Years ago, I had a roommate who, at the time, was just out of college; I was four years ahead of her. I knew she'd graduated with honors from a well-known private university, done a great internship, had a little bit of professional work (which is how we met), and purchased the condo we were sharing. However, when I moved in, she didn't have a career job, just a full-time waitressing gig at a bar. She complained about the bar for months. Finally, I snapped:
Chrissy: If you hate it so much, why don't you just get a real job???
RM: I have $100,000 worth of education, I'm not going begging for a job!
Chrissy: You have $100,000 worth of education... that you're using to be a waitress.
RM: (shocked silence)
That did the trick. We worked on her resume together, she had lots of responses, and in short order had a job using her degree. Today, she has a very successful career, and is paid in bags of gold. She credits me for starting her on the right path.
Her parents were blue-collar immigrants, so she didn't understand how the professional world was supposed to work, and I know I should cut her some slack... but it's still one of the all-time stupidest things I've ever heard.
