for me college was a yes
it just took me a long time to get there
i flunked out on my first try
yes
you have to go to class to pass college
then
i worked as an orderly then on an assembly line making paper bags then on a road crew man that will make you go back to college
and then as an emergency room technician
then
i went to a junior college
took classes part time
worked
then jumped in after 4 years of part time to go full time
thats when the school debt occurred
then
i graduated with a degree in biology
my goal was to go to medical school
my backup goal was to be a high school biology teacher
my senior year in college i was exploring in case i was not accepted to medical school what to do in my year after my degree would be obtained to maybe work on my teaching credentials
instead
my 8 month pregnant wife who had just graduated with her degree and i moved across the country back to arkansas with my one goal
medical school
the idea of teaching was left behind
then
in those two years before i stated medical school i worked
one year as a lab tech in a hospital lab
one day in a chicken processing plant where i felt like i was hearing banjos all the time
yes i quit after 7 hours
then
i worked 3 months in a tool factory making tools for craftsman tools
yes they are made to last
then
i worked 9 months as a research lab assistant in the animal science department
doing an occasional day in a local obgyns lab running their lab
then
off to medical school
my sophomore year i worked as a morgue attendant checking bodies into the morgue and assisting with autopsies
yes that ruled out pathology as a specialty for sure
so
for me
knowing my personality and what i wanted out of life
college was for me
without it i never would have been happy
my younger brother the one who died a few years ago with alzheimers disease
was not a college guy
he was a do it with your hands guy
so
after a stent as a store manager he applied and was accepted as a fireman in the nearby town
he spent 20 years or so as a fireman
he attended a vocational school at the fire academy and got his certificate
later
after retiring as a fireman he attended the police academy at the same vocational school
and got his police certificate
he worked several years as a deputy sheriff having a drug dog with him most of the time
he also ran the local water system
i smile now as i think of him being concerned about my drinking and using rainwater as my water system
he never was sure about that
so
i was a college person
he was not a college person
i was happy in what i did in my life
im sure he was happy in what he did in his life
yes
for both of us we did attend a community college system
i do agree like high school these two years should be free like they are eg here where i live now in santa barbara if you are a local person
both he and i made it through the community college system on our way to our careers
mine was more academic
his was not more academic
im happy with my career choice
im sure he was happy with his career choice
if you look at my phone list taped to our kitchen cabinet door
there are these phone numbers that are important
doctor
dentist
mechanic
plumber
electrician
carpenter
like the first two we all need those last 4
all 6 are honorable professions
the organicgreen doctor
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