What I want to be when I grow up...#3

Today we'll continue to investigate some of my career options (well, I'm not sure any of these things are options right now) and figure out what I really want to do with my life.

When I grow up, I want to be a teacher. I sort of thought about teaching when I was in high school but never thought about it again until I was confined to a cubicle everyday this summer. I'd love to have a summer vacation and to help young people. I think I would like to teach high school English and maybe help with the theater department (secret confession: I am a theater kid deep down inside. I think about performing more than normal people, yet I never tried out for anything in college because I was BLOWN AWAY by the talented kids I saw. I am sure now I should have maybe atleast auditioned for something since I did act in high school). I feel like high school is a pretty amazing time for kids (I always told my sister that it was only the beginning and that she would have amazing opportunities, post high school) and they really have the chance to set themselves up for something really great.

I've looked at programs here in VA, but it would probably mean going back to school for atleast a year. And there's alot of extra work you put into teaching like lesson planning, workdays, and not to mention the added parent/teacher stress. And would I even be good at teaching?

Pretty good hours, interaction with people and not the internet all day, summer vacay, and SCHOOL LUNCH? I might need to do more research....

What I want to be when I grow up...

Last night, as I talked to my mom, I realized that I want to be alot of things when I grow up. You might say "You are already grown up, Allison. You are married. You have a job. And insurance. And a car payment. And financial responsibilities. And heck, you have a dog and that's pretty much the closest thing to having a kid, without having one, so you are an adult and a grown up. So shut up, press on, and be happy." (And if you said all those things, I would think you were full of moxie and like you since I've been thinking those things for weeks- no, months- no, the last year, and needed someone to say it again.)

But I don't really know what I would do if I had the choice. Over the next few weeks, we'll explore my career options (or simply things that pop into my mind that I think "YES! I could do that" and then swiftly convince myself I cannot do). Maybe at the end of this exploration, you (my faithful two readers- Hi Mom, Hi Beck!) can vote on what I should do. I realize that pretty much everything on "The List of Possible Careers" is something that would require further education (my undergraduate degree is in Sociology, the quintessential football player major, and my minor is in Nonprofit Studies. You will see from those two things, I am destined to be poor.) and I'm down with that.

So, firstly- When I grow up, I want to be a graphic designer. Why? Because I like art. I actually wrote a paper in 8th grade about how I wanted to be a graphic designer and I took portfolio art all through high school in hopes that maybe I'd go to art school. But, I decided to head to a liberal arts college as an English major and my art was something that I practiced through scrapbooking and acrylic on canvas. Graphic design is something that I just do for fun-like logos for my sister and her friends (see an example above and to the left)-but I think I would enjoy actually doing that for a living.

Do you think I have what it takes?