<p>So I just had an argument. My parents want me to do something productive; I don't care. I can just work at Target, get a small apartment in the slums, and surf the Internet all day, while ordering my groceries online and simultaneously going on a raw-food vegan diet.</p>
<p>Is anyone else thinking of this?</p>
<p>Seriously, living at the poverty level is fine. Most money goes un-used anyways, and there's plenty of open-source software available. </p>
<p>All one needs for life: a computer, raw-food vegan foods, Wi-fi, and a small apartment in the slums. That's all one needs.</p>
<p>Screw marriage and children. The world's population is exploding, and some need to go childless.</p>
<p>As for how I'll spend my time - there are plenty of things to read online. Together with online forums and open source computer games, who needs anything else?</p>
<p>If that's how you want to live, go for it. I'd like some room to change, however, so I want to go to college. (If I change my mind later in life, come upon hard times, etc. then I'll have the option of getting a better job/different lifestyle if I have a college degree.)</p>
<p>Oh, and do professors allow old people to volunteer for research? I still want to help out with research; I just don't care much for an additional income.</p>
<p>Ah, the Bohemian dream. Too bad it's largely impossible.</p>
<p>What happens if you get sick or injured? Where does the money for insurance come from? What if your computer crashes or gets stolen? How will you afford a new one with your "barely subsistence income?" How do you afford to retire if you have no pension? </p>
<p>Sure, the Bohemian lifestyle is kinda cute in a "Rent" sort of way, but once reality creeps in, tons of questions arise.</p>
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Oh, and do professors allow old people to volunteer for research? I still want to help out with research; I just don't care much for a degree.
<p>How much per year does health insurance cost though? Could one live near public transportation and go to the library to access its computers (and books?) ;)</p>
<p>As for old age pension, well, a janitor saved up a million dollars and donated it to charity on his death. ;)</p>
<p>Health insurance, depending on copay, can range from very little to a lot. However, keep in mind that if anything serious happens (goodness forbid), then you will likely face very steep bills despite insurance.</p>
<p>And yes, you could live near public transportation. But let me give impart upon you some wisdom. Daily grind jobs suck. They are not fulfilling, and it will take a toll on your outlook on life. You will almost certainly be miserable. </p>
<p>Oh, and living in bad neighborhoods? Try it for a few months and then get back to us. Unless you do now, in which case you should know that it's not the best.</p>
<p>If you want to do that by all means go ahead. But I hate being financially strained so I'm going to go to college, work my ass off and get a high-paying job.</p>
<p>Hm, okay. I guess that's some motivation. But I still can't motivate myself. I can still fail my next few years and live with my parents, and then make a turn-about. That possibility makes me so lazy and kills my self-control.</p>
<p>Then my parents will yell at me, I guess. :p</p>
<p>Take a walk/ride through some different neighborhoods and see the options for your future. A little work/effort gets you a little, and a great deal gets you at least the chance for a great deal. Also, medical insurance is horrifically expensive. What sounds like a viable plan for a 20-year old is not a viable plan for a 50--60 year old with no insurance. It's not so much fun when everyone else around you grows up and gets on with life. But there is a need for people to populate the bottom of the bell curve. It's your choice whether to do that. By the way, have you ever been screened for depression?</p>
<p>Read the book "Nickeled and Dimed: On (Not) Getting By in America", by Barbara Ehrenreich. Gives a good perspective on the subsistence lifestyle and the problems it entails.</p>
<p>Go through some model homes in the closest new, rich neighborhood, sit on the leather couch in the media room, and watch whatever movie they're playing on the big screen in surround sound. Then you'll be motivated.</p>
<p>I'm not going to college so I can have a good income. I'm going to college because I love learning. If you love sitting at a computer for the rest of your life, by all means go ahead.</p>