Some kind of ranter... (...and the point is...?)

Sometimes, in the society we live in today, we are pushed into doing things that we probably wouldn't do if we had the choice. I, for example, wouldn't be attending university if I thought I could pay the bills as a journalist without a degree. Maybe I haven't been trying hard enough, or maybe I'm simply not a good enough writer, but the fact remains that I'm doing something I promised myself I would never do. Then again, I thought I'd be touring the United States with my band at 19, so perhaps my younger self was a little optimistic in thinking that I could do anything I wanted to do without following the rules set by our government today. Excuse me for believing it's still 1965 and people are rewarded for their hard work, passion and originality as opposed to their ability to do whatever is asked of them by those in power, leaving all morals and integrity by the wayside.

Don't get me wrong, there are those who have got where they want to be in life with their conscience intact. And those people are to be applauded, be it the surgeon saving lives, or the rock star raising millions for charity. All I'm saying is that these people are few and far between.

When I started my university course last autumn, all I saw was a large group of 18/19 year olds, all thoroughly unprepared for what life is going to throw at them, and all believing that what they learn in the proceeding three or four years will take them through the rest or their lives. And perhaps, for a very lucky few, it will. But for most of us, sooner or later life is sure to come around when you least expect it, and I guarantee that no matter how many lecture notes you took, classes you attended, or exams you passed, the kick up the backside you receive will be just as hard, if not harder, than everyone else's.

Sounds pretty bleak? Life is what we make of it, but it is also this life which will be the making of us all. The sooner we realise that we will not all be earning over 40 grand a year by the time we're thirty, and that there is a chance that your hard work will never be rewarded, we can at least get on with the business of living our lives the best we can manage.

We might even start enjoying ourselves.