What a specimen of a 21 year vintage I am. :) tehe

What it means to be a man:

I think being a man means being honest in all you do, and always striving to be better. Being knowledgeable about the local and global affairs. Having an educated opinion, standing by it, and always being able to rethink it. About being passionate about life, your interests, your family and friends and your gal. Being a man means living life, laughing, and loving. These are The Things I see, live, do, think, read, watch, love, like, want and more.

Cheers, Jared

Wednesday, September 15, 2010

Selling Out.....Or?

College cost a lot, obviously.  Seriously though, it cost a lot.  I have loans upon loans.  I am in debt, and it will continue to grow as I stay in college.  My major is one which is fairly versatile, so long as I actually become fluent in Arabic and an expert on Middle Eastern culture.  Which, will require me to spend a lot of time over there (more money).  Then consider what my choice career(s) would be after I graduate: non-profit work in the Middle East, teaching English, travel writer/photographer, maybe even do the Peace Corps. if they extend their area to the Middle East (they were in Jordan) - essentially I want something that gives me a lot of freedom, the ability to travel and I don't really care if I make a ton of money or not.  I simply want to enough money to live a fairly nomadic life, a simple one with lots of traveling.



Let's go back to the part about college costing a lot.  Remember, it costs a lot.  With my choices stated above in mind, and the fact that I will be required to pay my student loans off, it seems unlikely I'll be able to deal with all of this.  Not to mention the fact that I am going to have to take out even more private loans to cover the cost of studying abroad now....  This all leads me to the question: What do I do after college?

Do I follow my dreams?  Do I sell out?

The easy (what I feel would be almost dirty) way would be for me to sell out.  Work for the government, a large corporation.  It makes me feel uneasy just thinking about that.  I could join the military after college.  That is something I always thought about doing before college.  It provides a steady income, free room and board, and I get to travel the world.  Now, though, after learning what I have learned....that too seems like something I would hate.  I know that I could excel in the military.  I do well in structured, organized settings.  Sure, everyone thinks I have a problem with authority or something like that, but I really don't.  I don't know how to explain it.  Sure, I tend not to listen to people, but I know limits, I know how far I can push them.  I don't know what I will do, I don't know what to do now.

Help?

5 comments:

  1. I think you need to do what you love and have always wanted to. Yes, money is an issue, but money does not buy happiness..you can make all the money in the world but if you're not doing what you love, you're not going to be happy. Maybe double major in something broad, such as business...travel for a few years and then later, maybe go into something else(government or nongovernmentally speaking) and business can include traveling too---it is such a diverse field.
    My dad always said if you do what you love and excel it, you will surely succeed..whatever yo choose, I know you'll be happy and you have so much going for you Jared:)

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  2. Your one and only brotherSeptember 17, 2010 at 11:34 AM

    two words for you brother: fuck money

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  3. Jared.
    All I can say is follow your heart. Money has never bought happiness and I doubt it ever will.

    Remember: "If you have to think about it, It's wrong."

    ♥ Josabet. xo.

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  4. Hi Jared. I stumbled upon your blog after seeing one of your comments on a Matador article....started reading a few of your blog posts and then realized you're from Iowa too (like me)!

    I speak multiple languages myself and only minimal Arabic (not enough to even carry on a conversation), so I wish you luck in your Arabic studies.

    Cheers,
    Meliha
    http://www.desiblonde.com

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  5. Thanks guys! I will think hard on this topic.

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