Success!(?)
Posted on April 29th, 2010
Filed under: General — Karl Olson @ 12:01 pm
So, I squeaked through my first quarter at SFU with good enough grades (Discrete Math, B-, Comp Sci C+, English B+, Philosophy A-) to continue on my degree track. I’ve moved into my own place in Burnaby off-campus. I am underway properly now as a student. The biggest debate for me should be whether I want to spend the 45-100 something bucks a month to have a parking pass, or whether I should lose a 20+ minutes a day to the bus.
Yet, meanwhile, I have friends without degrees working for Microsoft and Google. To be fair, they are contract or orange badge or some other code word for temporary and hourly, but they are working, now. Doing jobs I could also do, now. Putting the best companies in the world on their resumes now.
I hope the $60K+ of my parents dough I’m about to plow into getting a degree is the right long term play. I really, really do. I really hope it means a salary, a house and all that other American Dream stuff. The grass better end up greener on my side, otherwise why am I gardening, and stressing ’til my arteries are hardening?
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1. The bus can give you time to think to & from the Place of Education – don’t discount this. I’ve been rocking public transit in Chicago for 5 years and it kept me sane. Plus the extra cash monthly can buy food and/or beers and/or tix to see Front & others and keep your bad self rocking.
2. Yeah, look at the long term. You can be working now, but the degree will serve you better in the long view. True? Then keep on. Don’t stress, just immerse yourself in the learning and remember that the soft stuff like philosophy is just the price of admission so you can do the good stuff. And if you need more learning later, do it again, only let the people that are paying you the fat salary send you to school on their dime. They have lots of dimes – it’ll be up to you to figure out how to get the maximum benefit of their dimes for yourself. I don’t think the guys working contract will have the same opportunities.
3. The greener grass will be maintained with the green lawnmowing machine you can also acquire – or just hire a working-class service to maintain it for you.
Comment by JoeW — May 11, 2010 @ 6:55 pm
All valid points, and ultimately I’m back up here in Burnaby getting to burn up another quarter of school. I even brought a TV up with me (a long with other little housing essentials like a coffee grinder,) and I’m trying to work out the best way of getting a couch/loveseat to my place while only having a small sedan and an aversion to craig’s list.
Of course, I did go through a few experiences which I am under NDA that reaffirm that I’m doing it right, and the reaffirmation that the “money ain’t a thang” also soothes my nerves. Basically, I’m here for the duration.
Hopefully, the money the bus saves buys that couch.
Comment by Karl Olson — May 12, 2010 @ 12:07 am