was so unpleasant that it took me years to recover from it. I am now so far behind on achieving my true dreams that I sometimes wonder if I will ever catch up.

I am by no means anti-education. It has great value. But I'm against the notion that everyone "must" or even "ought to," if that's not the life path that works for them.

It occurs to me that both of us should have stood up to our parents and done what we knew was right for *us*, at any cost.

[Lydia Leftcoast]

16. I'm a firm believer in that

I saw lots of students being forced to major in business or computer science when they had strong talents in other directions: art, languages, science.

[Wait Wut]

20. Right, right...

I don't want people to misunderstand and assume that I think everyone NEEDS to go to college. I'm just afraid that with the current opinion of higher education that there will be kids getting the short-end because of the parents disillusionment.

I loved school, my son hated it. I would never have tried to force him into college, but we did have several long discussions.

I agree wholeheartedly with that last statement. I had other options, but at 16 I was too young to make any decisions on my own.

[Lydia Leftcoast]

15. As a former college professor, I believe that we're ambivalent about what college is for

and whom it is for.

In the old days, it was pretty straightforward: college was for people who wanted to learn specific skills or gain a general cultural background that would prepare them for entry into or maintaining their membership in the middle class. With the exception of a few programs that prepared you for specific jobs, you could major in anything you wanted and be assured that companies would train you on the job. The emphasis was on the liberal arts.

By the time I got out of teaching, college had become a vocational school, particularly for business majors, because companies no longer wanted to spend money training employees and would therefore hire only business majors. But if everyone majors in business, how do companies decide whom to hire? I had former students who had majored in business, finance, accounting, and marketing who ended up working at Home Depot, and not in management positions. I think part of the problem was that they were people who didn't really belong in college but went anyway because that's what middle class students are supposed to do between ages 18 and 22.

If I were remaking the American educational system from the bottom up, I would start with a low-key preschool/kindergarten that emphasized cognitive and social development rather than drilling in reading and math. There are games that teach pattern recognition, sequencing, and eye-to-hand coordination, for example. Art and music and dance and playacting help develop the imagination. Field trips would help the kids learn how the world works. There would be story reading and storytelling every day. Lots of chances to run around and play freely.

If the previous program was successful, the children would arrive in elementary school eagerly anticipating learning to read. As much as possible, in first grade and the other grades, they would read real books with real stories. (For some reason my mother kept her fourth grade reading textbook from 1930, and it contains only slightly simplified versions of fairy tales and short stories.) Math instruction would follow curricula that have been successful in other countries. Science would be hands-on. Social studies would start with the local community and gradually extend to the state, the U.S., the hemisphere, and the world. Beginning in fifth grade, children would have a choice of chorus or instrumental ensemble and would begin a slow-paced introduction to a foreign language. PE would offer a choice between team and individual sports. Curricular goals would be spelled out in general terms (e.g. "In fourth grade, the children shall learn the history and geography of their state") and the teacher would have the freedom to devise the best content and methods for a particular class to achieve this goal. No class would have more than 15 students. Standardized tests would be for internal assessment purposes only. ("How do we stack up against other schools in the district, state, and nation?") Instead of a three-month summer vacation, there would be four three-week vacations scattered throughout the year to minimize the loss of learning that takes place in young children in the early years. (Yes, schools would have to be air-conditioned in most parts of the country.) Elementary school would last through seventh grade.

Grades eight, nine, and ten would be a separate school. These schools would be departmentalized, with different teachers for each subject, and class sizes would increase slightly to 20. Again, the goals would be stated in general terms. By the end of tenth grade, the students would have: 1) A high school reading level, 2) The ability to write an essay with minimal mistakes in spelling and grammar, 3) Math through Algebra II, 4) Five years of a foreign language, 5) Basic introductions to biological and physical science, 6) A basic understanding of world and U.S. history, geography, and government, 7) Courses in real world living, including basic housekeeping, cooking, childcare, budgeting, and home repair, 8) Physical fitness sufficient for swimming 100 yards or running a quarter mile.

In tenth grade, students would decide whether they wanted to go into 1) a math-science school, 2) a humanities-social science school, 3) a business-oriented school, or 4) a vocationally oriented school run by consortia of local businesses or labor unions. Because of the fairly intensive instruction in grades eight through ten, students would have a good idea of whether they were interested in further academic work and if so, what area they were interested in. The one common factor among the schools would be courses in which the students read about current issues from a variety of viewpoints and had to write essays on them.

(Of course, the above plan would have to be modified for students who had physical or mental disabilities or who came into the system as non-English speakers.)

The community colleges would offer two-year "do-overs" for students who decided that they had made the wrong choice, or even for mid-career adults who were ready for a change. They would also offer continuing education for the business and vocational tracks.

College would be reserved for those who really needed college-level training. Only the students who had performed well in their math-science or humanities-social science courses could get in. No dumb rich kids would be allowed to pay their way in.

There would be community small-group discussion courses, sort of like Great Books groups, offered for non-humanities types who wanted to learn more about history, literature, philosophy, and the arts and for non-science types who wanted to learn more about math and science.

None of this is likely to happen, but I think it's what we need as I look at American culture and the lack of critical thinking and general knowledge that prevails in the population.

[Wait Wut]

25. Impressive Plan.

My only concern would be the unintentional classification of young people. I just finished "Brave New World" so maybe that's where my concern is coming from. If we give students a choice of focus in one area, are we setting them up to be thought of as "laborers" or "houseworkers" instead of citizens? It happens later in life, but teens are less able to separate emotion from reality. As adults, we recognize the need for laborers and can be compassionate towards the physical and mental hardships of labor. Teens aren't sophisticated enough to see the intricacies of society and our dependency on labor. Would the separation of the "lawyer-types" from the "laborer-types" be creating more separation in the "classes" in adulthood?

I do understand the outcome you'd like to achieve. In fact, my son enrolled in off-site Tech School during his Senior year for an extra credit. That's where he earned his first ASE certification. But, he spent the first half of his day at his high school. Maybe that's more of what should be focused on. Instead of a clear separation of students, there should be more in-school or off-site options that would offer students the opportunity to begin training for a possible career.

[FLPanhandle]

18. It starts with the family prioritization on education

My wife and I have gone to the other extreme. My daughters have to go to college. In fact, my will states that my daughters trust fund doesn't go to them until they complete a degree.

It's required for my daughters.

[Wait Wut]

21. I'm not going to argue with you,

I just hope that you'll be a bit flexible in their choice of colleges, studies and path. I've known a few people that have had their trust funds tied up in this way. It actually helped more than you would think. Two of them were guys I went to high school with and were wastes of life and in constant trouble. One went directly into college and became a physical therapist for children, the other went into the Navy and attended college as part of his enlistment. That was over 25 years ago. He's still in the Navy, but became an officer.

[FLPanhandle]

22. No restriction on the degree

If they want to major in History, Engineering, Finance, Biology, or Art, or something else of their choosing, then no problem. They must complete the degree though.

[Occulus]

27. That's very, very cold of you.

I strongly urge you to rethink this.

[FLPanhandle]

29. Curious, why is it "cold of me"?

Both daughters are straight A students (one in HS; one in middle school). College fund is paid up, so it won't cost them anything.

It won't kill them to go off to college and get exposed to higher education. Why is that cold? Yes, they don't get any money if they don't, maybe that's what you are referring to?

[Sonoman]

24. I believe it depends on the individual.

I went to the first day of First Grade and refused to go back. The other kids could not read, write, or do any math at all.

So I taught myself everything I wanted to know and blew off the rest. There was no one to tell me what to do or to not do.

I retired at twenty-eight years of age and I get to sleep 'til noon.

Sonoman

[Wait Wut]

26. You do realize you're not normal, right?

And by normal, I mean typical. Oh...and I hate you, btw. No 28 year old should be allowed to sleep til noon when I have to work until I die.

I'd put you on ignore, but I tend to agree with many of your posts. So, I'll put you on "whatever" instead. :eyes:

And, you're correct. It depends on the individual. I didn't make that entirely clear.

[Sonoman]

28. We're all different.

I was never cut out for a structured life and would not have survived that corporate world. Heck, I cannot put up with any repetitive action at all.

To be honest, my lack of education is sometimes embarrassing. I am unable to discuss Classic lit, for example. I also grew up sans television, never went to movies, and had access to only one radio station (the 'X' out of Piedras Negras, Mexico).

But I am almost 60, now, and I love life.

What's this I read about you losing your vision? Macular Degeneration? Why is it that so many creative people lose the thing that enables them to do what they do?

Thanks for not putting me on ignore.

Sonoman

[Wait Wut]

30. I'm one of the oddballs that loved the corporate world.

Where I work now I never have to wear business attire or go on business lunches. No after work cocktail meetings, either. But, I was also blessed (in Chicago) with the most incredibly fun clients...ever. Here, in Arizona? Not so much. But, from what I've been told, the corporate world in Chicago is different than anywhere else. We're all really just blue-collar workers in disguise.

I wouldn't worry too much about Classic Lit. I force myself to read the classics and am usually disappointed. Then I have to erase the boredom with bubble gum (Stephen King). Once I've recovered my original sense of self I return to reading what I like and not what I think I should. I refer to it as literary-masochism. With what you've accomplished in life, the last thing you should experience is embarrassment. Just saying you're 60 and love life is a huge accomplishment. I'm sure you could teach us all plenty of more important things than we could ever find in a text book.

To be honest, I don't remember what the doctor told me. I went in for my $99 glasses and walked out with a $650 bill after they did a bunch of tests. Doc told me I was losing my eyesight and could be blind in as soon as 5 years. Gave me a bunch of rules to follow like, don't work on computers for more than 4 hours a day and make an appointment with an eye surgeon. Uh...sure. I don't have insurance, so I just try to give my eyes a break when I can. They hurt constantly and I always look stoned. She mentioned that it was a combination of factors that probably caused it. My low blood pressure, chronic dry eyes, etc. Something about years of lack of oxygen to the blood vessels that have caused permanent and progressive scarring. I've spent the last two years in preparation. I don't drive at nite and drive as little as possible during the day. I've lost most of my depth perception, so I entertain my boss and husband when I run into things. I have learned to avoid stairs. Yeah...those things can kill you.