Party Vibe

there’s no reason to stay in a job that doesn’t fulfil you. i’ve just left a cushy job, thats well paid, with a certain large british telecoms company, and just started back at uni to train to be a nurse and specialise in mental health at the age of 29. seriously, we are the controllers of our own destinys and we all have the power to change something if we really want to. dont like ur job? quit moaning and do somthing about it. there’s loads of charities and non-profit orgs that would love some of your time and you might actually go home feeling good about the work u do. 🙂

funny cat – i think you have the right idea. it’s so easy to get stuck doing something you don’t enjoy when you have so many other pressures (like money, family, rent/mortgage etc). making huge changes isn’t easy – but starting a new course and introducing yourself to different ideas (and possibly different careers) is definately a step in the right direction. half the problem, i always felt, was never having the right advice or even knwoing what opportunities are out there. anyway, good luck with the course – i hope it works out for you 🙂

well, as i said, i’m doing my PhD which some may say is not a proper job, but i’m funded, and though the money is tight, its worth the sacrifice. I’m actually writing my PhD on globalisation and rave culture – something which many people I work with think is a bit mickey mouse. personally, seeing as you are stuck with your topic for at least three years and work on it every day I decided to chose something that meant something to me – and to a lot of other people (plus a lot of the academic stuff on rave culture largely misses the point i think). so many people end up writing their thesis on something that they don’t even care about – what’s the point??
anyway, the point is i never imagined that i could do somehting like this – i fully expected to be in a job that i would hate for the rest of my life, and who knows, that many still happen! but for now, it keeps me happy…

have you been on the course long? I have a freind who just got her final counselling qualification and has started work in a high security prison (left nameless!). its tough – mentally and physically, but she’s a strong person with a lot to give. counselling takes a certain kind of person – if you start with the right intentions (which i think you are – wanting to do somehting more positive) it can be a very rewarding career. just need to steel yourself against the bad days 🙂

i can totally relate to the not using your brain part! apart from the ethical concerns i had with the company i worked for, the thing that made me most depressed was not using my brain – i think that can affect you in strange ways!
i hope after finishing the phd (dependent upon me getting off my arse and actually doing some writing – that’s what i should be doing now!) i want desperately to teach. i could hopefully teach a class on subculture and subcultural theory – though the chances are few and far between! tbh, i’d take anything an english dept or cultural studies dept would have to offer.
i’ll let you know in a couple of years!!

and keep going with the evening classes – i have complete respect for anyone who motivates themselves to do something in their all too precious downtime. i started learning welsh a while back, but had problems motivating myself on cold, stormy nights – lame!