Being a poor about-to-graduate student myself, I must admit to sharing
any and all general fears and panic about the state of my finances.
While I am fully appreciative of the fact that I was able to get loans,
I do also know that I'm going into a field that does not pay well, and
that's if I manage to find a job at all other than flipping burgers.  I
love what I'm doing, but there is most certainly a huge element of panic
in realizing how much I owe, corresponding to the lack of jobs available.
The panic is only compounded when I consider doing art conservation
instead of art history.

So.  If people are sensitive about student loans, and more than a little
frightened by the future, IMO we can occasionally be forgiven!  And, as
I have told my mother, who also faces debt because of grad school, and a
field that is far from lucrative, to an exiting student who may not even
be sure that they're doing the right thing, the financial load and the lack
of future plans can make things more intimidating than for someone who has
already worked and has some life "constants".

>Was yesterday a bad day?  Surely you know Mr. Martinson and
>I were just being facetious (especially the part about promising
>your first-born child).

I would also like to add that at this point in time, for a job, I think I
might offer my first-born child!!

Heidi Rempel