A Note from Mom
Subject: School
Jake,
Too bad it will take so long. We're proud you're working at it. We wouldn't trade you for anyone else.
Hugs,
Mom
I just realized that my parents never got the chance to finish school. My dad didnt have the money to continue. He graduated with an associates when he was 31 -- we were dirt poor and he was trying to get an education to get a better job, which he did. Associate degrees meant more back then. My mom quit school right around the time she married my dad, and became not only a housewife, but a farmhand, a seamstress, a cook, a maid, a gardener, and an accountant to all of us. So much for teaching art to kids.
Yeah, I'll be 30 this year, and I'll likely be pushing 40 when I graduate. Maybe that isnt so bad after all.
Unique fact #853: my parents never call me by my real name, as you'll note from the email I posted above. You might think my name would be Jacob Matthew or Matthew Jacob. You'd be wrong. The name came from my grandfather's old hat, which became mine when I was still in diapers... I used to wear it all the time. Someone made the comment, "He looks like a jake" -- and it stuck. When I was little, it was referred to as my "Jakey hat". Ever since, I've always been Jake, both to them and to their friends. I was only Matt in school, and only since 5th grade when our school librarian started calling me Matt instead of Matthew. My family only calls me Matthew when I'm in trouble.