For the love of Science or Money?

DO YOU REALLY LOVE GEOLOGY FOR WHAT IT IS OR WHAT IT HAS TO OFFER?

Old Crater Lake, Mt. Apo Natural Park, Davao, Philippines

Capter's first pay check :)

   OR                                                 ?????



Well undeniably I may not be rich but I should say its sufficient!

SUFFICIENT that I may buy luxury over need!

Travelling around the world has always been my dream since I was a child and now I think I am starting to do that. THANKS for being a GEOLOGIST! I could always say #PaidForThis :D

But how does it started? Well I may say I was out of choice, but thank GOD it was DESTINY!
My friends often say, "Many are called but only few are chosen." Luckily I got BOTH!

Never had I imagined of becoming a geologist since I got only a handful of idea when I entered this course though I fucking love SCIENCE and ADVENTURE ever since. In fact, I also got NO IDEA that it is a highly paid profession :)

But what if I say that "ITS NEVER TOO EASY TO GET MONEY." YES indeed!

Here are some pros and cons of being a geologist based on experience:

PROs;

1. You are well compensated in terms of salary and other packages.
2. You've got to travel and experience adventure while being paid for that.
3. You've got to know variety of people in terms of culture, characters, attitudes, physical appearance, etc. You end up being sociable and friendly but sometimes being plastic because you always smile even in a toughest situation. PLASTIC DEFORMATION (you have to bend for you not to fracture! acheche)
4. You can easily adjust into a place and people's diversity.

CONs:

1. It requires versatility and being entirely fit (physically, mentally, emotionally, etc.)
2. You'll be sick often times when you are not fit.
3. You have to work where the rocks are which means going into remote areas such as the most rugged mountains you could ever imagine, the hottest and coldest parts of the earth, and most dangerous places you have never dreamed of.
4. You are prone to all hazards which includes natural and man-made.
     Natural:

• Severe weather conditions.
• Animal bites (insects, snakes/reptiles, dogs, etc.)
• Allergies, rushes, cuts, scratches, bruises, uneven tan lines, etc.
• accidents

     Man-made:

• Insurgencies, misunderstandings, rallies, etc. You end up having threats when you can't settle the problem.

5. You end up being physically and mentally stressed often times after each fieldwork especially during report writing because you forgot to take the strike and dip :D

6. Lastly, you become frustrated when you got to be laid off because your company suddenly ran out of investment, end-up filing resignation because of so many factors, and worst end-up having NO JOB and wait for another BOOM!

Well, I have experienced these ALL but luckily except the last statement in No. 6 of the CONs and hopefully NOT.

To summarize, I have NO REGRETS of BEING A GEOLOGIST because I LOVE SCIENCE MORE THAN MONEY!

P.S..I am now working as a CONTRACTUAL geologist at the Mines and Geosciences Bureau RO-XI, a government agency and a part-time instructor in the Geology Department of the University of Southeastern Philippines. I could easily be retrenched and is paid relatively lower than my previous employments in the mining industry but I am 100% HAPPY :D