A rant: Our son is 19. Other than a stint in boot camp, which ended in an injury, he has not had a job. He got his first one last week and really likes it. He's a bit of a late bloomer and a really good kid. He's the last one at home and he's in no hurry to leave and we're in no hurry for him to leave. He helps out around the house, helps me at my job when he has time (I'm self employed) and his only bills are his car and all that entails. He's also a saver, not a spender and he has school paid for when he decides what he wants to go for.
The issue I'm running into is… everyone has a fucking opinion. He should get a job in a factory. He should go to college now. He should move out. Your job is done, time for him to be a man. And on and on and on. Mind your business! Eventually, this young man is going to have to work full time, pay bills, support a family, etc and if things don't change, he'll have to work until he can't or until he dies of old age. He has a job (local retail walking distance from home), he's making friends there, and his boss told me he's a good worker when I dropped off lunch the other day. It's a new store and they've been working hard to get it set up and stocked for the opening tomorrow. It's a good first job for him, especially since we suspect he's on the spectrum. Mild, but he has quirks and is socially awkward. But he's thriving at work and opening up quite a bit, to our surprise.
We're really proud of him and are hoping it spurs him into action to figure out what he wants to do…college, trade school, whatever. But people are so rude and so nosy about shit that's none of their business. What do they care? It's not their household.