Okay, all you people who think we need to step back and take a lighter look at things. You’re tired of the Tuesday columns ripping everything to shreds, huh? It’s just so easy since the news brings us so much bad news compared to good. But to assure you the world isn’t full of pessimists, here are some positive words.

DeKalb is not only a corn town, but a college town where knowledge is bursting through everyone’s skulls. Thousands and thousands of people are taking hundreds and hundreds of courses here. And why? To enhance their skills? To feel important? To party? To snatch a good job?

These reasons apply to some of us but not to others. But there’s one word that’s missing. How about money? Lots of people, not all, go to college to make sure they’ll be making big bucks when they graduate.

There isn’t anything wrong with wanting to earn good money, especially since the economy is as good as vanilla ice cream without chocolate syrup.

The problem sits with people who go into high-paying fields, like business and computer science, and wind up having full-time jobs they can’t wait to leave after a day’s work. Sure, it sounds good. Having lots of money can’t make you totally happy if you hate what you’re doing 40-plus hours a week.

If you can combine a good salary with a strong desire to do the work, fine. If not, wake up.

Let’s get to the positive point. There’s one obvious career you can’t get into just for the money. It pays good, but if you don’t care about the work you could end up ending someone’s life by accident.

Nursing is a field that requires a strong urge to help and care for people. If your eyes glow with little $$ signs, but your heart isn’t full of compassion, it’s not the job for you.

You can’t force yourself to care for people in order to make money like you might be able to pretend with some other job. Nursing requires a genuine desire for the work, not the money. If it didn’t, it’d be pretty scary trusting someone who’s poking your arm or other body part with a needle and injecting who knows what.

To become a nurse, students have to get excellent grades in all courses and they aren’t easy ones. They have to learn how hundreds of drugs react with each other, what all the body parts do and how to cure a sick or injured person.

NIU registered nurses are guaranteed a job anywhere, anytime and start out making about $22,000. That’s pretty good compared to many other entrance-level positions. And the salaries are rising.

Let’s give nurses the credit they deserve. They sometimes get a bad reputation as being evil skin jabbers or fat, old meanies. There are always exceptions to the rule, but how can they truly be nasty when their main purpose is to help people?

The next time you have to visit a doctor, remember not all the nurses and other medical types are bad and in it for the money.

Guys, try picturing Motley Crue’s Nasty Habits—the two chicks that dance on stage—during “Dr. Feelgood” in their little nurse outfits and maybe you won’t be so nervous in the waiting room. Women, ignore the bimbo picture and hope for an increase in male nurses or cuter doctors.