San Diego writer of speculative fiction and comicss.
Open to freelance work punching up stories or homepages, script-doctoring, beta reads, or other opinion vendings.
Represented by Cherry Weiner
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March 21, 2008 8 Years Without School
I have a BA in Mathematics, Applied Science (Cognitive Science). I graduated with a GPA of 3.46 in my upper division coursework at UCSD and a 3.75 GPA for the lower division classes that I took at Mesa. When I graduated from high school I had barely passed beginning algebra, and after four years in the Marine Corps I’d forgotten all of that. So I spent an extra two years at Mesa working my way up the prerequisite chain towards Calculus.
Six years of education, all of it worthless. Because my degree never did anything to get me a job, but Steve Padilla did. It’s not what you know, it’s who you know. And all the time I spent studying was a waste, time I should have spent schmoozing.
My most marketable skills are all self taught. And I suspect that I would of done a lot better as an autodidact with no student loans than I did with a degree and five figures of debt.
I half agree with you.
I was never much of a scholar, but I feel like college was the most useful time in my life, because of the social skills I was forced to learned there, as opposed to the courses I took.
Also, you couldn’t have gotten into (Fuck) Sportvision without that degree, and as miserable as that time period was, I certainly wouldn’t call it wasted time.
Plus, coming to the realization that being an autodidact paid off more than college did is a realization you probably wouldn’t have come to without college.
So even though higher education may have been little more than a five-figure, six-year life lesson, it still looks like it was a valuable one.
Just my opinion, though…
Comment by danifesto — March 21, 2008 @ 2:49 pm
I’m defiantly a better problem solver than I was before and even though I hated the Statistics classes I had to take I use that knowledge every time I watch TV news (so I can say to myself- “The statistics they’re using on the news are meaningless.” over and over)
But I think I got 80% of that from Mesa. I learned less during my time at UCSD and paid more for it.
Comment by tone_milazzo — March 21, 2008 @ 3:07 pm
That’s why I went to a state school. In the end, for most careers its less about *where* you went to school than the fact that you got a degree in the first place. Employers like seeing that you had the dedication to complete your college degree, knowwhatImean?
Comment by avantard — March 22, 2008 @ 8:50 am
I also half agree. I feel skills are always self-taught, but sometimes people need the right environment to focus. And it’s a nice excuse for a while to not work crazy hours for whichever employer, “Oh, I can’t stay late, I have class tonight!”
PS. I dug the sketchbook out of my garage finally. When can I drive down and harass you? I’d like to have a nerd-out San Diego comic book store run.
Comment by hezaakun — March 22, 2008 @ 9:02 pm
I can make room in my schedule any weekend with enough advanced notice.
What shops would you want to hit?
Comment by tone_milazzo — March 24, 2008 @ 9:54 am
wasn’t there a store in El Cajon, or at least off the eight on El Cajon called Comics n Stuff? I remember there being about three of those all spread out. And any place you can think of that just has piles and piles of crap to sort through.
Comment by hezaakun — March 29, 2008 @ 11:00 pm
Comics-n-Stuff is like a hermit crab. The guy who runs those takes cheap month to month leases anywhere he can get them so his stores move around a lot.
Comikaze and SoCal COmics are good for that. Or you can wait until Comic Gallery has another sale on March 29th (http://www.comicgalleryonline.com/).
Comment by tone_milazzo — March 29, 2008 @ 11:05 pm
I remember him doing that with one of his locations, but the huge one off the eight was a such a mecca. Hmmmmm
Comment by hezaakun — March 30, 2008 @ 10:04 am
Oh yeah, I remember Comikaze being golden. Is it still on Clairemont Mesa Blvd?
Comment by hezaakun — March 30, 2008 @ 10:15 am
this is the one I remember.
Comment by hezaakun — March 30, 2008 @ 10:21 am
I don’t think I’ve ever been there.
Do you wanna wait for the sale? You’re a chick, chicks like that sort of thing.
Comment by tone_milazzo — March 30, 2008 @ 11:30 am