Becoming a 'Lifer'

Remember how I said I wanted to see the northern lights before kicking the bucket?
Well, I'm too poor at the moment for a trip north, but I found a photo that satisfies my current cravings for unquestionable and majestic beauty.

Doesn't an image like this just make your heart stop for a second and marvel at how beautiful our earth is? Well, it does for me.

Unto the more serious stuff of the day:

Just recently I've developed a bit of a fear in becoming a 'lifer' in the restaurant business. I'm not stranger to busing tables, hosting, serving, kitchen prepping. Since I was 15?16? I've worked for multiple food and beverage venues and unlike many coworkers, I've managed to stay out of smoking, drinking, partying, and swearing. Make no mistake, I love the food industry - sincerely for all that it is - and I truly believe that my personality and outlook on life would be a lot different now had I not started working so early in life. It's many years later and I'm about to enter 'the real work force' but of course, I am still serving tables at a local restaurant until that happens.

Lately I suddenly realized that I am no longer 16 and that amidst all the changes both within and around me, one thing has remained stable - the lure of money in waitressing in keeping me from quitting. I have quit twice from the restaurant biz; once because I felt that the money was changing who I was and I didn't like who I was becoming and another because of school pressures. Of course, the former presents itself as more noble. That is, until you recall that each time I went back. I love the people I work with. And sometimes I convince myself that they're the reason it's hard to quit. Other days when I'm more honest, I admit that if I only has my base wage of $8/hour, no amount of job satisfaction would make me stay...not with sky-high tuition costs, anyway.

So...what's your take on the situation?

Why do you think people willingly 'get stuck' in the restaurant biz?

I apologize for not having a 'concrete response' myself, but hey, if I had all the answers, I wouldn't be asking the questions. =)

Thanks in advance for your insight. It's appreciated. Cheer-ios!