I’m a guy nearing my late 20s. The overwhelming majority of which I’ve spent in oil and natural gas and warehousing (6+ years). I’m no stranger to heavy machinery, mechanical stuff, tools, grease, dust, dirt, and mud although I am absolutely no expert either. Even every little odd job I’ve worked in between was either as a cook, landscaper, or the like. The one exception was a few months I spent as a clerk/teller in my 2nd job and a short stint at a call center. I’ve done 16+ hr working days on quite a few occasions and daily commuted to and from another city while in the oilfield business.
I’m at the point where my back and spine have had enough. I’m not as mentally or physically tough as I was in my early 20s and I can feel it. The tough guy work just doesn’t make me happy anymore, or boost my dumb ego and as a matter of fact it’s just making me hate life. I love my wife but I can feel she’s upset that I’m “admitting defeat” in some way. Never mind the fact that I got serious bills to pay. I never did care for these kinds of jobs but I just kind of pushed the thought aside and dealt with it as I was making some good money every time.
I want to make every effort to get a cushy office job but my employment history is nothing but the opposite. I did not go to college and seriously want to do online school but I am so lost on where to start and if I can manage a (new job) 6:00am-5pm work schedule and get classes done. Maybe a certificate to move into something easier while I go to school? Please tell me there is an out to this kind of life because I don’t know where to go from here!