I'm just in such a mood. At work, I've gone from super busy to hanging around. Another avalanche of work is ready to crush me, but I don't have the files yet. Spinning in my head are all the things I want to do this weekend. I'd love to just go home and start now.
I recently had yet another discussion with my boss about going back to school. This guy has only been my boss about a year. I like him a lot. When I call out something as bullshit in our corporate world, he doesn't try to spin it around and pretend it isn't. He more or less says, "Yes, it's bullshit, how can we work with this?" It gives one the feeling that he is working with you, respects where you are at.
Old boss is a nice enough guy, but he is kind of brain-washed. He was the one who was urging me to take Corporate Communication as my major. New boss showed me a situation my company set up in cooperation with Drexel University. It is completely on-line and NOT a diploma mill. One of the programs offered is Communication. Although corporate communication is part of all that, it isn't all about that. I looked at the course list and it seems interesting., Ethics of communication, ethics of research, journalism, web communication, speaking, public relations, etc. I have to see what of my existing credits they will take and what I can test out of.
My long-suffering husband listened to me go on about this yet again that night. I have been round and round so many times, that I really didn't know what to think, and I needed some guidence. He said that he didn't think it was going to get any better than this and I should go for it. He would fully support me. That really helped me make a decision.
The deal is, I know I have to work another 20 years. I don't want to mount posters my whole life, and I think this job might be changing soon anyway. (Things have been changing for years. I used to head a staff of 6 people, I am down to one. I think someone is moving my cheese.) I can't make enough money as an artist. I can't just squeek by, I need to make a good living. I need to leave something for Kate. Her father is such a loser, we expect him to be homeless soon, so he can't help with her. I ought to post about him sometime, you would just die.
So there it is. I have decided to go ahead and begin this degree program. Will it help? Will I end up with a satisfying job? No way to know, I just have to have faith.
My mother has weighed in on the subject, who has discouraged me from doing anything meaningful my entire life. When still in high school, she discouraged me from going to college, asking, why could I not just be a secretary? I went to college briefly for some crap I didn't want to do and dropped out. I returned to college as an adult. I remember complaining to my dad about some difficulty I was having and she said, "See? That's what you get!" Dad said, "Don't worry, you will be fine." When I decided to buy a house, she said, "Christine, you are crazy. You won't be able to do this." My dad said it would be the smartest thing I ever did. Now that I am going back to school again, she says, "How are you going to do all this? How are you going to clean your house?"
That's funny, as if, up until now I had been cleaning it! Well, if you can't clean your house you may as well forget it. My mom is not terribly sophisticated, and I think she runs mainly on fear. When I drove by myself to see a friend in Boston, she said I was crazy to drive that far alone. This was only a few years ago. She doesn't drive, so, in her mind, that must be terrifying. My dad takes care of everything, what does she know?
Of course the woman does have a point. How am I going to do all this? Well, Kate may find herself involved in fewer activities. My garden already took a little bit of a dive this year. I will be simplifying all that more next year as well.
Meanwhile, all the big shots in my department are over-joyed that I have decided to go back to school. Obviously I have some value to them. Now I just need to go through all the steps to get this approved, THEN apply to college! I suggested that I could possibly educate myself right out of the department, but they say, so be it.
This weekend I have a lot of art ideas to explore. I'll tell you all about it.
Chris Mundy and Kate House try to make art while navigating the crap life throws at them.
5 comments:
in hindsight i guess its good when we get those messages from our parents or anyone for that matter...because it pisses us off enough to go for it and show them, if not ourselves that ultimately we are the one's who have to live with our choices! so all we can do is try to abide by our guts and hearts.
Well, i think you need to stop listening to everyone else and follow your heart. Because who knows best, but YOU. I think your right on. Also, your depression quilt is very cool. I checked out your etsy shop and was very impressed.
Do the diploma thing. If you do it, and you like it & it helps you advance in your career or make more $$ or make YOU happy - then you will have acomplished your goal. However - If you don't do it, you MIGHT spend the rest of your life regretting it. And if it doesn't accomplish what you want it oo? Well - you'll still be one diploma ahead of where you were BEFORE you had it.
Sam in Middle TN
Hi Chris, I am very happy you made the decision to get back in school. We some how find the time when it's important to us. And, I'm thinking that this is becoming very important to you.
Thanks, everyone. At least now I can stop whining about whether I should go or not. I think it will be OK.
And, yes, time is passing just the same. I spoke with a career counselor last year and she said, in some fields, it doesn't matter what your degree is in, it is just important that you have one. We'll see how it goes.
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