any one give up on two dreams??

scubasteve · Post by **scubasteve** » Fri Oct 21, 2005 5:20 pm

Well in addition to being out of aviation and not having flown in about a year and a half, today I had to tell my boss that I wouldnt be back at ski patrol this winter. So now I've said goodbye (maybe temporarily) to two great jobs/careers.

Its not much different than aviation in that you arent always seen as a valuable asset - or at least not treated as one. Two weeks of training at $8 an hour and then your normal wage once the resort opens. I started my current job in construction at the end of April at $14 and after 2 and a half months I was at $17. My boss was able to reward me for good work and I now work on my own and have been given responsibilties. I havent had to spend 2 weeks and $1000 on a first aid course to get the job, nor did I have to buy a PPC. In fact, I have no special training at all.

I'm not sure I have a point, just a little disappointed that I cant do the things I would like to do and pay the bills. Both ski patrol and flying require a lot of knowledge and special skills but the return doesnt make the investment worthwhile. What I'm hoping is that I can work hard for the short term and pay down some of my debt from my education and flight training which would allow me to live off of a lower wage.

Anyhoo...I'm always reading about people who walk away from aviation and am wondering if there is anyone who has had to leave two dream jobs.

and lastly...GO LEAFS GO

gowest · Post by **gowest** » Fri Oct 21, 2005 5:33 pm

interesting story,
Before aviation I used to work as a skipatrolmen/avalanche controller in the French Alps for five winters, dreams job paid 3500$/month, not more than 35 hrs work per week (french laws), awsome helicopter rides trowing dynamite away and unlimited ski in one of the finest powder...

leaving my mountain hut to move into the aviation industry was a brutal wake up (shitty wages, poor work condition , fierce competition etc...)...
3 years later I finally fly on a D228 in AB and enjoy my job but all the shit I've been tru doesn't worth it...

long story short, if you are happy in a career, stay there!
It looks always greener on the other side of the fence...

good luck in your new life!

gowest

Highflyinpilot · Post by **Highflyinpilot** » Fri Oct 21, 2005 5:35 pm

I thought you were in CYQK?

Well I hope whatever you are doing now is working out for you

After getting my CPL I worked in a welding shop as a shop bitch and started at 11.75 per hour, every 2 months I get a guaranteed 1.10$ raise till I max out at 17$ then its on a person to person case(The big cochese decides who gets raises after 17$) And thats as a shop bitch. There is a bonus to this, I can get my welding tickets in about 2 months from now also. Just goes to show you how badly you can be treated in aviation, well from what I hear anyways, never experoenced it as there is no reason to anymore.

Highflyinpilot · Post by **Highflyinpilot** » Fri Oct 21, 2005 5:38 pm

Oh ya and I forgot

GO LEAFS GO

Lst night against the canes, it cost me a light fixture as I jumped the Fu*k out of my seat and broke it( you cant blame me though there was only about 10 secs left in overtime , right after a huge save by belfour, very intense LOL)

Lommer · Post by **Lommer** » Fri Oct 21, 2005 5:51 pm

Shit, I'm young enough that I gave up on the aviation dream before it even started. I had my ppl done in 3 months then started working on my CPL and got a job working ramp. As soon as I talked to ppl who didn't have a vested interest in selling me flight training I realized how shitty it was. Anyways, I never did finish my CPL, but I'm still working the ramp while I get a college degree just because I like the work and the people. So I guess I haven't given up on two dreams, just gave up on the best one before it even started...

P.S. Every day I am tempted to throw myself completely into aviation again. I guess that's because I didn't stay in it long enough to get truly bitter.

Pilot_adam · Post by **Pilot_adam** » Fri Oct 21, 2005 5:55 pm

Oh man
That's what worrys me everynight....
From a pilot who is still in training ....i can't give up my dream man
Everytime I set and try to figure out the money that i am spending on my training and the money that i will be making when i finish my training and how i will pay the debt back I say to myself i can't do it .....

But it is that thing that keeps me hanging in there...THIS IS MY DREAM...
Everytime I land I wish I can go up again ...I know that real life is different and after a while the most wanted fun career you have been dreaming about will be a job,just a job that may ,maynot pay the bills.

It is a tough call Partner ..Do what you like or do what you have to do..??!!

I am going to keep my hopes up and work hard on it untile i reach my goal ...I WILL SURVIVE ...

Cheers
Adam

dash2/3 · Post by **dash2/3** » Fri Oct 21, 2005 6:15 pm

It is after a while, just a job. I'm not sure if it's because you become jaded, or the industry sucks any enthusiasm you've ever had for being a pilot right out of you.

I like many others have said all the same things, had the same dreams blah, blah, blah. at the end of the day, it's just a job.

remember, you can love an airplane all you want... it will never love you back.

hanrahan · Post by **hanrahan** » Fri Oct 21, 2005 6:26 pm

it's sad - sometimes i look back, and wish that i'd done something else, or developed a severe case of the hiccups the day i was supposed to start flying, or spent the money on beer. it's a crushing, brutal industry.

what if i had chosen somthing else? i still don't know what that something else would be. would there be more money? without a doubt. would there be cool and amazing people there? probably. would i be happy going into an office every day? probably not. would i be able to say YEHAW every once-in-a-while while there? maybe, but only if there was a really cool stapler. probably a swingline.

yes - sometimes i look back and wish, but mostly i look forward and hope. and i keep on going. my mom always said i was stubborn.

Highflyinpilot · Post by **Highflyinpilot** » Fri Oct 21, 2005 6:39 pm

To add to my comments above, I figure that flying will never go away, I could always go rent a plane and fly around for shits and giggles with friends and family. Which is working out really good so far.

It also gives me the oppurtunity to buy a home, stay situated and maybe even someday buy my own airplane. Im home evrynight, get evryweekend off, xmas new years all hollidays off. Get to be with my friends and family, And again, Its not like im not flying, im just flying privately.

Juggs · Post by **Juggs** » Fri Oct 21, 2005 7:14 pm

Oh...tough call either way man. I was flying twin otter down in Haiti, the lovely tropical paradise that it was

(don't get worked up on the fact that it is in the Caribbean, sure +32 C on Christmas is great, but the stench of rotting garbage becomes that much more prevalent and invasive on the senses) and swore off flying. I decided that I would be an Engineer and go make people's live that much better and interesting. I wouldn't go near an airplane for a couple months. I flipped half assed through my Cap Gen and AIP, half-heartedly applied for jobs and limited by AvCanada reading almost close to zero.

It's been just over a year since I have flown and the IFR is coming up close to expiring and it might just end up doing that. I'm in my first year of Engineering at U of C, and while I do like and enjoy engineering, I feel that I am missing something by not flying. If there is a flying job that comes along that I think I would enjoy, I will probably take it. I've gone flying a couple times at the flying club or with friends, and as good as the flying was, it's not the same as operational flying. I didn't feel that I was "doing" anything for lack of a better term. School and higher education are something that is very important to me. However, that being said, I will not pursue a degree so I can "have a degree" as I don't feel that this is the point of education. The degree is a by-product of education, not a by-product.

Anyways, getting back to your decision of leaving two dreams, there is a price that all of us are willing to pay for something. I can't remember what it is called in economic terms, opportunity cost would probably be the best way to describe it. Anyways, it is basically the absolute price that we are willing to pay for certain things in life. We each set our own price and act according to our prices. Even though something may be our dream, it may be above our price threshold. We have decided consciously or unconsciously that it is too much to give up to obtain. It looks like that is something that you decided to do. I don't think it is wrong to reminisce or wonder what could have happened or what may have been. As the cliché goes, hind sight is 20-20 and statistics don't apply after the fact.

Best of luck trying to make things work, but be very clear in why you decided to make the decision that you decided to make. There are some decisions that are reversible, like this one. The consequences of reversing the decision aren't drastic but if you decided to reverse your decision be clear in why you reversed it.

Sub-Space Canoodler · Fri Oct 21, 2005 10:01 pm

Aviation is a great career. It is terribly hard on alot of people though. I have seen people chase airplanes around the country ( and around the world for that matter ) always looking for another job or a better job. Time can pass us by very quickly.

If you are lucky and stick with it, you can be well rewarded but there can be a down side to it too. Money isnt everything. Comes a time when flying isnt as glamorous as it used to be. It is still a job no matter how you look at it.

If you have a family or want to start one, you have too consider those closest to you. Your children will still love and admire you just because you are their Dad ( or Mom ) not because your a 747 skipper and that speaks volumes.

pianodude · Post by **pianodude** » Sat Oct 22, 2005 7:00 pm

i gave up flying charter over ten years ago, and i haven't flown at all for the last four years. i never had trouble finding work, but walked away in disgust because of the crap that is still so much a part of the industry. the scary thing is that aviation NEVER leaves you! i have my own business now that pays well, but i still think about flying every day(man, i still check out this website once a week). giving up on a dream is hard, but it can be done and moving on is possible, it just takes a whole lot of time!

Jercules · Post by **Jercules** » Sun Oct 23, 2005 2:24 am

I've given up on two dreams; I'll never play centre for the Canadiens and will probably never get it on with Gwen Stephani. Don't sweat aviaition, it's just a job.

Jercules · Post by **Jercules** » Sun Oct 23, 2005 2:32 am

Oh yeah,

FINAL 1 2 3 Total
Philadelphia 1 1 3 5
Toronto 1 0 1 2

privateer · Post by **privateer** » Sun Oct 23, 2005 7:39 am

I have to say you should never give up on your dreams.

It took me a long ass time to get to where I am. Even though its only instructing (i love it). 3 years on the ramp before I realized what somebody was trying to tell me.... "Get a flying Job, not a Ramp Job". But after all the cold mornings humping bags off the dash 8, and 737's, it finally paid off. I have to say the patience and experience that followed was all worth it.

NEVER GIVE UP! NEVER...

phillyfan · Post by **phillyfan** » Sun Oct 23, 2005 8:25 am

Ya Being a porn star (for obvious reasons)
and drinking a 24 of beer by myself on New Years (because I always pass out in a pile of my own puke by 9pm)

Bede · Post by **Bede** » Sun Oct 23, 2005 8:36 am

highflyinpilot:

You're thinking of scuba_steve. This is another guy scubasteve.

scubasteve · Post by **scubasteve** » Sun Oct 23, 2005 11:47 am

Well for the record, I havent completely given it up, just temporarily put it aside so that I dont have to go to the foodbank this winter. Last winter working as a pro ski patrol, after making my debt payments (student loans, and not even a car payment or mortgage etc) I was left with 600 for rent, food, gas and whatever else. As much as I love the job I couldnt do that anymore. I was tempted but I am going to have to buy a car this year and might be buying a house. I am hoping that if I put in some time on the rigs or in construction I can get to a point where the wages will cover my expenses. The good thing is that I can still ski and fly for fun on my own. I dont know how to change it but it disappoints me that not all jobs are compensated for the responsibility or the amount of knowledge and training that is required.

Highflyinpilot · Post by **Highflyinpilot** » Sun Oct 23, 2005 1:34 pm

bede,

Ya your right i am thinking of scuba_steve.
i thought something sounded a little weird because not 2 or 3 weeks ago I heard he was in CYQK

flyer 1492 · Post by **flyer 1492** » Sun Oct 23, 2005 8:30 pm

It is interesting the different views that are expressed here. I have been flying for 28 1/2 years, and have never tired of it. Except for this year, when my son was diagnosed with leukemia. It has been an eye opener to say the least. Family has always been the main priority, now it is even more important. The way I look at it, my family needs me more than my job right now. When he is finished his treatments next year, I will go back to work. This will be the longest time I have been away from the wild blue yonder, but I know it will always be there.

Airtids · Post by **Airtids** » Sun Oct 23, 2005 8:36 pm

Here's hoping you all (especially you, flyer 1492) get back to doing what you want sooner rather than later.

Sub-Space Canoodler · Post by **Sub-Space Canoodler** » Sun Oct 23, 2005 8:47 pm

Flyer 1492, my hat is off to you and your family. Look after them first. You need each other.

Jercules · Post by **Jercules** » Mon Oct 24, 2005 2:02 am

Flyer 1492

All the best to you and yours. God bless.

cymuni · Post by **cymuni** » Mon Oct 24, 2005 11:21 am

I guess I'm a dime a dozen! I spent lots of $ and time towards my CPL. When I started flying I was 25 single and broke. Now I'm I'm 30 married one kid and another on the way. My wife and I have racked up lots of dedt with flying. But I just can't justify it any more. Crap wages and no jobs for maximum dedt. Now I work as a sales/marketing manager for a motorcycle company, and make enough to still fly for fun from time to time. I think about flying alot and miss it big time, but giving my family a decent chance is far more important.

scubasteve · Post by **scubasteve** » Mon Oct 24, 2005 5:59 pm

hey 1492 - that puts things into perspective. I wish you and the family all the best. I dont have a family yet but I'm working on it and thats why I've had to step away from what I would like to do.

Its a tough call between making things happen for yourself and believing that if it was meant to be, that it will happen. When I started this thread it was just the disappointment that I needed to get out but there are other things that are more important as I've been reminded of today.