[Chewie von Nubbins]

Methinks some SteveC advice will be along soon. The subject of loans on here is just as popular of a subject as the PFT/PFJ threads. Do a little digging and read some of those threads. No matter what you decide to actually do with dealing with loans, having a prospective from some people that have been doing this for quite a while and weighing their advice on the path you choose to take is probably one of the most valuable things that JC has to offer.

In regards to the "what if" feeling that you are talking about, I had a real lightbulb moment when I took my CFII ride with the FAA Inspector. After spending several hours doing the oral with him, we just returned back from a break. He asked me what my plan in aviation was going to be. I told him....you know, CFI / regional / major. He sat back, sighed deeply, and told me how he ended up at the FAA as an Inspector. In a nutshell, he explained that he had been furloughed a few times and lost his house and almost everything that he owned trying to make his same dream as mine work. But, he loved flying so much that he just couldn't seem to give it up. So, that is how he ended up with that FAA job that he hates doing. The only reason that he is doing that job is because of the stability of having a government job.

I, myself, am still suffering from commitment issues with doing this for a living full-time. I am about to start back at a full-time computer job making close to what I was making before I started my path from 0 TT almost a year ago (around 80k/yr). I want to pay off all my debt before pursuing this full-time for a living. I want to make sure that my wife and I can pay every single bill that we have each month on her salary alone. She is a school teacher here in TX. And, you have no idea how much it is killing me inside to have to go back to working a cube life for around a year and put this on hold. But, at this point in life, I think it is the most responsible thing that I can do. I am 35 yo now. I know that if I played my cards right that I could be on with a regional within a 2 month period. But, what happens if the price of fuel forces the airlines to cut back and start to furlough people? What happens if a few of the mainlines merge? I would bet that the furlough would include me and we would have to live on credit cards to fill in the deficit since I was no longer earning a paycheck flying an airplane for a living.

Sorry for the ramble, but I guess I had to get that off my chest.