I’ve been thinking about heroes lately, primarily in terms of role playing games. Most of the time they are publicized as getting the chance to save the princess, stop the Big Bad Evil, etc. Yet the reality is most of the games I’ve seen and been involved in have rarely dealt with heroes, and mostly had the players taking the role of mercenaries. Yes they do extraordinary things, but they do them for the tangible rewards: land, gold, magic items, etc.
So what is a hero? There are tons of definitions. Everything from the soldier in Iraq, to the fire-fighter, to the revolutionary, to the old lady who doesn’t give up her bus seat. But what about the single mother who works two jobs to provide for her kids, or the social worker who struggles to help those who can’t help themselves? What about the person who overcomes addiction or the teacher that motivated you when no one else could? Where is the line drawn between being a good or even extraordinary person, and being a hero?
I’ve begun putzing with a new small project. I was digging through my bits box the other day when I came upon the old Necron Lord miniature. This guy was just hanging out, and had been since… well since I got him in a boxed set way back around… 2002? It’s not a bad miniature, but with a little bit of work it could actually look kinda cool. So I pulled out my knife, file, and clippers and went to work. I have to repair a broken staff, and sculpt some stuff, and I’m adjusting both of it’s arms a bit. The one with the staff is being repositioned, and the other one is being swivelled. At this point I’m just about ready to break out the green stuff, and start gluing.
I just sent in my application to the accounting program at CCBC. Shockingly the application didn’t require an essay. I was actually a little bummed out about that, as I had started writing it in my head. So, I’m gonna write it now!
Why I want to go back to school
In 2003 I graduated from the University of Connecticut with my bachelors in arts with a history and political science double major. I knew I wanted to continue my education, but I also knew I couldn’t afford to do it right away. After 5 years of college, and 12 years of schooling before that I was quite ready to leave academia and see what “the real world” was like. It turns out that a bachelors degree isn’t particularly useful, and a liberal arts bachelors degree is even less useful. It turns out the real world is demanding, and furthering my education has become less something I want to do, and turned into something I need to do.
Thus I approached the dilemma of where to go and what to do. In the years between graduation and now I have not suddenly come into a small fortune which will allow me to pursue (directly) a higher level degree. A company that values the education of those in their employ has however employed me. As such I have access to a yearly fund which I can use to take classes. Still the question remains what to study? This is really an economic decision, as whatever I pick will greatly affect my personal economy. I need specific training that will give me a defined trade. I was originally thinking law when I got out of UConn, but the expense both in time and cash is just too great to afford. Business is a very vague idea, and too nebulous to provide me the trade I’m looking for. Seeing how this decision really is about money, and my natural aptitude with numbers, accounting really is an obvious choice, and had I been thinking ahead I’d have realized it when I went to get my BA.
CCBC’s accounting program has a lot going for it, from my perspective. Over the next year I can take enough classes to become an accountant, and a couple of years after that I’ll have completed the coursework to qualify for the CPA exam. One year’s worth of classes would increase my earning potential around 25%. The math is simple, and undeniable, I can’t afford not to go back to school, and put in the best effort I possibly can. This is especially true as it'll all be reimbursed up to $3,000 a year. That even includes books! So with my application submitted, my transcripts on the way, and the advice of my mother to study whatever I wanted as long as I had a trade to fall back on, I'm ready to go back to school.
Does taking the responsibility for making my life better make me a hero? I don't think so. Getting it done? Maybe. Either way, I do know that it's the right thing to do, at the right time, for all the right reasons, and knowing that is enough.
So what is a hero? There are tons of definitions. Everything from the soldier in Iraq, to the fire-fighter, to the revolutionary, to the old lady who doesn’t give up her bus seat. But what about the single mother who works two jobs to provide for her kids, or the social worker who struggles to help those who can’t help themselves? What about the person who overcomes addiction or the teacher that motivated you when no one else could? Where is the line drawn between being a good or even extraordinary person, and being a hero?
I’ve begun putzing with a new small project. I was digging through my bits box the other day when I came upon the old Necron Lord miniature. This guy was just hanging out, and had been since… well since I got him in a boxed set way back around… 2002? It’s not a bad miniature, but with a little bit of work it could actually look kinda cool. So I pulled out my knife, file, and clippers and went to work. I have to repair a broken staff, and sculpt some stuff, and I’m adjusting both of it’s arms a bit. The one with the staff is being repositioned, and the other one is being swivelled. At this point I’m just about ready to break out the green stuff, and start gluing.
I just sent in my application to the accounting program at CCBC. Shockingly the application didn’t require an essay. I was actually a little bummed out about that, as I had started writing it in my head. So, I’m gonna write it now!
Why I want to go back to school
In 2003 I graduated from the University of Connecticut with my bachelors in arts with a history and political science double major. I knew I wanted to continue my education, but I also knew I couldn’t afford to do it right away. After 5 years of college, and 12 years of schooling before that I was quite ready to leave academia and see what “the real world” was like. It turns out that a bachelors degree isn’t particularly useful, and a liberal arts bachelors degree is even less useful. It turns out the real world is demanding, and furthering my education has become less something I want to do, and turned into something I need to do.
Thus I approached the dilemma of where to go and what to do. In the years between graduation and now I have not suddenly come into a small fortune which will allow me to pursue (directly) a higher level degree. A company that values the education of those in their employ has however employed me. As such I have access to a yearly fund which I can use to take classes. Still the question remains what to study? This is really an economic decision, as whatever I pick will greatly affect my personal economy. I need specific training that will give me a defined trade. I was originally thinking law when I got out of UConn, but the expense both in time and cash is just too great to afford. Business is a very vague idea, and too nebulous to provide me the trade I’m looking for. Seeing how this decision really is about money, and my natural aptitude with numbers, accounting really is an obvious choice, and had I been thinking ahead I’d have realized it when I went to get my BA.
CCBC’s accounting program has a lot going for it, from my perspective. Over the next year I can take enough classes to become an accountant, and a couple of years after that I’ll have completed the coursework to qualify for the CPA exam. One year’s worth of classes would increase my earning potential around 25%. The math is simple, and undeniable, I can’t afford not to go back to school, and put in the best effort I possibly can. This is especially true as it'll all be reimbursed up to $3,000 a year. That even includes books! So with my application submitted, my transcripts on the way, and the advice of my mother to study whatever I wanted as long as I had a trade to fall back on, I'm ready to go back to school.
Does taking the responsibility for making my life better make me a hero? I don't think so. Getting it done? Maybe. Either way, I do know that it's the right thing to do, at the right time, for all the right reasons, and knowing that is enough.
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