When her son graduated from college, Norma says he was all at sea--he had no idea what he wanted to do. He'd been a good athlete in college--he was a star on his school's baseball team--and earned good grades, but all that discipline and focus didn't add up to a career choice.
Norma, who is my physical therapist, is also my new "best friend": We spend an hour with each other, twice a week. While she works on my sore leg and back, we get to talking about a lot of things. She would like to cut back on her hours, but she can't: She and her husband are supporting their son, who lives in New York. And New York, Norma tells me, "is very expensive."
Six years ago, her son went to Big Apple to visit some fraternity brothers who were there trying to make their way in the world. One was working at a radio station that had an opening in its sport research department. Her son knew a lot about sports, got an interview and the job, and moved to New York.
The job didn't pay much. Norma and her husband helped out. They paid his rent--they wanted him to live in a safe neighborhood, so the rent was sizable--and his credit card bill. "Lots of charges for bars and meals out--he doesn't cook," Norma says. The job was just for a year. When it ended and her son was out of work, Norma suggested he get a job at Starbucks or something like that to earn a little extra money. He didn't want to. He now had a career in mind. He took film-editing classes and within a year landed a job with a television production company. He's been there four years now, but he still can't make it on his own. He pays his own rent now, but Norma and her husband still pay the credit card bill. The good news: they are seeing fewer bar charges on the card. He now has a girl friend and she cooks. Norma hasn't met her yet but it sounds "serious." The girlfriend is from Los Angeles and has a sous-chef internship at a restaurant. But her job is not exactly a high-paying one. Norma asked if they were thinking of moving in together. They are not--they are not ready for that level of commitment, although a move would make financial sense. The people it would make the most fiscal sense to, however, are Norma and her husband and the girl's parents--they're supporting her.
