In reference to Basia's latest blog entry I was always a jack of all trades...but Basia forgot the last part of that phrase: "jack of all trades, master of none."
That typified me, really. But it was because I love to do so much stuff, I rarely focused on any one thing for a long, long time. About the only thing I've ever "mastered" in terms of career-wise, is copy editing. And even that now has deteriorated some b/c I'm at a weekly instead of a daily. There's a huge difference.
Growing up, I dabbled in a lot of creative-type stuff...model building, model railroading, drawing, playing with Legos, devising storylines for my Legos and Transformers and GI Joes and whatnot...and then playing them out. Usually it revolved around setting up my little Lego town and then pretending a natural disaster hit town. I was obsessed with natural disasters and weather phenomena growing up. I could have easily gone into meteorology or storm chasing, etc., etc. But I heard how tough meteorology was and chickened out.
Until high school, I had no idea what I REALLY wanted to do...then my mom mentioned I should join the school paper because I wrote well. That worked out pretty well, and here I am. But I never was a good reporter or anything like that...and don't think I ever will be, because that's not my personality.
I still desire to act and be in movies and things like that. I like the stage I think, or at least I'd like to check it out, though I pretend it's a big deal to get me up there. I enjoyed acting in that short one-act at CRC my senior year, and I always wished I would have PLAYED South Side Andy in my movie...not that Frank did a bad job, (he was perfect, really) but I would have had a ton of fun doing it. I'm a character, as many of you know, and I like to ham it up a lot of times.
Growing up, I always thought I'd be a truck driver and have my own trucking company: "Hanacek's Hauling." I even drew the trucks and the logo and crap. This was something I always thought would be cool, because I love traveling and thought that would be the ultimate way to see the country.
In high school, I aced my accounting class, and for a while I thought about doing that, because it was simple, brainless work to me almost...now, balancing my checkbook is ridiculously simple, and I wonder why I didn't do that? (I've never strayed more than $1, EVER.)
Of course, you all know that I've dabbled in the past couple years in building furniture and gardening/landscaping. Maybe if I'd taken more advantage of that while in Bolingbrook, I'd be better off for it. But in my new apt., obviously there is nowhere to build furniture. I'll have flowers on the deck come summertime, but no garden, that's for sure. Would I want to be a landscaper? Maybe. But to take a leap like that right now would be tough to do...I'd have to go back to school and then find my way into a job somewhere...I don't think that's a viable idea. If (God forbid) something happened and I were laid off or fired, then I'd consider it. But to leave journalism to enter landscaping would be tough to do on a "whim," if you will.
Are these DREAMS of mine? Not really...I guess my dream is to have a job I can live with that pays the bills and allows me to take care of myself (and my family, down the road) and be able to enjoy life (and, again, my family), because you know what? A job is still a job, and no matter how much you enjoy what you do, you'll always have some sort of complaint. At least I will...and you know that.
(I may edit this after lunch)
