Friday, July 17, 2009
Your Turn
Over the last week I have had a number of discussions with people about jobs and careers and being laid off and taking what they can find. It got me to thinking about when I was a child and wearing my "husky sized" Toughskins what I dreamed of being when I grew up. I know at some point I wanted to be a fireman and then a ride operator at an amusement park. I thought it would be cool to be the guy who threw the switch on the roller coasters. I don't ever remember wanting to be a doctor or lawyer. Anyway, I'm wondering what all of you dreamed about being when you grew up and if you ever actually fulfilled that dream.
I was convinced as a child that there really was a Jurassic Park, and I wanted desperately to work there. I'd still much rather work with dinosaurs than people in general, to be honest. How much worse can it be? lol
ReplyDeleteI always wanted to be a lawyer, and now am one...unfortunately...ha ha!
ReplyDeleteIf I could turn back the hands of time, I'd be a sommelier and get paid to travel and drink copious amounts of wine.
I wanted to be a marine biologist after a trip to Sea World. I thought it would be soo cool to go out and study marine life.
ReplyDeleteUnfortunately, I get sea sick on the Balboa ferry and burn like a lobster in about 15 minutes.
Now I just watch Planet Earth and Discovery Channel to get my fix.
I always wanted to be a reporter and I became one. Now I'm a recovering journalist.
ReplyDeletelol @ ""husky sized" Toughskins"!
ReplyDeleteThe first job I remember wanting as a kid was to be in roller derby. I have not fulfilled that dream.
ReplyDeleteDream of working for Disney: fulfilled.
ReplyDeleteDream of working as a makeup artist: fulfilled.
Dream of being on tv: will be fulfilled in a week.
I wanted to be an archaeologist after I read about Pompeii and the dog that was found there with a chunk of bread in his mouth.
ReplyDeleteThen a veterinarian.
Didn't do either.
I wanted to be a famous movie star. I have not fulfilled that dream and have realized that I would be worse than Sean Penn as a famous person. I hate for people to stare at me, even now!
ReplyDeleteTil I was 9 I wanted to be a tightrope walker. Then I started arguing with my mom about my math homework and how I didn't need stupid math because when I grew up I was going to be a prostitute. My mom said yes but you'll still need to know if they are paying you correctly and I said That's what my pimp is for!
ReplyDeleteThank god I got through THAT phase.
Christine - me too!
ReplyDeleteI wanted to be Perry Mason. I'm not anywhere near as big as Perry and I don't win all my cases, but I am a criminal lawyer.
I wanted to be an actress. HA...After reading this blog I'm VERY glad it never happened...
ReplyDeleteNow I want to be an author when I grow up. (I'm 43)
OMG SFG, that's HILARIOUS!!!
ReplyDeleteWhen I was young - about 3 or 4 - I wanted to be a cheerleader. Then I wanted to be a secretary. When I was around 9 I wanted to be a teacher, then a librarian. When I got to high school I wanted to be a pediatric oncologist, then a supreme court justice. I do none of those things - I work in University Administration.
ReplyDeleteMy dream is to have my own show, where I'm serving as the headwriter. I would LOVE to try directing too. I KNOW I have it in me. lol
ReplyDeleteI wanted to be a BlackJack Dealer when I grew up, so I would practice dealing cards really really really fast.
ReplyDeleteI wanted to be a vet up until I discoverd I'd have to put animals down. Today I'm a proud pet parent, at least. :)
ReplyDeleteOMG SFG, I am crying!
ReplyDeleteI'm not sure I actually wanted to be anything when I was a kid. I was kind of awkward and socially inept, I got along with other kids but I was a loner...I just wanted to be alone with my books and my make believe imagination, I guess.
I think the first three things I really wanted to be were a record producer with my own label, a singer, and a writer (songs and novels). I've always loved music and still wish I could get into that (but as an indie artist...no interest in being signed to or working for a label now). But I don't think the concrete thought of "I want to do THAT" kicked in until I was 11 or 12.
I never really wanted to be anything. I wanted to be in the Olympics for swimming, but I didn't want a career out of it. I just wanted to be able to hang out with my friends and party all the time. Now I'm 21 and still trying to live that dream! Haha ;)
ReplyDeleteAfter seeing "The Sound of Music" when I was 7 or 8 I desperately wanted to be a nun. Loved the outfits (especially the cute hats with wings), loved the singing while roaming the Alps, etc.
ReplyDeleteUnfortunately, there are no Protestant nuns.
You are all lucky. I was raised by a mother who told me I couldn't be anything I wanted. I could draw, and she saw nothing special in that. I can write, but got absolutely no praise or encouragement. I was always fascinated by the making of a film, but never pursued it. To this day it haunts me. So for all of you who have fulfilled your dreams, even in part, congratulations. Good for you.
ReplyDeleteFrom the first time I saw John Bonham, I wanted to be a drummer. I wanted to be John Bonham for two reasons, because Robert Plant was so fine and I could play the shit out of the drums and get to look at Roberts ass all during the concert. Needless to say, it never happened, but a girl can dream, right?
ReplyDeleteI wanted to be an archeaologist. But my parents said "No, there's no money in that."
ReplyDeleteSo, now I'm a secretary. Guess what? There's no money in that, either!
OMG SFG, thanks for the laugh!!!
ReplyDelete@ Christine:
ReplyDeleteI'm right there with you. If it weren't for the student loans, I would quit being a lawyer this second.
And I just mentioned to a friend that if I could do it again, I'd be a sommelier or go into the culinary arts.
When I was very young I either wanted to be an author or a psychiatrist. Once I hit high school I didn't have a clue what I wanted to do but I knew I wanted university and I wasn't getting married until I was 30 and I was never having children.
ReplyDeleteInstead, I got pregnant at 18, married at 19 and now have 3 children. I never went to university and I was a stay-at-home mom and very, very bored and unhappy (about staying at home...not unhappy about the kids part).
I got a divorce, went to college, and now I'm a medical secretary and I love it!
I wanted to be a ballerina then a lead singer in a rock band. Now I am a teacher, who gets to go to a lot of concerts :)
ReplyDeleteSigh, what didn't I want to be when I was little? Actress, ballerina, but mainly actress. Actually wanted to be a lawyer or doctor, even though my dad (a doctor) told me to pursue law and not medicine.
ReplyDeleteMajored in Linguistics and Spanish. Wanted to PR for a hot two seconds. Went back to dreams of doing law school for a hot second. I'm still debating it. Job hunting is a BITCH! I'm young. I've got a while.
Now I'm managing my sister's clothing boutique, doing a lot of PR stuff. I love fashion. Maybe I could do that. Gah. Is law school worth it??
When I was a kid, I wanted to be a dancer, then a soldier then a veterinarian. I discovered in college I wasn't good enough at science so aged 17, I decided I wanted to be a TV director. My mum said I was being stupid and people from where I came from didn't do jobs like that. She thought I should take my job as a part-time waitress and make it full-time. I decided she was wrong and set out to prove it. As of now, aged 31, I am indeed a TV director/producer, and last week was entered for a BAFTA by the BBC for a programme I made for them last winter.
ReplyDeleteWhen I was a kid, I wanted to either be Nancy Drew or one of Charlie's Angels. Then when I was in high school, I wanted to go into the FBI.
ReplyDeleteMore realistically, I want to be a pastry chef or a winemaker. Oh well.
When I was little I had a 3 foot tall pink crayon penny bank. Since I have a sister and was always paranoid that she would "borrow" a penny or two, I counted my savings multiple times per day. (My mother said I could count money before I could count numbers.) So needless to say, I wanted to be a bank teller when I was a child.
ReplyDeleteNow I work in finance/logistics.
artist
ReplyDeletestudied art through high school (honors, 3 hours per day)
majored for 1.5 years in college. Quit after one bad class. Regretted it since.
I wanted to write a book and have it published. I have lots of material and still have that fire, so it's still possible.
ReplyDeleteWhoa, Soph, congrats! That is impressive.
ReplyDeleteI wanted to be a nurse from the time I was 4, all the way through high school until I hit College Chemistry 101. After the fiasco that was that class, I figured I better find something that didn't call for as much hard science as nursing does. I am now a very happy Speech Language Pathologist.
ReplyDeleteMy only other thought when I was younger was to be a singer/actress. I don't get payed to do it, but am lucky enough to be involved with a wonderful local theater!
I wanted to be a nun.
ReplyDeletehm.
FUNNY...I THOUGHT I'D BE AN ACTRESS ALSO...BUT THE PRICE THEY PAY IN LOSS OF PRIVACY IS JUST TO HIGH.
ReplyDeleteI've always wanted to be an actress. That was a running theme for me when I was little. Occasionally I would entertain the idea of something else, like dancer, or a photographer, and a doctor. I go back and forth on the doctor thing though because it's a good steady career as opposed to being an actress, but I've only ever felt a real calling to be an actress, so I don't know!
ReplyDeleteWow, how ironic Enty poses this question today. Today I am hating the choices I've made career wise. Really fed up with 'chasing the dream' bullshit and wishing I could go back 25 years.
ReplyDeleteCount me in for another geek who wanted to be an archeologist. Now I just want to by one of those metal detectors and hit the mother load on some beach.
Anonmom: Congrats on the tv thing! Where can we tune into to see you & cheer you on?
I wanted to be a book editor so I could read all day- now I read a lot, but don't get paid. Also wanted to be a lawyer but my dad didn't want to pay for a girl to go to law school. I am a well paid assistant so not too unhappy- It combines my intelligence with my overall lack of career planning. In addition, it appeals to my desire to work to live not live to work. I used to work for the mentally ill as a vocational counselor but it got really draining and was wearing me down in a very unhealthy way- I packed up and moved and made a decision to take a more low key job- that was 4 years ago and am still pretty happy.
ReplyDeleteA Lawyer right up until I met my worst boyfriend ever and decided I just wanted to spend time with him. His idea, however, was to see how badly he could treat me and keep me coming back. Although my dad never said anything the summer after high school he signed me up for college and told me I either had to go or get out of the house. I told him he ruined my life and went to school. That was 26 years ago, I graduated, met my future husband and father of my two children, and have been managing a company for 19 years and getting paid very well. Thanks again Dad.
ReplyDeleteAs a child, it was archaeology for me, that stuff fascinated me then and still does. But then it slowly turned to nursing. Here's another non-encouraging mother - she thought nursing was dirty (probably is), hard (definitely is) work and that I should aspire to an "office job".
ReplyDeleteI wasn't myself then, took me years to believe that my opinions actually counted, so I did what Mama wanted. I worked in the office of a firebrick company for several years, married, had three kids and was a housewife for 17 years. Then I fired my husband and went back to work, first in the office of a computer company, where I met a lawyer who coveted my ability to run his word processor (they were very new in 1979) and was willing to teach me the legal stuff to get my Wang skills. At that time, working for lawyers paid WAY more than any other kind of work, and had some prestige to it, and I had those three kids at home and a pretty unreliable ex, so I went to work for him. He did indeed teach me the basics - although to this day I have not stopped learning - and I've been doing it for 30 years now. I don't know about the prestige, I sure as hell am not paid enough - but I really love working with my boss, I enjoy the clients, and it doesn't look like the economy is ever going to let me retire - so I'm still at it.
Sidenote- when I was 8 I watned to be like Wendy Richter, the professional wrestler. I wrote an article about it for my middle schools newsletter. People still comment about it to this day.
ReplyDeleteMy very first occupational aspiration at five years old was to be the school bus driver. I would sit right behind the driver to and from kindergarten and watch her work the clutch and gear shift and--best of all--the door handle.
ReplyDeleteI never got to drive a bus, and it's all been downhill since then because the parents made me do well in school and go to college and aspire higher than that. But damn if it still wouldn't be super cool to drive a big,powerful vehicle of any kind (other than the Yukon).
I am what you'd call very lady-like looking (only on the outside, mind you) so most people would think it hilarious that I totally dig seeing lady truck drivers!
(but I am not a NASCAR fan, BTW--prefer demolition derby).
I wanted to be a veterinarian...never made it to college though. I took a year off to "play", met my husband and that was it. Now I'm on marriage number 2 and a job that pays half of what I normally make. Sure wish I'd listened to my parents and went right to college...
ReplyDeleteMarisa, was it Art History, cause that one just whooped my tail.
ReplyDeleteI wanted to be an Egyptolgyst. I never got to do it, so I just confine myself to making sarcastic remarks during discovery channel specials and reading Elizabeth Peters
I was in love with Bjorn Borg as a kid and wanted to be a professional tennis player. I was undefeated in high school, but partied too much in college and never tried out for the team.
ReplyDeleteThen I wanted to be a psychologist, but my father said they didn't make any money, so I ended up majoring in business for a semester, failed accounting and switched to Poli Sci.
Now I'm a consultant in the software industry. Go figure!
Funny how a lot of us wanted to be archaeologists. I did, too, and although that's unfulfilled, I have thought about participating in digs with my son when he's older.
ReplyDeleteI was a flighty kid, but I spent most of my adolescence and early twenties thinking focused on writing, acting, comedy, and therapy.
ReplyDeleteAs I got older, I realized I'm not much suited for therapy (I'm almost always guilty of too much or too little sympathy - and not much in the middle), and while I've been given numerous compliments on my writing / acting / comedy skills, I crave stability too much to bank on any of them.
I am now returning to school to become an undertaker, and am 100% pleased with the decision.
I keep trying to convince my oldest that she is secretly passionate about archeology. It started to work till my sister pointed out that if she ever did go on digs, she would have me under her feet trying to "help" LOL. Now she wants to be an author.
ReplyDeleteAlthough I was extremely lacking in coordination and was basically like a baby horse when I was growing up (long, lanky, and very clumsy), I really wanted to be a ballerina. So I would practice standing on the tops of my toes for as long as I could stand it, not realizing that toe shoes don't quite work that way, lol. Today I'm a graduate architect.
ReplyDeleteArcheaologist for me too. What can I say I loved to dig in the dirt with a spoon since age 2. Then Han Solo turned up in my dream job in that damn hat. Then one day while in grade school they took us to the underground railroad a tunnel in the dirt under a house. I damn near passed out and my teacher was P.O.'d I never said I was clausterphobic. I'd never knew I was. He said guess you aren't going to be digging in dirt holes now. Then I wanted to be in PR & advertising. I am oceans away from either dream and working in a hospital.
ReplyDeletei remember wanting to be the first woman to win the indy 500- still have that need for speed- and i don't know how my high school pinto ever survived! i was really into herpetology in jr. high.
ReplyDeletei also wanted to be a surgeon like my uncle (at one time everyone in the family aspired to that) or a vet, but i couldn't handle the required math courses. egyptology always intrigued me, marine biology is a love of mine, and i wanted to major in history, but there was nothing i could do with it, career-wise.
music and drama were what i was best at, but my father forbade me from majoring in either.
a few years ago, i started back into psychology, but my anxiety attacks (ironic, isn't it) kept me from going very far.
there was never any future in my skating, i loved it, i worked very, very hard at it, but i wasn't a natural. i think if i had been, i would have taken that as far as i could, because the feeling it gave me was like no other.
so, i've basically been a mom. and a house rabbit advocate. and, apparently, a science experiment. :)
oh, and even more importantly, about to become a first-time granny!!!
Growing up, I always wanted to be a teacher. My friends would want to play house and I'd want to play school. When I started taking Spanish in 7th grade, I knew I wanted to major in it in college. But I also realized that I didn't want to work with kids AT ALL!
ReplyDeleteSo I thought the teaching thing was out the window. I double majored in Linguistics & Spanish (just like Karmen!) and thought I'd go into the travel and tourism industry (I'm from NY and went to college in New Orleans so it was all around).
Then I studied in Spain and it changed my life (in many ways). I realized that I really wanted to work with college students and I was fascinated by higher education as a whole.
I went to grad school and got an MA in Counseling in Higher Ed and was working with doctoral students when I realized I wanted to be a professor (back to the teacher thing).
I got my PhD in Higher Education and Organizational Change and along the way decided that the professor life wasn't for me but I loved doing research. So now I'm a full-time researcher at UCLA and I love it (for the most part) and I get to teach (as a volunteer) dissertation writing to PhD students! I guess I've come full circle.
I honestly can't imagine doing anything else (especially outside of academia). :)
@ ANONMOM --Congrats and we need
ReplyDeletedetails..! Where do we watch?
@ Soph Congrats to you too! What programme? Can we see it on BBC channel in the States?
artists, actresses, archeologists and vets...lol. no wonder this big group tends to get along well!
ReplyDeletemy brother told me as a little girl hooker meant ballerina, so for months i would tell anyone who'd listen i wanted to grow up and be a hooker.
i always wanted to be in radio..aside from a small guest spot locally, no dice. but i guess you gotta keep up the hustle if you want it to happen.
I am more convinced than ever now that when it comes to career advice, almost no one should listen to their parents - well, except for you, kelly :-) But that was less about the career and more about the bad boyfriend. When it comes to jobs though, it seems that so many of us had that parent, often the mom, who said things like "there's no money in that," "you'll never get a job in that," "you can't do that," "what makes you think someone from this small town could do something like that," "get a real job," "you should do this," etc. That's THEIR insecurities, their own dislikes, their own secret "I wish I could have been..." dreams. Yet we are the ones stuck carrying the baggage.
ReplyDeleteAnd where are we now? I for one have no job and am about to move again in an attempt to find one - but my move is purely based on having a friend I can stay with for a while and having a 95% guarantee of finding work. Too many people here have said they listened to their parents but ended up in a life they don't like, a job that doesn't pay a lot, and/or many years of unhappiness for varied reasons before finally finding something they like. And I can sense the unspoken resentment oozing from the comments.
I listened to my mom when she said to pick a major where I can get a "real" job. Fuck a real job. If I'd pursued music I would at least know my way around a studio and could have produced some things or become someone's assistant...SOMETHING. It's not too late for me now either but it's a lot harder to find your way along the road less taken when you're 27 and have bills to pay than when you're 17 and just getting out of high school.
Our parents mean well most of the time, but they are fucking us over. I really think the best decision anyone with a "real" dream can make is to pursue that dream for better or worse. B/c 9 times out of 10 you are going to end up struggling and broke (at leas for a while) anyway, so the least favor you can do for yourself is at least starve for something you love and not b/c you're fighting with 1,000 other miserable schlubs dusting off their resume for the same $13/hr administrative assistant job.
Or well, that's my personal decision anyway. Not everyone will reach the same conclusion but I've now realized MY life is too short for being this miserable for something I don't care about. Maybe by the time I'm 30 I will finally be able to say I at least tried to do what I wanted to do, instead of just scraped by for basic survival. I certainly hope so.
/soapbox
When I was younger, I wanted to be an architect. When I was a teenager, I wanted to be a pharmacist or a rock star. When I got to college, I wanted to be a history teacher.
ReplyDeleteNow I'm an editor/journalist who plays music when I can :)
Ardleigh - it's super duper exciting and a secret! It's taping next weekend, and I'll fill you in when it's all done. :)
ReplyDeleteThis comment has been removed by the author.
ReplyDeleteYay Green Wave Gal! I feel like you're my kindred spirit ... except I only have a bachelor's degree. Everyone always asked me, "Linguistics? What are you gonna do with that?" My response should've been, "Tell you to fuck off in 17 different languages." Instead it was the more honest answer, "I don't know. I'll figure it out." I just don't know when I'm gonna figure it out.
ReplyDeleteGlad you're happy with your decision. Did you feel like your majors ever limited you from pursuing a master's? I don't like teaching, though, so I definitely shouldn't go your route :)
This comment has been removed by the author.
ReplyDeleteWell, first I wanted to be a GO-G0 dancer (it was the boots), then a dancer, then a forest ranger, then a secretary.
ReplyDeleteAnd during all of those, I figured after I became *whatever*, and got married, and my husband died, then I would become a nun. Because, after all, after age 40, surely I'd be too old to be interested in boys anymore....
And, I became none of those....
2:27 PM
Oh, and selenakyle, I got a kick out of you wanting to be a bus driver. If you were to ask my sister and I the top five jobs we NEVER want to do, bus driving would be on that list. Both my parents were bus drivers. I occasionally joke with my mom, "don't you want to go back?" and she gives me the look of death, lol. It's just not worth dealing with the kids these days, especially when they've gotten in trouble for something, go home and lie, and then you have to deal with their mama standing at the bus stop the next morning ready to curse you out.
ReplyDeleteI always got the feeling bus drivers don't get as much respect as they deserve, as they have to take on as much of a disciplinarian role as a teacher does - with their backs to the kids - and most people think it's just their job to drive. Also, if something happens, like a fight, the bus driver has to pull over, call the school to send out the principal or ass't. principal, and then wait there with all the kids on the bus, while a teacher can send the kids to the office immediately. So if it's just the idea of driving a big ol' machine that excites you go for the truck driving!
(The bus switchboard is a very cool thing though, I must say. The switch that lets out the stop sign was my favorite.)
I always, always wanted to be an air stewardess. Cheesy i know, but that's all i ever wanted to be. It was never going to happen unfortunately what with being blind in my left eye and all... but i actually contacted airlines just to make totally aure that they couldn't use me, even if it was just for the safety procedure routine... sigh...
ReplyDelete@ Karmen: Many of my college friends were engineers or pre-med. One other girl and I were in the humanities. So when they joked that we were "Arts & Crafts", I could always say that at least I studied a language that is still spoken. My friend was a Classics major! :P I like your fuck off response though!
ReplyDeleteOne of my favorite stories is about my mom: She grew up in New York City and when she was little my grandpa worked in a big building in Manhattan. So when she was a kid, she wanted to be an elevator operator so she could just sit and talk to people all day! :)
Maybe I'm one of the lucky ones, but my parents have always been very supportive. They just want me to be happy.
Life is too short to be unhappy. I was burnt out at my job at 25 and my dad became ill. So I said screw it I'm going back to school full-time to pursue what I really want. You never know what life has in store. I knew that if I stayed in that job, I'd be miserable and then it would be my fault for not leaving. I took out loans and worked really hard to get my PhD.
I'm sure when I was a kid I had lots of different ideas as I did later in life... one in particular I remember from when I was being an airline stewardess
ReplyDeleteNow at 27, I've no clue
I decided in my early 20's that I wanted to be a writer. I told a friend of mine who responded by asking me what in the world I could possibly have to say that anyone would be interested in reading. I wrote nothing again until my late 40's and gee, someone was interested. I don't know who I hated more. My friend for saying what he did, or myself for waiting so long to do what I really loved.
ReplyDeleteScrew stupid people, and it's never too late to do what you love.
Marine biologist. Then an archeologist. Nope, became neither one.
ReplyDelete@Babs,
ReplyDelete"....when I was 7 or 8 I desperately wanted to be a nun...
Unfortunately, there are no Protestant nuns."
They are few in number(well so are RC nuns these days) but there are Church of England and Episcopalian nuns. Or, should I say communities of religous women?
@babs-
ReplyDeletethat's funny. It wasn't a movie for me, my aunt is a nun, and she was so nice, and it just looked like fun. The outfits were cool too, though.
Also, I have to say that a lot of the insight is great here, about parents putting their insecurities onto their kids.
I have never agreed with people that say "do what you love, not what will make money" though. I say, dream big, dream what you love, but in the way that will also make you a lot of money (i.e. if you love animals, don't dream to shovel shit (nothing wrong with that) dream to own a place where people shovel shit for you. You get the premise. Not that money is everything, but after growing up really really poor, I would say that it is nice to not have to worry about how to pay the bills. Then when the bills are paid, you can always do what you REALLY love as a hobby. Anyway, wealth is all relative, so I am not saying do it only for the money, but do something that lets you have a comfortable amount.
I remember being about 4 years old and wanting to be a truck driver. I just thought how cool it would be to be free and drive and travel all over the states. And bonus with the CB radio lingo. Plus I was never the girlie girl and I envisioned myself as a badass woman truck driver breaking all the rules! Now that I'm older, wiser, I know better, there is nothing glamorous about truckin. LOL!!
ReplyDeleteI wanted to be a rainbow, unicorn or a little lamb.
ReplyDeleteNow I am just a first-class w*tch.
Blessed Be.
when I was a kid I saw something on the news about a man who reconstructed what a person looked like from just the skull. This was in the eighties, and forensic pathology wasn't as known about as it is today, so I told my parents I wanted to be a doctor since I didn't know what else it was called. By the time I got to college I couldn't figure out what to major in, so I didn't take school seriously. I knew I didn't have the discipline for med school even though I was a good student in high school. I eventually did a brief stint in the Navy. Years later I am working in a meaningless retail job while trying to finish school and find a career in healthcare management.
ReplyDeleteI wanted to be an international spy -- enough to apply at the CIA after college. Interviewed with them for almost 6 months and finally came to my senses and dropped out of the process. It's a very strange worldview. I have some great dinner party stories -- and that's just about the interview process!
ReplyDeleteThat is hilarious about the amusement park enty! I worked at Cedar Point one summer, an amusement park in Sandusky, OH. I wanted to be a writer when I was little and I am a writer/editor now, so I guess it worked out.
ReplyDeleteGrowing up, all I ever wanted to be were:
ReplyDeleteA postman just like Pat > not fulfilled;
A hotel receptionist > not fulfilled;
A Medical Examiner like Quincy > I gave up this idea when I learned you still had to start out as a doctor - I thought it easier since the people you work with are already dead;
A member of the armed forces > I was rejected for being too short.
Nancy Drew. Now, I'm an attorney--prosecution.
ReplyDeleteFirst a Vet .. but then I realized I would need to also put pets to sleep. So, that went out the door. Second, an astronomer .. but you need to be good at Math and I suck at Math. So, that went out the door as well. Third, Lawyer .. don't ask. Fourth, a writer .. and I am still trying to make that work out.
ReplyDelete1. Vampire - That one didn't work out so well. By the time goth was all the rage, I was over it
ReplyDelete2. Chinese Acrobat - I'm not Chinese, so that hope was dashed in a hurry.
3. Miss Manners - The position was taken, but in my own special way I dole out lessons to rude people as needed, XD
Count one more in for the archeology bus detouring to office management. I always wanted to discover ancient mosaics and now when a new discovery is shown on the news, I can't help but think, I could've been there. I'm leaning towards going to university in 2 to 3 years to get a degree in something.
ReplyDeleteI'm really shocked and have the sads at the lack of support from some of your parents. :-(
Bravo to those of you who gave a big F.U. to them and did what you wanted anyway!
at various times I wanted to be an actress, an English professor and professional rodeo rider. But through it all, ever since fifth grade, I wanted to be a writer.
ReplyDeleteMy first book was published last month. Now, of course, I kick myself for waiting until I was 44 to start writing seriously, AND just as the economy imploded. But better late than never and all that.
Congrats to those following their dreams! Not many people do.
ReplyDeleteWhen I was young, I was going to be an Author. Not a novelist. An Author. Never happened. Sad to say I didn't really keep up with my writing skills.
I also thought that I was meant for greater things. Thought for sure I was going to be famous (in a good way) someday. I did get to act (in theatre arts in high school and a play in university - got good reviews), but that was it.
Wanted to graduate university in French translation, but I quite part way through 2nd year. My biggest regret in life, but I understand my reasons at the time.
I understand what Gayla means about parents fucking us over. I grew up in Ontario when there was a Grade 13 (for university stream). My mother wanted me to end with Grade 12 (for community college stream and those who would work right away), and work in a bank because I was terrible at math and she thought this would help me. My friend had to convince her otherwise.
Found out in my 30s that my Dad (who worked for the CBC) tried to get my brother a job as a cameraman, but he didn't want to do it. I freaked a little and asked "what about me?" His response was the usual, "but you're a girl, I didn't think you'd be interested."
I've had good jobs (graphic design), I've had bad jobs (office secretary, anyone?), but whatever I have going on right now, I'm glad I have the husband that I do, and the son that I do. They make the bad days at the job bearable.
@ Shakey: I grew up in Ontario during the archaic "Grade 13" thing too. Waste of a year. Like chaining a child that's ready to walk to a couch. Glad they are done with it.
ReplyDeleteI will never forgive my mother for not allowing me to fulfill an award to go to Italy as an art exchange student for the entire grade 12 year. I was picked out of all the kids in Ontario that year, and my art teacher secretly submitted my name & work. I didn't even know about it. I realized later that my mom was simply jealous.
I coulda bin a contenda!
OMG Caroline - I worked at Cedar Point one summer too! I was a "Spiralette" - a ride hostess on the Space Spiral in the summer of 1978! It was one of the best summer jobs I have EVER had, and I made some wonderful, lifelong friends! When did you work there, and what did you do?
ReplyDeleteI wanted to be a historian, but my social worker told me not to aim too high, she wanted me to enroll in hair dressing school. I became pregnant at 16 and shattered her dreams of my attending hairdressing school. The social worker strongly recommended I place the baby for adoption. Instead I became a young, single parent. A few years later I went to university and became a journalist, when I was hired by a national radio network, I called her and she said she knew that I would be somebody one day. My daughter graduated from university, married a wonderful man and has given me two beautiful granddaughters. My eldest granddaughter wants to be a singer, I am paying for singing lessons. Last year she wanted to be an actress, I paid for acting classes. As long as she dreams, her grandmother will be there cheering her along..
ReplyDeleteAt some point, I wanted to own my own cafe. I had fun coming up with menus and imagining the decor, but that was about it.
ReplyDeleteThe longest phase I went through was wanting to be a fiction writer. When I was pretty young, I'd write terrible short stories. In high school, I'd try to write poems and teen novels. I took creative writing courses in high school and college. I pounded out a few decent short stories in college. But I had to be honest with myself: I wasn't a great writer, and I didn't feel like I really had a good novel-type story to tell.
My life in journalism started on my high school paper and continued through college, despite me thinking that journalism really wasn't for me. At that point, I was planning to be an English teacher. But the education program sucked, and I seemed to be good at publication work.
It wasn't the plan, but it was the most natural fit -- it just comes naturally. So I work for a magazine now. One bonus of my job: I get to do fun little interviews with nice celebrities every now and then. :)
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ReplyDeleteWas convinced, as a child, I was going to be a doctor.
ReplyDeleteEnded up being a personal assistant for someone in the biz.
Love my job, but not sure how I digressed along that path. Maybe it was the whole "I hate math" thing... 360, much? Wow.
My current ambition is to win the lotto, hence the nic.
ReplyDeleteAs a child I wanted to be a writer. When I was 11, I wanted to be a missionary. When I was 12, I wanted to be a rock star. At 13, I wanted to be an architect. Following some series of testing, a high school counselor informed me I could never be an engineer or architect; he also told me I had no manual dexterity and could never be an artist or musician.
In the last decade or so, I've wanted to be an archeologist, or a CSI - but only if they do the cool stuff they do on tv. Sciences weren't my strong suit in school, but I think things change as we get older.
I guess now I want to win the lotto so as to have enough money to spend the rest of my life as a full-time student.
This is an awesome post. I love to see no matter how different we all are, for the most part we've all shared the same hopes, dreams, and disappointments.
ReplyDeleteEspecially loved redronnie's post, and gayla's.
I came from an era where my parents never encouraged/planned/saved for me to go to college. It just wasn't a priority. They'd married young, and never had higher expectations. Back then (I was a child in the 60's) I dreamed about becoming a *stewardess* (flight attendant for you youngsters!)
Then, as a kid in high school I found my niche in art. I exhibited and won awards for my paintings, and was well on my way to "something. But my parents would stress "You'll never get anywhere being an artist, it won't pay the bills. Find a job, and do it for a hobby." It never occurred to me that I could be an art teacher, or graphic artist, or even move to Yosemite or Carmel and JUST PAINT for a living!
So, I was encouraged/directed by my parents to take typing classes. Typing would be my Savior. My parents felt typing would be my ticket to financial freedom. So typing it was, throughout high school, and then they made me go to summer school and type. I rue the day ... It was expected that I would get a nice little office job, and then meet a man, who would take care of me *smirk*
After a series of very, very uninspiring typing jobs, I went back to school as an adult, and achieved a dream that a few of you have posted on here ... I earned my degree in Winemaking (enology).
I've been a winemaker, and a sommelier for the past several years. Sadly, this industry is an incredibly tough, unforgiving business run by huge egos - not unlike the entertainment industry in that aspect - and one must possess copious amounts of testosterone to remain relevant and competitive. Believe me, it is not the idyllic lifestyle one sees romanced on television and in movies. And this comes from one who has lived in a cottage on a vineyard in Sonoma, to sitting with industry movers and shakers while judging wine internationally, to traveling the wineries and vineyards of Europe on behalf of the noble grape. Two years ago, I lost my most recent job, and decided that enough was enough.
So here I sit, falling back on good ol' typing, because it's the only thing I know. I'm a medical transcriptionist by night. And everything tells me that I need to be so grateful to have this job in this economy. And I am grateful ... with so many out of work and losing everything, I make very, very good money.
Yet still, I sit here consumed with such anger, because I hate this job with every fiber of my being. It is a mind blowingly boring job that sucks the life out of me on a daily basis. Oh, and that man who was going to "take care" of me? He comes from the same Old School that my parents went to, the one that says a wife at a nice little desk job is a very wonderful thing.
And the saddest thing of all is that I no longer have a dream. I wouldn't even know where to begin with a dream. I have no idea what to do with my life at 48 years of age. Alas, I am rudderless; with direction and no dream. But probably a serious need for some Paxil! LoL
Thanks for this mind tickler, Enty ... Excellent post, everyone!
Whinemaker....you are def in my head.
ReplyDeleteow!
@mygeorgie - hard to believe a parent would do something like that. What an opportunity!
ReplyDelete@Whinemaker - I hear you about the mindblowingly boring job, especially at this age (I'm 46). Recently, I've been in charge of updating schedules and doing formatting, but now I'm starting to train as a data coordinator - have to read protocols and figure out which data is needed. I don't know what I'm going to do because even though I'm good at format, I still managed to fall asleep at my desk sitting upright (and we don't have cubicle walls). Not sure how I'm going to handle this data thing, but I don't have a choice. So, I focus on the paycheque (such as it is) and get through the day so I can get home. My husband doesn't care what I do, as long as I stay employed. He's had problems finding the right place for him since his long-time employer shut down. I don't get on his case because I want him to be happy and find something he enjoys.
Funny how back then the big thing for girls was to find a man to take care of them, eh? So much for feminism in the 70s.
When I was little I wanted to be a forensic pathologist, but realised, in h.s, that I don't have the math skills that are required for such a job. Now I am considering law school, but I don't know about that either.
ReplyDeleteon a side note: I am really glad I was born when I was and didn't have to go through what many have you did; the false feminism of the 70's. My mom told me I could be whatever I wanted to be and I should never rely on a man for anything. Thanks ma.
ReplyDeleteI wanted to be a journalist. I'm an entrepreneur. Not even close to my dream, but I love every minute of it :)
ReplyDeleteI wanted to be a journalist. I'm an entrepreneur. Not even close to my dream, but I love every minute of it :)
ReplyDeleteI wanted to be a nurse, but my Dad said the only degree women should get from college was an MRS. I got married to a law student, changed my major to technical theater, and started having babies. Because you see, a lawyer's wife was never going to have to work. Imagine my surprise when the abusive alien left me for a much younger woman. I guess the sports car and the sail boat weren't enough to assuage the midlife crisis thing. So, even though I was 45, had never really worked in my life, and couldn't type, I had to support myself and my kids. I went to work in customer service for a hardware company after lying about knowing UNIX. Later I switched to software because I thought they must be similar. They decided to make me the trade show guru. My tech theater skills really came in handy - at last! I loved all the travel. Software crashed and I am lucky to have a crummy job. Still wish I was a nurse.
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ReplyDeleteI was born in Texas in 1974, so I and almost every other little girl during that era wanted to be a Dallas Cowboys Cheerleader. Or Pamela Barnes Ewing. But not that mess Sue Ellen!
ReplyDeleteCenterfielder for the Boston Red Sox.
ReplyDeleteAstronaut in the off-season. Or a secret agent.
While I could crush a fastball, curves and sliders made me weak in the knees. And my physics grades convinced me that NASA wasn't in my future.
Ended up in law school. Ran campaigns (presidential). A state-level cabinet post. Assistant attorney general. Yada, yada yada.
Still wish I could hit a curve.
@whinemaker - you should definitely be doing art, anything with art. Take an art class, paint on the side, as a hobby. START now - it's not to late and I'm not trying to be cliche. My best friends mother was a teacher and after a major family tragedy decided to take up painting - and after she retired from teaching, her painting started getting noticed locally. Now she sells them and has her artwork in local, state galleries. Don't give up the art - some artists really hit their stride later in life when their art work blossoms from life's experiences. Even if it doesn't leave your home, it will make you happier to be doing something you love. good luck!
ReplyDeleteGrowing up all I knew what what I did NOT want to do/become.. I found out recently (have I grown up finally??) that I am on a new career path, and I can't wait til I'm finished with training... YAY ME!!!
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