What I want to be when I Grow Up
As a child I dreamt of being a ballerina when I grew up… later on I wanted to become a pediatrician. When it came time to go to college I studied German, with the intent on getting some sort of business degree… then I moved to Germany after my first semester.
While in Germany I went to school and got what the Germans call an Ausbildung… I became an Industriekauffrau (an industrial clerk)… had a desk job… it was okay, but it wasn’t great. I had to opportunity to manage my (then) boyfriend’s mother’s house wares boutique. That was fun and just when I thought I was starting to get somewhere and bring in more business, we broke up and I moved back to the states. I went to work at a retail store with the hope of working my way into management.
That never happened. We moved and I moved to another retail job… and then I took the job that brought me to tears on many days and nearly gave me an ulcer… I worked in a call center for a major credit card company (I’m sure most of you have one of their many, many cards in your wallet). I hated that job. HATED it… but it actually didn’t pay too bad, so I stuck with it longer than I thought I would.
When Noah was born though, I started my most demanding job yet… the job of being a mother… it doesn’t have a Monday through Friday work week and you’re on call 24 hours a day, 7 days a week, 365 days a year. The pay is crap and you don’t always get recognized for the work and effort you put into doing your job, but it’s the best job I’ve ever had.
I’m going back to school to finish my degree over here, since the schooling I got in Germany doesn’t amount to much over here. I still have to decide if I want to end up with an Early Childhood Education Teaching degree or a degree in Digital Media. There’s also a part of me that would like to start making soap and have that become my full time work from home job. *sigh*
I think it’s a little sad that I am 32 years old and still have no clue as to what I want my career to be when I “grow up”… I’m happy to say though that I’m already the one thing I have wanted to be more than anything else… I’m a mother and as far as I’m concerned that’s the best job I’ll ever have!
From today (8/10):
Things have changed even since I wrote this post two years ago. My last class was in the fall semester of 2010… things got complicated with the kids and class and and and… and so that idea was shelved. I did start up my own Etsy shop earlier this year though and am loving it so far! Right now I work on Noby Designs part time, but I still have the dream to turn my handmade biz into a full time job!!
What about you? Are you living your dream?