It is true… a siesta… hiatus… break… is being taken from flying lessons.. Would you like to hear my logic behind it? Of course you would.
Basically it all comes down to financial reason. I am coming close to the end of my full time Internship in which I will be going back to school and working only part time. This will deflate my bank account very quickly causing more loans. That just isn’t fun.
When I went in to flying I went in with the mindset of it being a hobby (yes, a very expensive hobby). I put together a very extravagant, very detailed budget in Excel and went to town on keeping the budget on track. I was very successful until a point. There came a point in my budget when something changed. A social addition was made and suddenly I really wanted to spend money in other ways. For nearly three months this continued. I was taking less flight lessons in order to accommodate the increased spending, but this was just increasing the amount of time to obtain my certificate. Once this temporary social addition’s visit was up, I came to my realization…
Over the next six months, until I start working full time again, I would be able to have fun in only one way (that involves money), flying lessons. I could make it work, but every penny I found would go to the flying fund. I am about to be 22 here in September; I am in college and living with friends. Flying is my hobby… how much fun would I have if I spent all my time, energy, and money on taking the plane up once every three weeks for an hour or so, just flying in circles (cause I wouldn’t have the budget to take a fun trip). My other option is to take a little break, have fun with friends by going bowling, going to bars, maybe taking a weekend road trip… and then next spring start flying again to finish off my lessons. To me (especially seeing it in writing) the choice is obvious.
I talked to my instructor, parents, and friends, who all agreed with my reasoning. I am very confident that I made the right choice. I love hanging out with friends, and much of the time that involves spending a little money. Sometime in the future as well, maybe I’ll start seeing someone and like to spend some time and a little money on them… I would love to have that option.
Who knows, maybe I’ll strike it rich with flyingpage.com and finances won’t be anything to worry about… but I’m thinking cautious now. I already feel less bogged down about money and spending, and it makes me a happy camper. Any comments?