Well, so far I think everyone who actually has kid/s has mentioned "reproducing" as the biggest risk -- and as far as throwing yourself off a ledge goes, it's a pretty good example. It's a one-way ticket into a totally different life. I call that a risk, even if all our social norms attempt to convince you that it's, well, normal.
I'd say my biggest risk so far is one I'm about to take - this whole moving from Austin to Baltimore spectacle. I'm sure you'll hear all about how that turns out. :D I may have a place to live lined up already though, so it's slightly less risky than it could be, I suppose. The idea still scares the hell out of me, but not as much as staying here does.
Well, it shouldn't be that big a risk as long as you remember that in Baltimore, you don't walk home alone at night ever. Other than that you should be okay. *g* Where's your place??
I know lots of people have done the moving story but...
Moving to London where my first job was based knowing few people in the city (there were some relatives that I hadn't seen for a decade and a friend of a friend) and leaving myself a weekend to find somewhere to live (I did - I moved in with four girls I'd never met before in Bethnal Green).
Although, bateleur and I discussed how much of a risk it really was given that I could have baled and fled to parents in Cambridge any time it got really rough. Also, my aunt would have put me up in an emergency (I was in their tiny box room for the weekend that I spent looking).
The riskiest alternative in the "no going back" sense must have been the decision to have kids. Or possibly choosing A levels. Hmm.
Ah, a young woman on her own in the big city. *nostalgia*
As I told makesmewannadie above, there seems to be universal consensus that kids are The Biggest Risk. Of course, so far I haven't heard anyone say "...and it failed miserably. Boy was I wrong."
Of course, so far I haven't heard anyone say "...and it failed miserably. Boy was I wrong."
I think, actually, we would say that. We love them dearly but, had someone outlined what was coming (the early troubles, disabilities, etc) we are agreed we would have stayed childless.
You know, I'd been meaning to back and thank you for saying this. It's exactly the sort of thing that everyone who is contemplating parenthood needs to hear, and that hardly anyone is willing to say.
For someone as risk averse as I am, I guess I've taken quite a lot of risks. But also, when you're very risk-averse, even the tiniest things feel very risky
( ... )
I've taken lots of stupid and boring risks, of the usual teenage sort. The thing that looks like the biggest risk - dropping out of Oxford - wasn't really much of a risk at all, because I planned to go back after a year, and when the year was up and I decided not to go back, I already knew I was doing OK out in the 'real world'.
Probably the biggest actual risk was quitting my last job with no new job to go to, because it was making me so miserable I couldn't bear it any more. It worked out - two days later, I was offered this job :-)
Oh, good for you -- I always cheer for people who say "enough is enough" and walk out of a job. I've done it once, when I was waitressing and the manager-of-the-day called me stupid. Felt great.
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Moving to London where my first job was based knowing few people in the city (there were some relatives that I hadn't seen for a decade and a friend of a friend) and leaving myself a weekend to find somewhere to live (I did - I moved in with four girls I'd never met before in Bethnal Green).
Although, bateleur and I discussed how much of a risk it really was given that I could have baled and fled to parents in Cambridge any time it got really rough. Also, my aunt would have put me up in an emergency (I was in their tiny box room for the weekend that I spent looking).
The riskiest alternative in the "no going back" sense must have been the decision to have kids. Or possibly choosing A levels. Hmm.
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As I told makesmewannadie above, there seems to be universal consensus that kids are The Biggest Risk. Of course, so far I haven't heard anyone say "...and it failed miserably. Boy was I wrong."
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I think, actually, we would say that. We love them dearly but, had someone outlined what was coming (the early troubles, disabilities, etc) we are agreed we would have stayed childless.
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Probably the biggest actual risk was quitting my last job with no new job to go to, because it was making me so miserable I couldn't bear it any more. It worked out - two days later, I was offered this job :-)
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