h2g2 The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy: Earth Edition

My son (No 2) is 21 and still a bit unsure about his future. He did his community service instead of military service (compulsory for boys in Germany - at least for the first two boys in the family). To do this, he had to go through a rigorous procedure of conscientious objection.

Then he started to learn to fly. The school he is learning at is floundering somewhat and he hasn't been going so much lately. I don't know if that is because his enthusiasm has abated or because there is simply no teaching going on.

Either way, you can do a daytime job while learning to fly, so he's been applying like mad for all sorts of engineering courses and anything even vaguely connected with aeronautics.

On an impulse, he has even applied to the RAF for Air Traffic Control training. He has a British Passport. He was invited to an interview at the Ramstein air base today. It's terribly exciting. I just hope it doesn't matter that he is a registered objectionist with the German Military.

to number 2 son

"Not officer material" was the verdict. Heaven knows what he's like at these interviews. He no doubt will end up teaching music, which is what we've been suggesting all along. He certainly can teach, but he'd have to start pratcising the piano more. He hasn't played it since he was about 9.

I ought to bring him together with Xanatic - they're a right pair.

That's exciting! I have a friend who is an Air Controller - not for the RAF mind. He must be clever! I wish him luck.

Well - he failed the interview, he failed another test he did in December for the European ATC school in Maastricht, but he has decided to go to university after all - he has chosen to take Maths and Spanish.

I feel really sad that after all the exotic plans he had for himself, he's ended up having to do something really humdrum. I hope he does well. He has certainly found out how important it is to work hard at this stage. His elder brother has got through his courses really fast and done well by working hard - his younger brother is still causing us to tear our hair out with his laziness and lack of interest in anything.

Maybe he can have another go after he comes down from uni, TC. Perhaps with a bit more maturity, he'll do fine. Perhaps the knock-back will be purely temporary and will spur him on to better things.

It's not that easy in Germany. He now has five years of Uni-slog ahead of him, followed by 18 months of teacher training. Which means he'll be 28 before he starts work, and is then committed to the German Government to teach until he drops. Just like his father.

I hope he gets to do lots of music and exciting things in life outside school. But it's not easy. That life eats you up, and if you spend too much time on extra-curricular activities, you don't have time to be a good teacher. Besides which, schoolchildren are increasingly difficult to control these days, and they are talking of putting up the working life of Beamte (a German grade of government employees, including teachers, policemen, registrars, tax officers, who have certain benefits - like they can't be fired - but also very heavy obligagtions).

to 68 or 70.

forgot to finish the sentence because of all the brackets!

Oh my - that's quite a late retirement age. Mind you, with the coming pensions crisis, probably more and more will find themselves working for longer.

To get back to my second son's career : he finally starts university next month. He has got it into his head to swap maths for music, if possible (if not, then for English) as from the next semester. Which means he has had to take up the piano. He learned piano from age 7 to age 10, then took up the guitar until he started on the violin at age 19. Now he wants to get into the music faculty with piano and violin and is taking lessons and practising furiously (as well as learning Spanish).

He is avoiding guitar because he's played rock and pop for the the last 7 years and doesn't want to go back to classical guitar. Anyway, he's jolly good on music theory and singing, and the piano teacher thinks he'll make it. He's looking out some pieces to play now, and he'll have to sing a tenor aria as well. Which means we'll have to fork out for some singing lessons as well as the piano. Violin lessons he gets free, because the teacher likes him, and he joins in with some ex-violin-classmates and plays duets and trios with them.

Meanwhile, son No 3, with absolutely no idea about music, at least not the conventional type, is quickly coming up on the inside lane and has taught himself the bass guitar and is composing tunes with a second-hand guitar he's been given. The way he plays the chords makes us wince, but the noise that comes out in the end isn't bad.

Kids. Gotta luv 'em.

My son brought home a trumpet, and he "plays" it nightly.

Help!

At one time our cellar was a band practice "room" Some of you may remember we live in a VERY old Lincs house with VERY thick foundations. Their other ideal practice place was someone's barn up the road in an even smaller village. Neither of mine could fly in the RAF because of being colour blind, so we didn't have to compromise pacifist principles (they pay huge grants for students)
Mind you there's a punch-bag on the younger one's wedding present list ()