escaping

One thing I've found kind of difficult about "escaping" is the lack of support from people on the outside.
I've spoken with EMT-Paramedics and nurses in regards to getting the education and switching over to that line of work.
Only thing I ever get out of them roughly translates to "you'll be trading one form of stress for another, I wish I could have your job."
All in all, truck driving, local or regional, still seems to be an alright job to me if one can get a job in their desired area and get some set days off in order to do some traveling that doesn't involve some trailer behind the vehicle.

That said, after doing daycabs for the past four years, there's no real way I'm ever going back to a sleeper.

 

Most people can't even read it through without going brain dead, much less sing it.

But I would LOVE to see a YouTube video of that!

Does YouTube even allow that long of a video?
It might take days.

 

When I hear the word "coding" I think of (the technical term) a software engineer or a "programmer". That's totally different than a medical coder / biller. Software engineers can and do make obscene amounts of money, north of $75k - $80k per year, but that type of position also usually requires a B.S. in Computer Science or several years experience.

I've been driving, mostly intrastate, for a little over 8 years and I've had my fill. I'm only 35, but I've already had back and shoulder injuries and developed arthritis in my left knee and right shoulder from the various positions I've held over the past 8ish years. I recently enrolled at UNM (University of New Mexico) in the Associate of Applied Science undergrad program for Information Technology. I did IT and held industry certifications prior to getting into trucking, but I never had a degree behind me. Back in June I was laid off from a position I was in for 4 years and that was the catalyst that made me decide to further my education.

I was able to pay for my tuition through a federal Pell grant that doesn't have to be paid back like a Stafford load (traditional student loan) and received a book scholarship through the school that covered 90% of the cost of my books and materials for the semester ($521 for textbooks). It is a 2-year degree, but I have already mapped out all the classes with my advisor that will transfer into the B.S. (4-year degree) programs so that if I decide to go into either Computer Science or Computer Engineering, I'll have the vast majority of the prerequisite courses already done and I can go straight into the courses required for the major. Eventually, I want to end up as a network / system admin or security consultant and as I get further down the line, I'll make that decision.

Point of that long story was to illustrate that there are people in the same position and to illustrate that it can be done with very little or no money out of pocket if you do it right.

 

I kind of crashed and burned when I attempted college courses in my late-teens/early twenties.
Taking courses that were too far beyond my ability, worrying over how long the pre-reqs might take me.
And now I look back in disappointment thinking that even if I did take the "slow ship" approach from the get-go, I still could've had some sort of degree by 27 or 28.
So while I intend to fully hold down these local/semi-local driving jobs for as long as I can, I'm just going to at least start plugging away general ed courses, 2-3 a semester wherever I could get them done.
Figure 15-16 units/year will still get you something worthy within eight years or so.

It's never too late to go back to school and one shouldn't be in so much of a rush about it at the same time either.

 

It seems to me that you are treating your daughter the same as your son is treating his friends.
Does it run in the family?

Don't get me wrong, I have the same issues.

I have a 19 year old daughter with a boyfriend that can't keep a job.
I have an ex-wife that lets them live with her, while both of them spend more money on weed than household expenses.
That ex also has a boyfriend that doesn't keep up on his end,
I am often called to contribute more than my child support obligation.

Oh, all the drama!
And we all have to decide the best course of action for our own issues.

I really can't simply cut them off. There are my two younger daughters that are still in school that I have to worry about. If I am to help them, I have to help the whole cluster.

In your case, however, it might be better to cut her off sooner rather than later.
It might be good for her to face the fact of life on the street.
I was about to do that when she moved back in with her mother.

She is (could be) SO much better than that.
She has so much potential.
And if she didn't have all the extra help, I think she would be fantastic.

 

Any job has more free time, so what is the problem?

Go to Walmart, IKEA, Wendy's...
BestBuy?

Really.

 

"Grass is always greener" syndrome.

Funny, I dropped out of college to work construction. Ok pay. Horrible co-workers. I was in dirt work and can run It all, blade, scrapers, loaders, dozers and hoes. Managed rock crushing operations. Made $22 an hour. Company truck and 90 hour weeks.

I hated it.

Trucking now. I make way more money and less hours, less stress and less dumb ### co-workers.

I make $1000-2000 a week as a company driver.

Keep your college.

I am done with "status-quo"

Stop caring what others think.

 

I recently stopped attending classes in Industrial Mechatronics, because I'm working third shift in a factory, and all my classes were in the middle of my sleep time. I did the math based on what maintenance personnel at my shop earn. I'd be constantly working weekends, odd shifts, and not much room for improvement. So, I'm going back to driving truck, where at least I'll have "some" time off, and still make more money.
Everyone's situation is different, tho. What's good for me won't always be good for you.

 

Right or wrong,.. we all have our crosses to bare.

I love my kids. I'm hoping/waiting for daughter and her boy friend to break up/separate. She has no where else to go. Hoping I can get her back into school to get a degree and get her back on a better path. She has too many irresponsible influences in her life atm,.. I'd rather portray myself as a roll model than an overlord for now. If I push her away now she will only harbor more resentment and make it that much more difficult to get her on a path where she can support herself. If she continues as she is on now,.. I wont have a choice but to cut her off and show her the cold hard reality that life is. Breaks my heart to think about it,.. but I dont know any other way. She is as hard headed as I am when it comes to life choices in general. "Dont touch the flame,.. it will burn you". Now I have to touch the flame to find out. Thats how I was as a kid.

My son is a grown man now. I may not agree with his choices in friends. They are not mine to make for him. Its his money,.. he can spend it any way he wants. All I can do is offer moral support and let him know I am here if he needs me. As long as he is happy,.. thats all I care about. The right girl will straighten him out and do my job for me. Thats what happened to me. Wont even realize its happening and then one day it all clicks.

Hurst