NOM

I am in my second college career.

When I was a youngster there was a lot more graffiti in university restroom stalls than I see today. It seemed to fall into three categories: the usual baudy and scatological comments, stoner philosophy, and arguments between intra-mural factions (e.g. chemists vs. physicists).

Nowadays there is very little graffiti but when it does show up almost all of it takes the form of complaints about debt and student loans. This must be weighting really heavily on the kids' minds if it even pushes toilet humor out of the picture.

For those of you with college age kids, how much of this kind of angst are you seeing?

my kids are on track to graduate debt free so far.

- Two kids graduated debt free via scholarship and work as you go.
- Two kids tried and couldn't afford it...because neither could we. Might have helped if those two would have stayed at home and gone to a local college. They left with some debt and are now just working blue collar, still trying to figure it out.
- 2nd to youngest is off on his own out of state working construction, not sure what he long-term plan is but I'm encouraging HVAC or some other field like that where he can get school and certified and build on the construction experience and make good money.
- Youngest has 1.5 years left, not sure what her interest is yet, but hopefully she'll stay at home and we'll get her a degree; if not, a good trade school.

Does it seem like the ROI on a 4 year degree is pretty thin these days? Cost seems to just keep going up, but starting salaries and opportunities for many degrees has not. I can see why kids are so stressed about it!

One is on track to finish first two years of college debt free. Scholarship and part time job coupled with cheep skate genetics hopefully keep the course.

I think the entertainment value of bathroom graffiti is a lost art form due to the iPhone. No need to scribble on the stall walls when you can surf the net, Facebook, and tweet about the consistency of your turds aligning with the GOP!

Red Ryder wrote: ↑Tue Mar 26, 2019 4:43 pm No need to scribble on the stall walls when you can surf the net, Facebook, and tweet about the consistency of your turds aligning with the GOP!

Despite being very scatological in nature, this would make for an interesting Conference talk. "The words of the prophets are written on the bathroom stalls... and echo in the sounds of silence."

My children are in various stages of school, but all of them have avoided student debt so far. This has been from a combination of scholarships, community college, and getting specialized certifications rather than a full degree. I have a degree, but I have counseled my children to not get one just because they are "supposed" to get one. Find a path that makes sense with doing things you enjoy. Work, and save, and live in benign poverty for a while. Don't take out loans you don't need to keep yourself on an unrealistic schedule to simply have a degree. This has worked so far.

Red Ryder wrote: ↑Tue Mar 26, 2019 4:43 pm I think the entertainment value of bathroom graffiti is a lost art form due to the iPhone. No need to scribble on the stall walls when you can surf the net, Facebook, and tweet about the consistency of your turds aligning with the GOP!

At the U, the graffiti was endemic. One favorite was the "grout wall" above the urinals. All kinds of terrible grout puns penciled in between the tiles...

One more "poetic" offering that I saw often:

Here I sit, brokenhearted
Came to s#!! and only farted

Another offering I can't even write (send me a PM if you really want to know...) because it's so homophobic, but as a closeted gay man at the time, I kind of appreciated the humorous aspect of it...

moksha wrote: ↑Tue Mar 26, 2019 9:37 pm

Red Ryder wrote: ↑Tue Mar 26, 2019 4:43 pm No need to scribble on the stall walls when you can surf the net, Facebook, and tweet about the consistency of your turds aligning with the GOP!

Despite being very scatological in nature, this would make for an interesting Conference talk. "The words of the prophets are written on the bathroom stalls... and echo in the sounds of silence."

From a bathroom stall at Bath Iron Works 30 years ago: Cartoon drawing of a woman with three breasts, with the words from Lionel Richie’s song underneath it “She was once, twice, three times a lady……..”