Hello friends! So I had a very stressful weekend. My parents rebounded back to their state of super-tbmness and there was plenty of fighting, yelling, and anger this weekend, with a whole slew of punishments for very minor things.

So I am now grounded for the next two weeks from my phone, video games, hanging out with friends, and other things for creating "an exmormon conference bingo sheet" that my cousin and I were designing. I also have to stay with a parent each and every second of every day for the next two weeks when I am not in school. I got yelled at for trying to force my beliefs on everyone, even being told that all my friends would abandon me and I would have the police called on me for harassment because I apparently can't keep my opinions to myself. They even went so far as saying that one of my best friends who happens to be a closet ex-mo has asked me to repeatedly stop talking about ex-moism, which was a complete lie. It is going to be hell for the next couple of months.

However freedom is on the horizon. I have the best of news. My 5th grade teacher, we will call her Trish, is a good friend of my family, and my mother has done her taxes for the last seven years. Trish has an interesting history. She worked for twenty summers in Valdez, Alaska for the Peter Pan Seafoods Inc. She is now in charge of recruiting seasonal workers in the lower 48. When she dropped by this weekend to have her taxes done, she offered me the chance to work in Valdez, Alaska from June until August. She told me that they would be providing housing and mess hall as well as other amenities as part of the job. Trish informed me that there were tons of hours available and that I could make anywhere from 8,000 to 15,000 dollars in a summer. I accepted the job immediately. I am so excited. I finally have a chance to be free of my restrictive parents and live my life as I choose! I have a financial miracle, and I am just so happy!

I still have to hold on until I graduate, something that I feel will be hard, but I hope I can do it. Thank you all so much for your support!

Great news!

This is a fantastic opportunity to go and find a little more about yourself. Maybe you'll realise Vernal is not the center of the universe too. ;o)

Yup haha. I am traveling 3,000 miles from Vernal! I will be getting plenty of space!

Yay!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Instead of a fisher of men, you will be with real fish. Good luck. I think it is very hard work.

Well, some manner of fish.

The caterpillar emerges from its cocoon.

Exciting news, for you. That's a lot of moolah to make in a single season, so enjoy with remembering when the season is over it may be able to finance the next leg of your journey into your world as a butterfly, rather than have to go back to live with your parents again.

Biggest advice I will give you right now: open a bank account with your first paycheck where you parents have NO connection or access to it. It's your money, not theirs. I'd go as far to set up a beneficiary who is NOT family, in case something happens.

Also, you are going to get your butt worked real hard in an Alaskan seafood operation...but not as hard as those folks pulling the fishing pots / traps up.

In the end...it's a paycheck and freedom. Enjoy and congrats.

Talon Avex Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> Biggest advice I will give you right now: open a
> bank account with your first paycheck where you
> parents have NO connection or access to it.

^^^THIS!!!!!^^^

Having decent job prospects at your age was indeed liberating. For me it was the very basis of freedom. Congratulations!

Seafood processing in Alaska is very, very hard work. It can be dangerous, too. You will meet lots of people and excessive living can be tempting. Live small and save as much money as you can so that you have options later on. Good luck!

yea !!!! exmo bingo is fun by the way. when in Alaska don't get any body part severed, be careful

" I would have the police called on me for harassment because I apparently can't keep my opinions to myself." Wow, that's rich!

So were you in trouble for laughing yourself stupid?

Advice.

Stop talking. Make a plan for independence. Work as many hours as possible and save every dime. You'll need it.

Don't look this gift horse in the mouth! Good luck!

Sadly, I can't work right now. My parents made me quit my job :( so right now I am trying to graduate(Its going great) and then get the hell out of dodge

You said that your parents made you quit your job.

Reading between the lines, you'll be graduating from HS soon and hoping you'll be 18 by then.

If turning 18 and graduating is true, tell Trish you still want the job but need to keep the news under the radar with your parents.

When you turn 18, you're an adult and there isn't anything that your parents can do except throw you out of their house and cut off any financial support. If you can survive without that support, you're on your way to a life on your own.

P/S you'll still be under their health insurance until you're 26.

If you do go to work in Alaska, put away as much of your pay that you can. There are many people that want to prey on young people that have a little cash, they'll do anything to get it from you.

Another thing, if you don't do drugs, smoke or drink, don't start in Alaska. Your money will go out faster than comes in. When the season is over, sit down and do some financial planning and layout your spending with a clear head.

+1 on always being aware of sharp or moving things. A knife that can decapitate a fish, can also relieve you of a finger.

Saws don't care what they cut.

Awake and aware are very important. Rest as much as you can away from work. One moment of inattention can ruin your day.

Also, don't spend any money. Except maybe on clothes. There is nothing worth spending money on, if it means you'll have to beg your parents to live with them again later.

Congrats on the job! I wish I could make $4k/mo during summers when I was 18. That would have ruled!

Groucho Marx: "I don't know... Something smells fishy."


But in truth, they seem to be quite open and honest about what they are offering:

http://www.ppsf.com/employment/about_employment.aspx

Where did you say you were from? Vernal, North Korea!! I hope it works out for you. When you leave Vernal you will discover the rest of the world is in bright living color. Beware of shady people who might take advantage of a young kid from small town Utah other then that enjoy your freedom.

Vernal, lol, and I thought my school year in Roosevelt was tough. Hold on, stay strong, and enjoy the new adventure ahead of you.

WOW..... way cool! North to Alaska, the rush is on.

Try to fly under the radar, my friend. You are getting grounded too much. lol

Congrats on the job. I agree that in any enterprise involving knives or cutters that you must be constantly alert. Be safe and make tons of money.

WooHoo! Excited for you. Now...there's some good advice here; gonna give you just a bit more. Stay on your best behaves so that your parents don't pull the plug on your Alaskan adventure.

I second Talon's advice: first paycheck goes in YOUR bank account.

Next...my son worked the fishing circuit in Alaska for a summer; he did make some great money...but get ready!!! Work out...eat well, get strong; you'll need those leg muscles as well as your forearms.
When opportunities for eating and sleeping happen in Alaska, do those activities as there will be times that you just won't get to eat or sleep. You may pass out- newbies do. Hydrate.
Wishing you the very best! I've enjoyed your seminary stories.

That's a great opportunity. Be prepared for hard word work and go for it, I say.

congratulations sweetie

It's a great adventure for you, but can be a dangerous job. Hope it goes well for you. Be sure to keep count of your fingers during this job. Count them at the end of each day. You're supposed to have 10.

Just a few more months, my young friend...hang in there.
Then enjoy your freedom.
And be careful!!!

something about this smells fishy.

You my friend are going to work your ass off this summer. Have a good time. 8,000 to 15,000 sure does sound like a lot but it will disappear very rapidly. My wife can make that go poof into thin air in nothing flat.

I hope you have your school lined up for when you get back. Trade school, college or whatever... just do something.

It's clear by these posts that you have a lot of people here who care for you! Your next chapter is a great one, go get 'em!!

Wow, they told you through their teeth that the police would be involved if you didn't keep your beliefs to yourself. The hypocrisy is astounding. If this exmormon stuff had never come to light and you had a nevermo friend who came over often, I guarantee you that your partents would not keep their beliefs to themselves even if your friend were a minor. That would only drive them to squeeze some Mormonism in here and there as subtly as possible.

Take the job and get the hell out as soon as you can. Your parents need time to cool down and you could use some empowerment that comes with an income. You can do this, Exmo Aspie. The worst is not over, but the daylight is coming. :)