What would your career choice be now?

[Zeke's Garage]

I just read through No Regretz's thread about what all the members around here do for a living, and it got me thinking... a little more than usual..

As tough as the industry and market is right now, I really want to open my own shop, where I fix, repair, modify, restore, mock, belittle, junk or destroy cars, trucks, motorcycles and the odd riding lawnmower. I love working on stuff... and I want to be rewarded for NEVER completing any project. I'm still working on the business plan, as you must imagine it's a tough sell.

Anyway after bashing my way through life trying to raise children, provide a home for my family and truly trying to understand what I want out of life... I now have an idea of how I want to move forward and get out of the computer field, and also what I could have done at a much earlier age if I had any sense at all. Here's what SHOULD have happened:

1. Shut off my libido... girls are a known cause of trouble.. I know.. I kept most of the receipts.
2. Join the military, scared straight program or local scouting troop... get some self discipline learn how to tell myself 'No'.
3. Find a way through magic, or sorcery or a good German restaurant to procure an attention to detail, this will come in handy later in the list...
4. Go to work for a body shop, learn how to sand, fill, weld, paint and finish while being able to afford to live on 18k per year. <- apply #3 here.
5. Go to work for a machine shop, learn EVERYTHING you can and avoid eye injuries. Again, apply more #3.
6. Actually pay attention and show respect to the mean, grumpy, 'difficult' old guys that you encounter during life... they are the ones with ALL the knowledge and experience. The more cantankerous and dismissive they are the better they tend to be at their craft... and the more they appreciate #3.
7. Figure out how to make fore-sight as accurate as hind-sight so you aren't making asinine lists at age 41 about what you should have done so you can play with cars and trucks for a living.
8. ??????
9. Profit.

So, now that I've bared my soul and accentuated my double-digit IQ... Anyone have any thoughts about how you would or should have pointed your lives in a bit of a different direction?

And remember this is truly a hypothetical exercise... I'm fully aware it's through my aimless wandering and burbling that I was able to fully understand what I now want, and wouldn't trade my experiences or children for anything... especially if they happen to read this...