Well, Frank, you caught me in a good mood – so here goes 
As a Kid
Truth be told, I don’t really recall. I’m sure I had aspirations of being a fireman, a police officer, etc. like most young boys do, but I can’t think of anything concrete. I have vague recollections of wanting to become a cartoonist (I was a huge fan of the Garfield comic strip when I was little).
As a Teenager
During High School, I know I really wanted to be a lawyer like my father was. He wasn’t terribly insistent that I pursue it or anything, but I always dug how he dressed in suits and had a very definite air of confidence (something I thought, at the time, was common to all laywers).
Now
As I’ve mentioned before, I currently get paid to write software. And, honestly, I think this is exactly what I want to be doing (although, possibly in a different environment). Going to work in jeans and a t-shirt and being able to work on interesting problems (most of the time) while listening to my iPod and chatting on IRC – I don’t know that I could ask for much more than that. (And before you all ream me for my ostensibly-unproductive habit of chatting while working, I’m chatting with programmers and we often help one another out with work-related questions). 
And I’d be remiss should I fail to mention that I’m also a husband and father (my son is 20 months now and my daughter is due on June 25, 2007), which are both “jobs” in a sense – but a job that I love more dearly than any paid gig I might end up in.
Later
I know that it’s common for most code monkeys to do their time in the trenches and, eventually, move into some sort of management role. Well, as I sit here, I have virtually no interest in managing people. I did so many years ago, in a couple of different settings (mostly in food/coffee service joints) and I didn’t think it was really for me. I have too hard a time being a jerk, if you want to know the truth. And not that all managers are jerks or even should be jerks, but sometimes they have to be.
Alternative
There isn’t much I really dream of doing (apart from what I already do). I enjoy writing (which is part of the reason I started this little blog here), but I don’t know that I’m good enough at it to do it professionally. If I won the lottery or something and could do anything I pleased, I’d probably work in a book store or a record store.
Now then, time to tag some other lucky folk with this little gem: Glen, Scott, Andrew, Jason and Bren – Sound Off!
Technorati Tags: meme, work, aspirations
Written by Brett Kelly
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