Hello everyone! I've been reading "To Own a Dragon
" by Donald Miller. It is all about growing up when you are in your late twenties.
I have been giving so much thought to adolescence lately. A former roommate shared the causes of prolonged adolescence with me. I work at a charter school where I baby sit teenage boys for $120/day. I have many friends who are all over the map in age and maturity. It has been something on my mind for quite some time.
I thought it would be nice to talk about if responsibility and making decisions because Donald Miller's advice keeps people out of prison. The hard part is identifying whether or not you are one of those 20 something guys and are irresponsible. I've decided, after some reflection, to put together a simple list. After this, I'll provide a list of signs that tell if you should go to college or to work.
If you were a kid at Bethel's youth ministry while I was there, this list is for you!
- Are you irresponsible? Check these signs!
- Your diet consists of fast food, microwave burritos, and pepsi.
- You won't take a commission only job, because you don't wanna work that hard.
- You live in the basement of a more successful relative.
- You missed a job interview because of the the last World of Warcraft expansion.
- Somehow, you managed to fail PE class at a Junior College
- It has never occurred to you that now might be a good time to kick that Marijuana habit.
- You dream about being a rock star, professional skateboarder/surfer, comic book artist, or video game competitor while you are unable to wake up on time for anything.
- You still don't understand why your friend got so mad when you hit on his sister.
- If you don't open bills, they don't apply to you.
- You've ever been really concerned about the legal definitions of statutory rape and workman's comp fraud.
- You live off the trust fund your rich grandfather/uncle/parent set up for you.
- You maxed-out your credit card on electronics or car parts.
- You deserve more than $7.75/hour just because!
- You describe MAXIM and FH magazines as "Life coaching publications."
- Even though your rent is over $400/month, you still manage to buy junk at Spencer's.
- You don't like doing dishes, so you buy disposable paper plates.
- …and you don't like taking out the trash, so they still pile up.
- You have one or more restraining orders from ex girlfriends.
- Your life was the inspiration for the Chez Geek games.
- Your idea of saving money is buying your soda and beer by the case, not the six pack.
- It's not your fault anyway. It is all because of your estranged parent(s), the government, your boss, the mean kids in high school… blah blah ad nausem.
Now, I don't want to leave everyone hanging. There are ways that older boys in their twenties can become responsible. One common proposition, usually from the mind of their girlfriends, is "get Married." If the above list applies to you, I'd like you to read the next sentence out loud. Getting married in order to become responsible is a very bad idea. People wonder why the divorce rate is so high. I think this proposition is a cause thereof. Most guys have no problem not listening to their girlfriends on this one. Still, if this ever comes up, ye have been warned.
I propose two ways in which might help a person be responsible. I say might because there must be some degree of responsibility before you can do either of these. The prescription is one of these: go to college, or get a grown-up job.
You should go to College if…
- You did well in high school, but never applied to Colleges because you partied to hard during senior year.
- You read on a regular basis.
- You've ever sat around work and been annoyed with the stupid banter from your co-workers.
- You became the token introvert in high school because people got offended when you said things like, "No. World War I ended in 1918. You're thinking of the Civil War."
- You won't go to college because your afraid to lose contact with all your friends who are still playing HALO, doing crank, and getting their girlfriends pregnant.
- You ask, "if I to College, how will I have time to become a professional skateboarder, video-game competitor, or rock star?"
You should get a Grown-up Job if…
- You hear a statistic like, "The average American watches over 1140 hours of TV a year" and it sounds low to you.
- You want to move up in supermarket businesses.
- You're annoyed with that Mr-smarty-pants co-worker you keeps correcting you about history 'n shit.
- You are willing to work for commission and you look good in a suit.
- You became an extrovert in high school when you started selling the smart-kid's answers to the tests.
- You are delighted by the saying "PhD's work for the C students."
Well there it is!
In all seriousness, you might want to check out that book by Donald Miller because it is a very emotional and inspiring book.
