[frozintime]

I am always confused about how you can die for your country at 17, cannot drink until 21, but are not considered an adult until 19.....in Nebraska. Really? I say if you are allowed the decision to die for your country, you should be allowed to drink.....otherwise it is a rigged system meant to force your decisions.

[Happygolucky]

Originally Posted by lexiesue

Well I just turned 18 and I have been living with my parents for about 2 years. I haven't been a good kid all up until 9 months ago, I started to shape up. Now that I am doing better and not sneaking out or doing drugs or any other illegal things, they are threatening to kick me out because of my attitude. I hate my parents so it wouldn't be bad if they kicked me out, but I don't know what I would have to do after that. My coach offered to take me in.. Could I move in with a friend? Do I need to get emancipated? Do they still have control over me? I read that if I went to like Iowa and stayed there for a little while they couldn't do anything.. I just have lots of legal questions. Please help!

Join the Military.

[historyfan]

Originally Posted by Happygolucky

Join the Military.

If your record is clean, the military may take you. Go see a recruiter. You will need have your high school diploma or GED. Federal financial aid for college does not consider you independent until you are 24 years old. This is regardless of whether you are estranged from your parents or not. Service in the military is one way to get educational benefits for college.

The best thing you could do for yourself today is to seek counseling. You need help to find healthy ways to work your way through any lingering anger & hurt issues. You will find each day much easier if you are not carrying old resentments through it. Counseling might be difficult at first but it will help you feel better about yourself and your life within a few sessions.

Good luck & hang in there.

[smarino]

I sure wouldn't recommend joining the military! You will just be one of 1,450,000 other people in there. Take the time to find out who you are and what you want before even thinking of something like that. Be an individual.

You're 18, and you can do anything you want as long as you don't get caught, just like the rest of us. Welcome to adulthood. Now you know that you are in charge of your actions, sometimes you have to compromise, and the only people you can really count on are yourself. You're the boss, but only when you are paying the cost to be the boss. If we live under someone else's roof we have to live by their rules or leave.

By the way, at your age I had been living on my own for over a year and had a job, a car, a wife and a child. If you have no responsibilities and live at home you'll never grow up. The things we have to do, whether or not we want to do them or not, make for responsible people. You are responsible for your life now, no one else is. The buck stops at your feet. Life is a beautiful, cruel, loving, disappointing, frightening, and rewarding adventure. Step out and experience it. Your life is important, and this is not a trial run, this is it! No do overs, but it's OK to make mistakes. That's how we learn, by doing the things we weren't supposed to do. I know of no other way to get experience.

It's never easy to find the right sort of people to hang with, but do yourself a favor, find the best sort that you can. Not preachy, phony hypocrites, or mean, ignorant people that are a dime a dozen. Find real people that live lives of intelligence and compassion, people whose lives stand for something. You'll be known as much for the company you keep as for what you do, trust me, and it's better to try and live up to something than down to it. If you fail that's fine, we all do that. Just get back up, don't do that again, and move forward.