Paintings

[Murfreesboro]

Thanks, Kolchak. No, she doesn't have a major yet, which was probably a mark against her when she applied to Vanderbilt. They love to see people who are all fired up about a specific thing, especially if it's in a STEM field, as her brother is. The truth is, she thinks she wants to be an actress and write plays, which of course does not delight my husband and me one little bit. She knows it is unrealistic, but she won't give up that dream. OTOH, if she persists in that direction, Sewanee is actually a better place for it than Vanderbilt would have been. Sewanee has a theater program; Vanderbilt doesn't have one to speak of . Sewanee also has a fairly well known creative writing program. As smart as she is, though, we have told her that if she majors in theater, she has to double major. And we can make that demand, since we are having to kick in pretty substantially on her room & board. Her scholarships cover tuition, but that ain't the whole thing, for sure.

[MauEvig]

I have mixed feelings about the whole STEM field stuff. I get what they're trying to do, encourage young kids to get involved in jobs that are scarce and will make them lots of money. But not every kid is going to be passionate about those subjects and of course it's going to be discouraging when their heart is in something that there isn't a lot of jobs available in, especially if they are really competitive. When I was a teenager I wanted to get into animation; and I was also caught up in all of the drama that's involved in being a teenager which unfortunately carried over into my young adulthood. This is another reason I'm embracing my 30's; especially since I've discovered a completely different calling in life that I'm working toward in Teaching.

I can't help but feel some empathy toward what your daughter feels Murf because I've been there. But there may be a reason that she ended up at Sewanee as opposed to Vanderbilt. I like to think there's a reason for everything that happens. I agree with Kolchak that she'll probably meet new friends, get into her classes and then come to enjoy herself. Everyone's college experience is going to be different though. Having her double major is a smart move; because the secondary major can be a back up plan. The back up plan can be something both realistic, and something she'd enjoy hopefully. It may just take her some time to decide what she wants to do with her life. I wish her all the best in college. You never know, if she works hard at her dream and ambitions, maybe we'll see her become a famous actress and playwright. It could even be something she ends up doing as something small, such as plays for your local community or your church, but at least that'd be something. This way she can do something more "realistic" for her actual job that will provide income, something she'll enjoy doing, and still get to do her dream job on the side. I think things will work out if she works hard enough. If she wants to hit the big time in theatre though I think she'll have to move to the big cities, like NYC, or move to California.

[Murfreesboro]

Thanks, Mau. Yeah, she's young. She is the right age to be dreaming about unrealistic stuff. I don't want to crush her spirit.

[jadewik]

Murfreesboro, if she wants to be an actress and write plays, it takes a lot of work. The acting scene is all about who you know. You have to be confident too, or they'll eat ya alive. One of my high school friends is in the acting business. She wants to write and direct. She has been working hard for about 15 years now, and is only just catching some good roles now-- she is in Disaster L.A. and is the new face of Anaheim tourism. I would suggest your daughter major in English or film, or both. I believe my friend has a degree in film.

In all honesty, I would recommend community college until she chooses a major-- or at least to get the general education requirements out of the way. If I could redo my college years, I'd do something like that. Save me some money.

[Murfreesboro]

Thanks, Jade, That's practical advice, and I do believe it. I, too, have known friends and relatives in the acting trade. I know how brutal it is. I keep telling my daughter she needs to do something more conventional for money and save the acting for community theater, etc.

She can't really opt for community college because she'll lose the scholarship offers she has right now if she goes that route. However, she knows she will need to double major, if theater is one of them; or she could minor in theater. She is actually a very intellectual kid and could easily end up in law or diplomatic service (she founded a Model U.N. at her high school & led a group from her school to a conference at Duke this winter). I think she's going to be OK in the long run. I don't really see this theater thing being her long-term career, although I obviously understand its allure.

My own father ran away from home to join a road show when he was 15 (he was tall & lied about his age). When his parents found him, two months later, they sent him to military school, which he hated. He ended up becoming a lawyer and loving that career. There is an affinity between being on stage and arguing before a judge & jury.

[Kolchak]

I met my wife kinda'-sorta' through the drama department at my school. I had a friend who was big in the theatre and was getting his BFA with a concentration in Theatre. My wife to be was in a play that I went to see my friend in and we met at the after party.

Needless to say I wowed and impressed her with my cool wit, keen intellect, manly and rugged good looks and above all my Southern charm......

Actually she really just liked my car, but I was desperate for a date!

My wife enjoyed the theatre but got her BS in poli-sci with a concentration in US Government. Being a jock/ROTC kid, and having no interest whatsoever in performing arts, I must confess I learned a lot watching her perform and hanging around the theatre.

Your daughter won't have to declare a major until she's a junior and by then she may have decided to change her major 100 times, so don't be too upset, just let it take its course, and she'll probably realize that to be a performer she can have just about any degree she wants.

[Murfreesboro]

That's true, Kolchak, and it's what I'm banking on.

Interesting how you met your wife, though. She had the right idea--do the plays for fun and study something else.

The drama/music stuff runs strong in my father's family. My grandfather was a touring singer/actor in the early days of his marriage, but my grandmother disliked having him away so much while she was home with little kids. So he settled down to manage a theater in Greenville, Mississippi. That's why it was so easy for my father to hook up with a touring show. It was his own father's line of work. One of my father's brothers was a professional musician his whole life long. I have several cousins who have been professional in theater and/or music, and one who teaches high school drama out in Texas. When I married, I met my husband through Concert Choir & Chamber Singers at Vanderbilt. His mother and sister were/are church organists & choir directors. So music is strong on his side as well, and we both did community theater when we lived up in Virginia. My daughter is getting a double dose. I tell her truthfully, it makes a great avocation, but not a great vocation.

[Kolchak]

Thankfully our son took after the mothers side of the family and became a CPA. Nobody is trying to kill him and he is making a darn good living!

[Murfreesboro]

Good for him!

My second son is the one who was least ambitious in terms of his college choice. He opted to attend MTSU, live at home and save money. He is majoring in English & minoring in business. Deep down, I halfway expect that he will turn out to be the one who makes a decent living.

[Kolchak]

My wife's father was a CPA and earning a decent living in Cuba when Castro took over. One day he was working in his office and some of Castro's thugs showed up and said that the country didn't need him to be an accountant any more, and they stuck him out in the sugar cane fields chopping sugar cane. When they got here he had to go back to college and start all over again. He passed a few years back, but he was tickled pink that his half Cracker grandson became a CPA. I'm really proud too.

[Murfreesboro]

That's quite a story. I have had such admiration and sympathy for the Cuban refugees (one of my closest friends was born there, doesn't remember the place, but her parents did what your FIL did--they were lawyers, but similar story).

How does your wife feel about the normalization of relations with Cuba? It seems to me that they haven't really changed over there, w/re/to their government, I mean.

[Kolchak]

My wife was a child when they left but she still remembers it. Most her age and older are strongly opposed to normalizing relations with the country. Most early Cuban emigres were staunchly anti-communist and voted republican by over 90%. The highest by far of any Hispanic group in the US.

They were often referred to as Uncle Toms by other Hispanic groups because they didn't think it was up to the government to supply all their needs from cradle to grave. They had the highest rate of professional people among Hispanic groups and were the most affluent of the Hispanic population by percentage, so you can see where other groups would be envious and condescending.

But with the influx of Jimmy Carters boat lift people and the subsequent generations being born in this country and going through the government education system and wanting to fall in lock step with the far left social culture, the twenty and thirty somethings are more open to normalizing relations with Cuba and won't listen and see what the 'Glorious Revolution' did by killing literally tens of thousands of people on an island with just around 11 million people.

[Murfreesboro]

I'm sorry to hear that the anti-communism of your wife's generation has not filtered down to the younger folks. I have always believed that whenever Communists take over a country, it is the best people who have to get out.