Spring Break
Column: Hard partying makes hard times
David Thill / Columnist
Issue date: 2/4/09 Section: Opinions
I walked out of the factory at 7 a.m. after a 12-hour shift and welcomed the freezing temperature outside as a needed relief from the 90-degree-plus temperature inside.
I walked with my fellow employees - like too many cattle, rank and file - through the turnstiles that allowed us access to the parking lot.
I looked down at myself, like every other day, and took in the sight. A disgusting mixture of motor oil, paper particle dust (it was a printing factory, after all), ink that painted my clothes and flesh like a dingy rainbow.
I breathed in the rancid stink of sweat, gasoline and regret and breathed out heavily, watching said breath turn to steam.
I sat in my car, waiting for it to warm up enough to make the 20-minute journey home to sleep and wake up just to do it all over again.
Many good people worked this job and provided a great life for their family. My own father did.
But it was not my dream. And it was not where I wanted to be.
Almost every day, for a year, as I drove home watching the sun peek over the horizon, I asked myself, "How the hell did I get here?"
Oh, that's right, I drank my way right out of college.
That was my story.
A young guy, within spitting distance of graduation, allowed personal problems to turn my better judgment against me and watch, as I gave less than a damn, and fail right out of college.
This is not to say the fault falls on anyone but me. This is to say, however, that all too many people can and do make the same mistake.
It is not my job to preach. I'll leave that to the preachers. It is not my job to teach. I'll leave that to the teachers. If I do have a job it is merely to warn.
College sucks. It takes time, commitment, hard work…horrible notions all, I know.
Why didn't "Animal House" or "Old School" ever tell me that college required more than an Olympic-strength liver?
I suppose it's because that distinction falls on you and I. As adults it's our job to realize what it takes to succeed in college and life.
Some learn this lesson on their own, some learn too late and some, not at all.
Studying for a test or actually working ahead on a project is boring.
Not fun in the least.
But it is necessary.
College can be fun and it is. But too much fun can lead to too much work. Not bad work, but perhaps work you don't want to do.
And as much as a hangover headache hurts, I can tell you that regret, shame and a frighteningly uncertain future hurt much, much more.
And no amount of Jerry's Pizza can fix that hurt.
David Thill is a senior journalism major. He can be reached at 581-7942 or at DENopinions@gmail.com.
I walked with my fellow employees - like too many cattle, rank and file - through the turnstiles that allowed us access to the parking lot.
I looked down at myself, like every other day, and took in the sight. A disgusting mixture of motor oil, paper particle dust (it was a printing factory, after all), ink that painted my clothes and flesh like a dingy rainbow.
I breathed in the rancid stink of sweat, gasoline and regret and breathed out heavily, watching said breath turn to steam.
I sat in my car, waiting for it to warm up enough to make the 20-minute journey home to sleep and wake up just to do it all over again.
Many good people worked this job and provided a great life for their family. My own father did.
But it was not my dream. And it was not where I wanted to be.
Almost every day, for a year, as I drove home watching the sun peek over the horizon, I asked myself, "How the hell did I get here?"
Oh, that's right, I drank my way right out of college.
That was my story.
A young guy, within spitting distance of graduation, allowed personal problems to turn my better judgment against me and watch, as I gave less than a damn, and fail right out of college.
This is not to say the fault falls on anyone but me. This is to say, however, that all too many people can and do make the same mistake.
It is not my job to preach. I'll leave that to the preachers. It is not my job to teach. I'll leave that to the teachers. If I do have a job it is merely to warn.
College sucks. It takes time, commitment, hard work…horrible notions all, I know.
Why didn't "Animal House" or "Old School" ever tell me that college required more than an Olympic-strength liver?
I suppose it's because that distinction falls on you and I. As adults it's our job to realize what it takes to succeed in college and life.
Some learn this lesson on their own, some learn too late and some, not at all.
Studying for a test or actually working ahead on a project is boring.
Not fun in the least.
But it is necessary.
College can be fun and it is. But too much fun can lead to too much work. Not bad work, but perhaps work you don't want to do.
And as much as a hangover headache hurts, I can tell you that regret, shame and a frighteningly uncertain future hurt much, much more.
And no amount of Jerry's Pizza can fix that hurt.
David Thill is a senior journalism major. He can be reached at 581-7942 or at DENopinions@gmail.com.
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Viewing Comments 1 - 2 of 2
Learning
posted 2/04/09 @ 4:34 PM CST
"Studying for a test or actually working ahead on a project is boring."
Real learning is not boring -- it's one of the most exciting things one can do. (Continued…)
Laura
posted 2/08/09 @ 6:27 PM CST
Learning isn't "boring" per say, but I would agree that partying and having fun with friends makes it look boring much of the time, comparatively - especially to a younger person who hasn't learned otherwise. (Continued…)
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