[OAC_Sparky]

My 16 year old will be living in the basement and taking the bus to McMaster. He'll have a 10 minute walk to the closest bus stop. He'll be expected to pull his weight around the house, he'll still have it easier than I did. I want the best for all my kids, but there are no free rides here.

I worked nights, supported an (ex-)wife and kids and went to college during the day. My boss didn't care if I had an exam the next day, he was paying me to work, not go to college. There were no party nights, couldn't afford them. I used to take the bus when I couldn't afford my insurance. Actually worked out better because it gave me an extra hour of study time.

If you want an education bad enough, you'll do whatever it takes. I'm not criticizing anyone here per se, everyone has their own story. But being the age I am, I have a quite a few friends that have kids in school. Kids that wash out of programs because they're too busy conducting social lived than hitting the books. My wife was the same way. Washed out of year 1 at Mac, ended up going to a year 1 1/2 at college to bring grades up, got back into Mac and finished her degree. 5 1/2 years for a BA. $40G and 5 1/2 years that you're out of the workforce for a degree that might, if you're lucky, land you a $50G a year job. Crazy.