Being Watson

I gain understanding.
Yesterday, at the behest of my in-laws, i called to assure that i had actually gotten my BA degree (Tech Management, Automotive Tech associates).
Yesterday, in other news, my technician and i got paid.
I've worked as a technician for the year after i got home from Iraq. I understand what He is feeling when the shop isn't keeping him busy.
You see, a technician (by in large) gambles for his wages. You don't need a degree to work on cars. Its one of the ways an employee can invest his hands and understanding to convert those to money. A technician can get paid around 15 to 20 dollars per shop hour. I know techs that can push that up toward 50 or 60 per real hour by just understanding how to do a job more quickly than expected.
Of course, i also have seen (and been) a tech that has worked 40 hours in a week and gotten paid for 12. There is the gamble. More often than not, a technician will do well enough.
If the shop isn't producing, a technician starts to look at other options. But where can an untrained laborer earn what a technician can earn when the shop is good?
Does a degree, brothers, sisters, and friends guarantee that I'll be able to earn the money i need? No. But i do believe that it opens the doors of companies that I would want to work for.

Just a bit of recent thought.