One thing this thread has driven home is that the one-career thing really happens for very few people anymore. That's probably good for people, though I'm not entirely sure what it means for the economy and so on. Probably good too -- people bringing fresh perspective to things and wanting to be there.

Since I posted this, school has in many ways gotten worse. A lot of what I learn I think of as indulgent and useless, which means I can't bring myself to enjoy it even when I enjoy it, if that makes sense. There is, unsurprisingly, a lot of administrative BS that goes on as well, which doesn't bode well for a career in teaching at the university level either. Those aren't battles I want to fight. I have a lot of great opportunities at my feet, but I have a hard time enjoying things no matter how hard I try.

Still, I think I'm resigned to finishing at this point. That's the advice I've gotten from most sides. I have just a year and change left, and even people I know on the business side of things recommend getting the degree on my resume rather than explaining an unfinished degree my whole life. It's kind of antithetical to everything I believe to finish the degree for a resume's sake, but I do see the reasoning that it's better than putting the money toward nothing, even though the thought of another year kind of makes me want to curl up in a ditch. And I've come to the conclusion that I'll most likely walk out of grad school and straight back into my old job. I did actually love the job, and there's something to be said for a job that is a job, as Doc Scott said. I didn't grow up understanding that was an option for me, and if it took grad school to make me realize that, it is worth it in its own way.