I love my daughter. She is smart, hardworking, and never gives up. That being said, I worry she doesn’t have enough fun.
She is a Chemical Engineering major. I can’t even fathom this. The workload she carries is nothing short of astounding. I was a Communications major. I did not stress a great deal. Last time I called my daughter during finals week, she informed me she had lost her will to live. I never experienced this. It broke my heart, but I was also exceedingly proud. My daughter is a rock star and the hardest worker.
I was not wild in college, but I partied. I never turned down fun to study. That was crazy talk. Yet, my daughter and her friends are so dialed in. The fun totally comes second.
Don’t get me wrong. She has fun, but never at the expense of a good grade or homework. When most parents are telling their kids to study and such, my husband and I are asking our daughter if she has had any fun lately. It’s all about the balance. Balance is tough. I think Josie does a pretty good job, but she is still very serious.
Josie will study for an eight-hour stretch. What the fuck? I don’t know that I ever studied for more than two hours at a time. That is probably being generous. I don’t think I studied eight hours in an entire week! I had News Writing. Josie has Organic Chemistry. That is a vast difference in difficulty and effort. Not that writing isn’t effort, it’s just different. REALLY different.
Here’s the rub: I want her college years to be epic and some of her best memories. Mine are. I would not trade my college years for anything. They were the best.
I keep telling her to make time for fun and friends, but these engineering kids are so fucking driven. It is a foreign world. A world I have trouble even imagining.
This semester, she is doing a co-op at Toyota. What!? This is beyond impressive. I think she will be amazing, but I also know it is a lot of stress and pressure. She is only 20. I want her to enjoy being 20.
Her biggest fear is having time for friends. I love her drive at her age. I just hope she finds the balance. I know that it is so important.
I want the best for my daughter. That means a good work-life balance. I was terrible at that for many years. I don’t want her to fall into that trap. I want her to have the balance. God! Balance is key.
I also want her to party her ass off a little in college. I know engineering partying looks different than communications partying. I still want her to have fun. I also want her to have a portfolio of funny and crazy stories to tell. College should be all about the stories you have to tell. It is far too fucking expensive to go through four plus years and not have a wild story or two to tell the younglings.
Angela Traver
What is this blog about? Well, it's a general blog, but it is also a very specific blog. If you get that reference, you get a gold star! I have been a public relations professional and writer of press releases for more than 20 years—primarily in the booze biz. I decided to do some writing for fun and embrace the humor that gets me through most days. Hopefully it will make you chuckle—or at least smile. I’m a certified crazy magnet, and more than a little nutty myself, so buckle up. Also, I have two vices—profanity and red wine/whiskey. You’ve been warned. It should also be noted, that I’m a HUGE Bob & Sheri fan. I’ve been a listener for more than 20 years. This opportunity is a dream come true and it may have made me cry. That being said, I cry at everything. If you are into booze, dogs, food and/or knitting, hit me up on Instagram, Facebook or Twitter (although I’m terrible at Twitter and it scares me) @kyspiritsgal. You can also find all my previous blog posts at www.kyspiritsgal.com.
