ril's Diaryland Diary ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Nests With 3 Car Garages Nests With 3 Car Garages I found out yesterday that I have been accepted into a Master�s Degree program that is being sponsored by the Co. Now, I already have a BS, Nuclear Engineering and a JD� so I need a MS (in Electrical Engineering of all things) like I need a hole in my head� but it is an �accelerated� program (12-14 months), the courses are being held here at work, and (most importantly for purposes of this discussion), the Co is paying for the whole thing� so� as I understand it, all I have to do is show up (for 4-6 hrs a week -- after work) and not break anything or kill anyone and I�ll get my Master�s practically handed to me. Why on Earth would I want to do this? Well, the thing is, I don�t� But it�s just not the kind of shindig one turns down when one is �honored� by such an invitation� assuming you�re interested in your career� yeah, well �Bite Me!� Now, as you may have noticed, I�ve been doing an awful lot of thinking about the man-woman thing lately and what pisses me off the most about this �opportunity� is that it forces me to revisit some value-type questions that I thought I had put to rest a couple of years ago. Since I wasn�t born into wealth (which is a very kind understatement � my parents were the first generation born off the farms of East Texas in which the only thing that seemed to grow well were rocks)� and I don�t exactly look like, say Brad Pitt, Matt Damon, George Clooney, etc.. (I think you get the idea)� well hey, it just occurred to me that I haven�t described myself before� so here goes� imagine Fred Flintstone with a flat top hair cut� seriously, I�ve been told that I have a �football player�s build,� but I�m pretty sure that�s just polite for �you don�t have a neck, dude�). I�ve got a 22 1/2� neck and 57� shoulders� What can I say? I�m a big guy� it�s the kind of build that, if I were 6� 4� instead of 5� 10�, I�d be an offensive lineman... though I do have killer blue eyes� but I digress� the point is that � lacking in both family wealth and dashing good looks � I accept the fact that I have to work harder at being �attractive� to potential� potential what? let�s just say �life partners� and leave it at that� So, after working for 15 years to support the assorted (now ex) Ms. Me�s, I decided to go to law school, where I worked my butt off, got great grades and actually got my fingers around the brass ring (multiple job offers from �top� law firms). I picked one� showed up� and then spent 70-80 hours a week chained to the damned computer for the next couple of years� What I discovered was that I had worked very hard to be attractive to someone with whom I�d want to share a family only to have ALSO put myself in a position to never ever be able to see them� and� (and this is the part that pisses me off the most)� I was pretty much treated like a 200 pound wallet� before you roll your eyes at me (and tell me I deserved what I got), here�s what I�m trying to say� I don�t (so much) mind _being_ a wallet, but I sure as hell mind being _treated_ like one� so I said �fuck it� and went out found a job doing what I wanted to do� I didn�t lose any money in the short term. What I gave up was the potential for the �big� money in the long term� and I was okay with that� for awhile� now, I not only don�t have the mad cash, I _still_ don�t have the family� what a stupid thing to do� - 2001-12-19 ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- |
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