QOTW - aspirations

[Vanquisher]

1. When you were in high school, where did you see yourself today (career, family, location)? Is today anything like you imagined it?

2. Where to you imagine yourself in 5 years? 10? How about 30 or 40 years from now?

3. Name two or three short term goals.

[SuzySunshine]

1. I was going to get the hell out of my little town, that was really my only goal. No, really I wanted to be a lawyer I had done debate team, etc, was stuck president, etc but I went to a big college my high school had not really prepared me for and my grades weren't great. I probably could have still gone because at the time my state school really wanted female instate candidates but I just never took the LSAT or did anything about it. I did see myself having a family, though I don't think I probably expected myself to be 31 before I had my first. Most of my friends got married in hue he few years after high school, we have our 20 year reunion this year and my my kids will be some of the youngest.

2. In 5-10 years I see us in the same location even if its not the same job and probably not the same house. I hope in the next 5 years I've established myself as a good volunteer in the community and found my niche outside of the kid since they will be in school full time. In 15+ years we may still be here! we may not? I wouldn't be surprised if DH didn't take another job in another location once the kids are graduated. We'll see, who knows in this healthcare environment. 40 years from now I see DH retired, we'll be in our late 70's and enjoying travel, retirement and our grand kids.

3. Raise good kids, good community members, and all around caring people. Better myself both mentally and physically.


Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk

[MAPPLEBUM]

1. When you were in high school, where did you see yourself today (career, family, location)? Is today anything like you imagined it?

Ha! Super conservative high school student memorizing the Westminster Catachism. On my way to Bible College. In HS I imagined at this point I'd be living in an impoverished community spending my life helping "underprivileged youth." I did have a couple years, 14-15 when I got into anarchist literature and dreaded my hair. I was still ultra conservative but with radical political beliefs.( Ah the young reading Tolstoy.) I think by the end of college I finally admitted, and was OK with the fact that I was no longer a Christian. But I felt intense guilt for several years. So nope, absolutely no where that I imagined. Hell what I imagined in college / graduate school is no where what I expected. I expected to still be single more or less, definitely not married, and about this time finishing up a doctoral program in music. Looking for full time professorships.

So, nothing that I expected, BUT I do work with "underprivileged youth" and I am a professor. Best of both worlds?

2. Where to you imagine yourself in 5 years? 10? How about 30 or 40 years from now?
Eek I'm kind of superstitious about long term goals since I've proven myself wrong time and again. In 5 years C will be 1 year out of training, so we'll be wherever I suppose the best job will be. I'll either be settling into whatever music/outreach opportunities are in the area or gearing up to attend a doctoral program. 10 years I'll be 37 and the maternal instinct will maybe have kicked in. If not by then I imagine I'll had more administrative experience and will likely have a BIG project on my hands, like starting a nonprofit or business. 30 to 40 years I'll probably get sick of whatever I'm doing shave my head and join Hare Krishna.

3. Name two or three short term goals.
1) find a jazz voice teacher (I did contact one, she never responded!)
2) start grant writing this summer
3) plan student and faculty recitals / workshops for this coming school year
4) get Suzuki certified and/or Alexander Technique training BEFORE the end of residency.
5) lose 20 lbs and become a fit bitch.

[corn poffi]

Ugh. This one is hard.

High school me hates current me. Dead-end job unrelated to my degree. Still unmarried, and living in my home state.

I don't really see much beyond today. I used to be such a dreamer for my future, but since I failed miserably, I stopped. I can't imagine being married or having kids, having a job that doesn't make me want to gouge out my eyeballs, being financially stable enough to not consider selling a kidney, or being out of training. I have no goals or aspirations and it's really fucking depressing. Given, I'm not a depressed person. I just hate my life when I'm in the office. I'm good at faking it though. Outside of work, I feel like completely different person.

Short term goals:
-eat lunch today
-leave work before 7 pm

[ladymoreta]

1. When you were in high school, where did you see yourself today (career, family, location)? Is today anything like you imagined it?
I was going to be a pediatrician, probably married, definitely not a SAHM. I figured I'd probably live about this distance from my parents. I definitely did not want to live in my hometown, but I wanted to be close enough to see my parents pretty often.

2. Where to you imagine yourself in 5 years? 10? How about 30 or 40 years from now?
In 5 years, I'd like to have started getting involved in local politics, either city council or the school board. In 10 years, I'd like to be serving on one of those.
30 years from now, DH and I will be 62. I'm hoping he's settling into a very lifestyle position with low hours and no call. I'd like to be in a city by then, maybe Dallas, College Station, or Austin. I'd like to spend lots of time playing with grandbabies and traveling.
40 years? I just don't know. That seems too far away to imagine... Hopefully our health is still good so we can travel a lot. If not, I want to be in a cool old people's home. (I know lots of people don't want to live in retirement centers, but I think it could actually be a lot of fun after the Baby Boomers get through with them.)

3. Name two or three short term goals.
Catch up on my photo albums (still working on 2013) and put up laundry.

[alotofyarn]

1. When you were in high school, where did you see yourself today (career, family, location)? Is today anything like you imagined it? I thought I'd be a doctor. I also thought I'd be married and be done having kids by 30 - yah, I didn't exactly think realistically. I'm not sure where I thought I'd be living, but it certainly wasn't here!

2. Where to you imagine yourself in 5 years? 10? How about 30 or 40 years from now? In 5 years, out of residency, him potentially in fellowship, though preferably not. Hopefully with a second kid. Maybe promoted at work, maybe off the tenure track. Probably not still living here. In 10 years, done having kids, enjoying watching them grow up, hopefully living somewhere nice. In 30 or 40 years, enjoying the good life!

3. Name two or three short term goals. Get my house cleaner. Be more productive at work (you can see that's working well, since I'm on here...). Enjoy my family as much as possible.

[SoonerTexan]

1. When you were in high school, where did you see yourself today (career, family, location)? Is today anything like you imagined it?

Remarkably, just about right where I am. I met DH in HS. I'm a planner who knew what I wanted I did think we would have not had kids til now and we maybe wanted to move for residency, but baby fever right after I got married changed all that.

2. Where to you imagine yourself in 5 years? 10? How about 30 or 40 years from now?

5 years: SAHM. Right in the thick of another big transition, so either thinking about moving houses or cities.

10 years: Bigger house in the same area, 4-5 kids, lots of time spent with the cousins and grandparents. Probably just out of the baby years. Planning some wicked vacations.

30 years: No idea. I better be an empty nester by then. Hopefully a few grandkids. I think we might still be in Texas. My parents are building their dream house on a acre 30 min away. I've thought if we stay here, we might buy it from them someday. I joked about this and DH and my parents had thought about it too!

3. Name two or three short term goals.

Run a 15k in July, Half in Dec, and a 30 min 5k in a year.

Finish our wedding and baby albums

Finish decorating my son's room

[Curegirl]

I think high school me would be happy that I have my morals and ass in tact. I didn't really know what I wanted to be back then. I thought I'd be single for the rest of my life so it's a huge surprise that I found someone I love and respect and vice versa. I also said no doctors and here I am

In 5 years I hope SO and I are living together and happy. I don't have any big expectations because whenever we've let convention dictate aspects of our relationship, the outcomes have been bad. 10 years, 30 years, the same. Just to be healthy and happy with each other. Career wise, I'm hoping this new step that's occurring will lead to good things. I'd rather keep expectations low and be pleasantly surprised than severely disappointed in any area of life.

Short term, I need to organize my closet and pack away winter clothes. Read the books that have been accumulating in the corner. Stay cool this summer.

[moonlight]

1. When you were in high school, where did you see yourself today (career, family, location)? Is today anything like you imagined it?

2. Where to you imagine yourself in 5 years? 10? How about 30 or 40 years from now?

3. Name two or three short term goals.

1. When you were in high school, where did you see yourself today (career, family, location)? Is today anything like you imagined it?
Back then I thought I would be a CPA and a attorney by now. I wanted to be married but wasn't focused on finding Mr. Right at all. I never ever expected to live outside of my home state. Today is absolutely nothing like how I imagined my life. Not even a little.

2. Where do you imagine yourself in 5 years? 10?

In 5 years I will be just over 40. My oldest will be 10 and youngest will be 5yr old. First of all, I hope for happy and healthy kids doing well in school. I hope for myself that I'm able to be healthy and at my goal weight. I want to be working and crunching down on our debt. One thing I've learned is to not set highly detailed expectations for myself in the future. It never works out exactly how I plan and I get upset and frustrated. I'd settle for healthy, happy, and not broke in 10 years.

3. Name two or three short term goals.

1. Keep DD in a proper preschool for current needs and find a successful transition to Kindergarten/grade school.
2. Have a healthy delivery and healthy baby this summer.
3. Begin previously mentioned weight loss plan this fall.
4. Take my mom, aunt, and niece on a international vacation next year. This is the most unlikely of all my short term goals. No one can agree on anything!!

[moonlight]

2. Where to you imagine yourself in 5 years? 10? How about 30 or 40 years from now?
In 5 years, I'd like to have started getting involved in local politics, either city council or the school board. In 10 years, I'd like to be serving on one of those.

REALLY?!?! I had no clue! DH keeps telling me I'm going to do the same thing. I continue "prepping" my personal resume just in case I change my mind and decide to go for it. Also, we need to be in our forever city for this all to happen. Who knows when that will ever happen.

[mommax3]

1. When you were in high school, where did you see yourself today (career, family, location)? Is today anything like you imagined it?

2. Where to you imagine yourself in 5 years? 10? How about 30 or 40 years from now?

3. Name two or three short term goals.

1. High school me didn't look ahead too much....my young life was extremely unpredictable and did not lead me to believe dreams came true, so I didn't do much dreaming. However, I always had a strong desire to be a wife and a mom (the desire to be a mom was actually stronger than the desire to be a wife, probably because I have no memory of living in a two-parent household). So, the fact that I am a wife/mom would be no big surprise. The fact that I *only* have 3 kids, and that they are all boys, would not have been what high-school me would have predicted. We have a much nicer lifestyle than I would have dreamed of back then. I think high-school me would be surprised that I am working full-time even though I am married to a "dawkter". I always enjoyed big cities when I was young, so the fact that I live in a small town would also be quite a shock.

2. In 5 years, we will have one out of college, one getting ready to start his senior year of college, and one getting ready to start his senior year of high school. I will still be working full time, and so will DH. In 10 years, our youngest will finish college. I may stop working then...we'll see. We will still be in this house, and DH will still be working. I might be a grandma by then. (I look forward to that!) In 30 years, I will be 75, won't be working, and really really hope I am a grandma! I hope DH will be retired and that we are traveling a lot and spending the winters in warm places! I don't really want to think about 40 years from now...I just hope we are both healthy and able to spend time with the people we love.

3. Short term goals: finish this school year with my sanity intact, get some flowers planted and maybe some tomatoes, follow an exercise plan this summer

[wiva]

1. When you were in high school, where did you see yourself today (career, family, location)? Is today anything like you imagined it? Nothing like I imagined it, no. Absolutely not! lol. My son was an unexpected surprise in my first semester of college. I never really planned to have children, and certainly never planned to be a nurse. Never really thought of marriage either, nor living in Wisconsin.

2. Where to you imagine yourself in 5 years? 10? How about 30 or 40 years from now? 5 years from now I don't know where we will be living, but residency will be over and our family will (hopefully!) be bigger. 30 or 40 I wouldn't even speculate at this point.

3. Name two or three short term goals. My biggest current goal is losing weight. Next, in the 2 year plan, is adding a little person into our family. I have some career-related educational goals as well (finishing my BSN, CCRN, maybe another certification as well)

[Vanquisher]

1. When you were in high school, where did you see yourself today (career, family, location)? Is today anything like you imagined it?

2. Where to you imagine yourself in 5 years? 10? How about 30 or 40 years from now?

3. Name two or three short term goals.

1. I saw myself (please no laughing) as (ahem, seriously) a cardiovascular surgeon with two kids living in a fantasy dream doctors life. Um, I guess I have the two kids and am married to a surgeon, but the picture in my head? No, it's nothing like that.

2. In 5 years I hope to be a PA, working part-time with one kid about to finish college, and another as a high school freshman. Hopefully, we're living in the same house and everybody is happy and healthy. 10, I guess would be more of the same. 30 or 40 years? I hope to be comfortably retired with a lot of travel under my belt.

3. Get into PA school. Get a contract signed for DH.

[spaz]

1. When you were in high school, where did you see yourself today (career, family, location)? Is today anything like you imagined it?

2. Where to you imagine yourself in 5 years? 10? How about 30 or 40 years from now?

3. Name two or three short term goals.

1. In high school I thought I was going to be the next Amy Grant. If that didn't work out then a choir teacher. I wanted to get a degree before I got married. I didn't know who I would marry. Didn't think about it much. All of my friends were guys not girls. I thought I would have kids because that is what you are supposed to do.. Since I had no imaginings of this day, I don't know. I pretty much lived for the moment.

2. 5 Years from now the boys will be graduated from college. My daughter will be a senior and we will be finalizing retirement plans when she graduates.
10 years from now all the kids will have their careers. We will be traveling and doing mission work.
30 years from now . We will be doing mission work, piddling on the farm, playing with grandchildren.

3. Short term goals? To be happy. To have real friends both myself and as a couple.

Editing to add. If you had told me in high school, college or residency that I would be homeschooling I would have told you that you are nuts. I would never shelter them like that. But I discovered that homeschooling is quite a bit about a better academic education. Never say never.

[Ladybug]

1) I'm pretty much where I imagined my life going...married, family, working in science/health care. It never occurred to me to not marry, get a house, have kids, career. My family spent a lot of time teaching me that all good moms stay home with their children and women go to college to find husbands. This stunted my education and personal growth in a lot of ways, but I've worked through those limiting beliefs and I'm doing better for my own kids. The HS me would be pleasantly surprised at the older, more creative me. I was always encouraged to be more practical when I was younger. The HS me would have been shocked I had four kids, but fortunately that unfolded over time and experience. LOL.

2) I'm at another transitional point and feel like I'm looking down many different paths, contemplating which to walk. I'm out of the intensive baby years and financially secure and able to pursue...anything. I could get my masters in nursing (safe, known, practical, relatively lucrative, enjoyable) start a photography business (scary, but exhilarating), take some horticulture studies (combine art and science) go back to school to write...basically whatever I want. I just don't know what I want. I'm not paralyzed by fear, and I wish I could live long enough to do all of them. I'm just no sure which way to go at this moment. I'll be somewhere different in five years, but couldn't tell you where.

Same thing goes for 10, 20 and 30 years from now. I feel like there's a big surprise and adventure around the corner, so I'm just enjoying the anticipation of opening and exploring it.

I pray for a long, healthy and happy adventure. The older I get the less I want to know and control the next step. It closes off other options that maybe I never considered. Obviously, I'm feeling very zen today and drinking my tea.

Short term goals: move into our new house the summer, transition kids to a new school, start a new job (?) in September, get back into daily yoga/exercise.