My nephew Luke (shown with his band director Mr. Lawrence) is graduating from high school in two weeks. This is giving me ALL kinds of feels.
I am super proud of him for all kinds of reasons. He is a good kid!
He is going to be going to technical college in the fall to study welding. At least one person has said to my sister that Luke is “too smart” to be going to technical college. Which is really stupid. Why would Luke want to go tens of thousands of dollars into debt for no reason whatsoever? He very well may be making more money than me in a couple years while actually making something tangible. And if he decides he wants more education down the road, he’ll have the money to do it! How awesome is that?
Mike Rowe (the Dirty Jobs guy) has been banging the gong for years about all of the blue collar jobs out there that make very good money without requiring 4 year degrees. Unfortunately, he was yelling into a void for quite a while. But I think finally the tide has turned a little bit.
We are finally starting to realize that we need electricians, plumbers, trash men, construction workers, and yes, welders. And I could not be more proud that my nephew is planning on joining their ranks.