I had just graduated from a Christian mystic religious High School in Santa Fe, New Mexico. I didn't believe in evolution then and had been raised a Creationist even though it didn't make a lot of logical sense to me at the time.
So, when I started in the Fall at Glendale College majoring in Computer Science and Data Processing I happened to take a course in Sociology. Now, you can consider this to have been a mistake on my part or whatever.
But, the end result of this was I had to confront the fact that the kids in this class did not believe in Creationism and Did believe in evolution. I was slammed by this fact and I felt like I had been hit in the head with a sledge hammer.
I didn't work all this out until I was about 21 completely, but eventually I realized both creationism and evolution were only theories and I wasn't forced to believe in either of them completely. But, this process took me about 3 years to come to terms with while I grew up.
In the meantime I was so upset about this I dropped out of college and got a job in Hollywood with Ingledue Travel Publications in the Mail room.
I had intended to return to Glendale College and to transfer to California State University at Northridge as a Junior which was an inexpensive way to get a bachelor's degree then.
However, then my mother needed a hemorroidectomy and my parents didn't have insurance so they asked me to work until the next fall so I could help pay for her operation which I did which was very noble of me at the time.
However, during this extra time working I became a different person no longer the beginning college student but someone else entirely. I liked not going to school and having more free time to do whatever I wanted with the money I was making.
So, though I went back to school at age 19 in the fall I was different than I had been before because of life experience.
However, I did throw myself into understanding how computers worked and learning Cobol and Fortran. This got me a part time job at the Glendale Board of Education and this job led to two others as I moved up into the world of Computers. So, by the time I was 20 years old I was making enough money to afford a brand new Camaro.
However, the consequence of all this was I was no longer as motivated to get a degree because I was enamored with making as much money as I was. But, I was still taking courses often at night in college.
So, likely because of all these things eventually I wound up with about 8 years of college by age 40 with majors in Computer Science, Psychology, Social Science and finally anthropology. But, in the end even though I had about 8 years total of college I never got a college degree. However, sort of like Steve Jobs I found studying what I was most interested in and moved by at the time furthered my life and goals the best at every point. Whereas other people I know completely burnt out on education even though they got advanced degrees. So, they stopped enjoying learning in a college environment which I think is sad.
Because for me, the whole point is to never lose your love of learning because it is one of the most fun things to do your whole life by learning new and interesting things and about new and interesting people all over the world.
Also, a love of learning is one of the many keys to affluence. Because the more you learn the more intelligent you sound (because you are more intelligent by learning about what you are interested in) the more rich and sometimes famous people want you on their team. So, as you learn more about whatever you are interested in opportunities arise and your life often moves forward in completely unexpected ways.
The more you learn the more likely you are going to be able to take advantage of the opportunities that arise in life for all sorts of things. And the more you learn the less likely you are to be taken advantage of by unscrupulous people. So, learning what you are interested in is almost always a win win situation as long as you also have common sense.
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