# What did you want to be when you grew up? **URL:** \ **Category:** In My Humble Opinion\ **Created:** [February 1, 2004, 6:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-did-you-want-to-be-when-you-grew-up/227064 "2004-02-01T18:16:26Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Johnny\_L.A](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/johnny_l.a/32/1084_2.png) [@Johnny\_L.A](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Johnny_L.A)\ **Post date:** [February 1, 2004, 6:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-did-you-want-to-be-when-you-grew-up/227064/1 "2004-02-01T18:16:26Z")
First and foremost, I wanted to be a pilot; specifically, a Naval Aviator. Well, one trip too many on the ski slopes put an end to that. Ripped my ACL to shreds and couldn’t get in. But I became a pilot anyway; I hold Airplane and Helicopter ratings. It would be nice to do it as a job, though. I also wanted to be an Oceanographer. In elementary school we would take field trips to The Scripps Institution of Oceanography. Since I lived in San Diego, there were also occasional outings with my family or friends to Sea World. I loved the Jaques Cousteau documentaries! Of course, I never did become an oceanographer; but I did get my PADI and NAUI certifications. Now that I’m living in an area with _awesome_ marine environments, I may have to get back into it. (And I’ll have to look into a drysuit!) Geology has always been fascinating. I remember when I was in kindergarten, and I was looking at a world map. I saw that South America and Africa seemed as if they would fit together, and hypthesized that they did at one time and somehow drifted apart. This was before they taught about plate techtonics in school. When I finally did hear about plate techtonics, I said to myself “Aha! I was right!” I learned to fly over the Mojave Desert. I think most people are familiar with that region as a place they have to drive through to get to Las Vegas. I’ve heard people complain that it’s a boring drive. Humbug! It’s a _beautiful_ drive! And a beautiful flight, from just a few thousand feet in the air. Viewed from aloft, you can see the patters of the flow of water. (I always found it amusing, from my God’s Eye View, to see houses built in flood plains. What are they _thinking?_) You can see mountains of rock being revealed as the sand is washed or blown away from them. You can see for miles, and miles, and miles, and miles. On the ground you can see more detail. People think the desert is all brown, but it has wonderful colours. The rocks are brown, grey, red, black, white, yellow… many variations! There’s the green of the sparse grasses and the sage, or the yellow of the same. Flowers bloom purple or yellow or white or red. Dry lake beds shine bright in the sun, and the sky is blue, blue, blue. And people say it’s dull! Oh, to be able to study that environment! Filmmaking. It’s hot or cold, hard, dirty work with long days and little (if any) pay. I’ve roasted in New Orleans summers, and I’ve been chilled on winter mornings at the beach (Okay, it’s not _that_ cold at the beach; but it’s still a little brisk) and been frozen on pre-dawn mornings in the High Desert Winters. When you flip the switch on the camera as the cinematographer and hear the film running, or you get a heartfelt “thank you” when you’re working as a grip, it’s a gratifying thing. You get the film back from processing, and see it for the first time, and you think about how you’re going to put it all together. You laugh at some of the shots, and you remember amusing things or problems that happened during others. Your house fills up with equipment. I absolutely love filmmaking. So I wanted to be a pilot, oceanographer, geologist and filmmaker. I’ve achieved a couple of those things, although not professionally (except for occasional pay for filmmaking). But I still have lots of time to pursue everything before I grow up! So how about you? ---
**Author:** ![Qadgop\_the\_Mercotan](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/qadgop_the_mercotan/32/83_2.png) [@Qadgop\_the\_Mercotan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Qadgop_the_Mercotan)\ **Post date:** [February 1, 2004, 6:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-did-you-want-to-be-when-you-grew-up/227064/2 "2004-02-01T18:41:12Z")
First I wanted to be Superman. When that didn’t pan out I wanted to be a doctor. It’s worked ok so far. ---
**Author:** ![Chefguy](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/chefguy/32/138_2.png) [@Chefguy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chefguy)\ **Post date:** [February 1, 2004, 7:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-did-you-want-to-be-when-you-grew-up/227064/3 "2004-02-01T19:23:03Z")
I wanted desperately to be an astronomer (fascination with space travel) or an archaeologist (fascination with the dinosaurs and pyramids). I’ve been in public service for 35 years…sigh… ---
**Author:** ![Taters](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/taters/32/2845_2.png) [@Taters](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Taters)\ **Post date:** [February 1, 2004, 7:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-did-you-want-to-be-when-you-grew-up/227064/4 "2004-02-01T19:30:06Z")
I wanted to be a wildlife veterinarian and work at a wildlife preserve. Then I wanted to become a forester. For many years after that, I was interested in becoming a lawyer (don’t hit me) who specialized in environmental issues. Now, at nearly 40, I don’t know what I want to become, except for retired. Real life intruded, and the job I have now has nothing to do with any of the above. ---
**Author:** ![Johnny\_L.A](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/johnny_l.a/32/1084_2.png) [@Johnny\_L.A](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Johnny_L.A)\ **Post date:** [February 1, 2004, 7:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-did-you-want-to-be-when-you-grew-up/227064/5 "2004-02-01T19:31:56Z")
> [@](#): > > I wanted desperately to be an astronomer (fascination with space travel) or an archaeologist (fascination with the dinosaurs and pyramids). Me too. Seems unfair that we have only one lifetime each. ---
**Author:** ![fishbicycle](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/aeb1de/32.png) [@fishbicycle](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/fishbicycle)\ **Post date:** [February 1, 2004, 7:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-did-you-want-to-be-when-you-grew-up/227064/6 "2004-02-01T19:40:15Z")
The first thing I wanted to be was a radio announcer/engineer. I worked my way into broadcasting, did it for awhile and then left it to be a musician. That took longer and was more difficult to achieve… it threatened to break wide open several times and then something would happen to put it all in the crapper again. So I did lots and lots of other things for many years, and after a long, circuitous route, I’ve come full circle. I’m a radio announcer/engineer again. It doesn’t pay a great deal, but at least I work in a radio format that isn’t going to change next week or next month and put me out of a job. And I enjoy it. I like everything about it. I get to do what I know best, every day. I learn things from people more experienced than me, and I teach things to people less experienced than me. Even though I am unable to fully comprehend the management style where I work, they must be appreciative of the job I do for them. I’ve outlasted everyone who was there when I started except for the chief engineer and his assistant, the morning news anchor, and the executives. If they don’t lose the funding for my position, I plan to be there until they have to carry me out. ---
**Author:** ![Lsura](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/7993a0/32.png) [@Lsura](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lsura)\ **Post date:** [February 1, 2004, 7:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-did-you-want-to-be-when-you-grew-up/227064/7 "2004-02-01T19:43:26Z")
I didn’t have huge dreams when I was a kid. When I was about four, I wanted to be a teenager. That’s what I’d tell my pre-school teacher when the subject came up. In about 6th/7th grade, I wanted to be a nurse, then I wanted to be a doctor (then I couldn’t make it through chemistry or calculus when I got to college, so I ditched that idea). Now, at 30, I’m going to be a librarian when I grow up. Actually, I’ll be one in about 5 months (until then, I’m just a baby librarian, still getting that master’s). ---
**Author:** ![vl\_mungo](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/v/bc8723/32.png) [@vl\_mungo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/vl_mungo)\ **Post date:** [February 1, 2004, 8:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-did-you-want-to-be-when-you-grew-up/227064/8 "2004-02-01T20:22:06Z")
The first thing I can remember wanting to be was a garbageman… their trucks were soooo cool. After that, I wanted to play in the NHL. I didn’t give up on that idea til my late teens. ---
**Author:** ![Mephisto](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/48db29/32.png) [@Mephisto](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mephisto)\ **Post date:** [February 1, 2004, 8:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-did-you-want-to-be-when-you-grew-up/227064/9 "2004-02-01T20:32:24Z")
I wanted to be a fire department paramedic. I think I got that from the old show _Emergency_. I never did become a paramedic or a firefighter, but Uncle Sam eventually made me into a medic, so I got sort of close. Other things I wanted to eventually become: archaeologist, paleontologist, anthropologist, artist (that is painter), “scientist” (just mixing up chemicals and building strange machines), veterinarian, professional magician, architect, comic book artist, secret agent, acupuncturist, securities trader, martial arts instructor, land scape architect, physician, soldier, astronaut, cowboy, and Indian. All were desires I had before middle school, though my interest in some of those careers persisted into high school and college. Right now . . . I’m still making up my mind . . . ---
**Author:** ![Jayn\_Newell](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/f9ae1b/32.png) [@Jayn\_Newell](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jayn_Newell)\ **Post date:** [February 1, 2004, 10:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-did-you-want-to-be-when-you-grew-up/227064/10 "2004-02-01T22:47:00Z")
Let’s see, I know I have that list around here somewhere…_fishes aroudn in pocket_ Oh, here it is. In no particular order- Painter Singer (the performing kind, not the sewing machine) Lawyer Nurse Computer programmer (insert numerous other computer-related jobs here) Mathematician Secretary Physicist Chemist Novelist (until I found out the average pay, and decided it was a better hobby than career) Rocket Scientist Journalist I’m now 18 and studying to become that last of those. Go figure, I finally found something I really wanted to do, and did so before going to college. I was pretty lucky. ---
**Author:** ![Khadaji](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/9e8a1a/32.png) [@Khadaji](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Khadaji)\ **Post date:** [February 1, 2004, 10:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-did-you-want-to-be-when-you-grew-up/227064/11 "2004-02-01T22:59:24Z")
I wanted to be a paleontologist. But then I discovered that they make very little money… ---
**Author:** ![FairyChatMom](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/fairychatmom/32/21906_2.png) [@FairyChatMom](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/FairyChatMom)\ **Post date:** [February 1, 2004, 11:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-did-you-want-to-be-when-you-grew-up/227064/12 "2004-02-01T23:09:23Z")
I wanted to be a dancer, but my parents couldn’t afford lessons. I wanted to be a rock star, and while I have some musical talents, I don’t have talents that people would pay to hear. In my 8th grade yearbook, under “Future” I wrote “Actress or Author” - I sorta succeeded. Sometimes I act like an author. 😃 In high school, I wanted to be a French teacher, then a teacher of many modern foreign languages. But my senior yearbook said “Wandering Spirit.” So, what have I been in life?[ul] [li]PBX Operator[/li][li]Clerk-typist[/li][li]Courier[/li][li]Avionics Technician[/li][li]Flying club dispatcher[/li][li]Naval Officer[/li][li]Veterans Advisor[/li][li]Junior College Algebra instructor[/li][li]Mechanical Engineer[/li][li]Aerospace Structural Engineer[/li][li]Mom[/li][/ul] I’ll be retiring from the engineering stuff in about 6 years or so. After that, I think I’d like to teach math again in high school or junior college. ---
**Author:** ![Ephemera](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/8baadc/32.png) [@Ephemera](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ephemera)\ **Post date:** [February 2, 2004, 12:05am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-did-you-want-to-be-when-you-grew-up/227064/13 "2004-02-02T00:05:13Z")
A few things. When I was four or five, I wanted to be a doctor, like any other kid that age. A few years later, I wanted to be an astronaut and after that, just an astronomer. During my adolescent years, I wanted to be a historian. Now, if I could have a dream job, I’d want to be some sort of consultant for Star Trek. I’m not quite as ambitious as I used to be. 🙂 ---
**Author:** ![CloudCar](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/9de0a6/32.png) [@CloudCar](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/CloudCar)\ **Post date:** [February 2, 2004, 12:20am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-did-you-want-to-be-when-you-grew-up/227064/14 "2004-02-02T00:20:44Z")
I wanted to be a novelist. I’m still working on that. ---
**Author:** ![Lyllyan](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/b2d939/32.png) [@Lyllyan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lyllyan)\ **Post date:** [February 2, 2004, 1:23am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-did-you-want-to-be-when-you-grew-up/227064/15 "2004-02-02T01:23:31Z")
First and Foremost, I wanted to be a Royal Princess, specifically and English Princess. When I found there were not any openings, I wanted to be A Rock Star Director Mafia Boss Marine Biologist Physical Therapist Instead, I’m a mom. ---
**Author:** ![StGermain](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/stgermain/32/2868_2.png) [@StGermain](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/StGermain)\ **Post date:** [February 2, 2004, 1:37am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-did-you-want-to-be-when-you-grew-up/227064/16 "2004-02-02T01:37:54Z")
I wanted to be a seeing-eye dog trainer. That’s still my dream. instead I’m a credit analyst. The fun never stops coming. StG ---
**Author:** ![Rushgeekgirl](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/rushgeekgirl/32/3715_2.png) [@Rushgeekgirl](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Rushgeekgirl)\ **Post date:** [February 2, 2004, 2:54am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-did-you-want-to-be-when-you-grew-up/227064/17 "2004-02-02T02:54:03Z")
I wanted to be an artist. I am a commercial painter. Sometimes I do like to pretend I’m painting the ceiling of the Sistine Chapel when I’m up on the scaffolding all alone… ---
**Author:** ![jesleigh](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/58f4c7/32.png) [@jesleigh](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/jesleigh)\ **Post date:** [February 2, 2004, 3:10am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-did-you-want-to-be-when-you-grew-up/227064/18 "2004-02-02T03:10:41Z")
I wanted to be a country-music superstar. I wanted people to say my name in the same sentence as Patsy Cline, Loretta Lynn, and Tammy Wynette. Unfortunitly, I realized I can’t carry a tune (at least, I don’t think so), and I couldn’t write a decent song to save my life. So, I reckon I’ll be a pharmacist, and keep “Crazy” and “Stand by Your Man” in the shower. ---
**Author:** ![MemoryDump](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/d07c76/32.png) [@MemoryDump](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MemoryDump)\ **Post date:** [February 2, 2004, 3:13am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-did-you-want-to-be-when-you-grew-up/227064/19 "2004-02-02T03:13:04Z")
When I was small, I thought it would be neat to be a Garbage Man or a Fireman because they got to ride on the rear bumper of big trucks. Of course today’s \*Trash Collectors \* and _Firefighters_ ride inside, so it is probably a good thing I did something else. After stints in a gas station, construction labor, movie projectionist, student, and Human Relations office drone, I ended up as a vocational counselor for 17 years. For the last 8 1/2 years, I’ve done computer desktop support for a real job and technical theatre/sound on the side. When I was a counselor, I taught that you are not the product of formal training you may or may not have, you are the product of everything you do in your life, and that anything and everything you get into may be preparation for the next chapter/adventure. It also seemed to me, after a time, that very few of us know enough about ourselves, and about how life works to make lasting career decisions until we are in our middle twenties. ---
**Author:** ![mangeorge](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/d78d45/32.png) [@mangeorge](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/mangeorge)\ **Post date:** [February 2, 2004, 3:19am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-did-you-want-to-be-when-you-grew-up/227064/20 "2004-02-02T03:19:46Z")
I wanted to be a nurse. I’m not sure what happened, but I’m not a nurse. I’m a technician. Too late now. I wanted to be a corpsman (medic) in the Navy, but they made me an electrician. Close enough for govt work, huh? Peace, mangeorge [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-did-you-want-to-be-when-you-grew-up/227064.md?page=2)