KIDS THESE DAYS:

It was a chance meeting over the weekend at a restaurant straddling the border of Costa Mesa and Newport Beach.

My wife and I were there with our son, Roy, and his friend Tashi, having dinner before going to see “Yes Man� starring Jim Carrey.

As we were waiting for our table, I thought I recognized the husband of a lady with whom I’d done a lot of volunteer work 10 years ago. As I was looking at him, the lady happened to turn my way. When I saw her, we both smiled and met halfway to say hello.

She is doing well, I am happy to report. And except for a new hairstyle that kept me from recognizing her sooner, not much had changed.

That lack of change is not always a bad thing. As one who has always had a taste for the new and different, I am beginning to recognize the value of monotony. Monotony is predictable and dependable, two traits that happen to be particularly important in the U.S. job market today.

We caught each other up on our kids and she told me that her daughter, whom I will call “Jane,� was working for an outlet of a large retail chain.

“She went to Orange Coast College for two years, then realized that being a student just wasn’t for her. So now she’s working.�

“Working� is an understatement, for Jane is thriving.

In grade school, Jane was a good student, a smart kid who showed up, did her work and stayed out of trouble. She was involved in school activities, too.

But college is not for her, just as it is not the answer for thousands of other kids in the Newport-Mesa Unified School District.

Still, I am seeing that some educators and other important people in the area are having trouble understanding that college is not the answer for everyone, and that there is no shame in learning how to fix cars or program a computer.

In fact, for those readers who have attended college, I will offer that after 20 years you can remember more names of the plumbers and mechanics who have saved your days than the names of the college professors who were supposed to make such a difference in your life.

I tested my theory on my own history, and I can recall only one professor, Harlan Hahn at USC, whose name I remember and who did influence me. But the list of tradespeople who performed their work efficiently and affordably over the years is longer.

And I’m guessing that when the plumber showed up at their homes late at night on an emergency call, not one reader asked him where he went to college.

This is not to say that college does not have value. After all, the doctors, lawyers and other professionals who have taken care of important events in our lives all went to college, and that experience was then beneficial to us and to society as well.

But on a personal level, college for most of us was a means to a higher income.

Most college graduates do earn more money over time than non-college graduates, but money isn’t everything. The country is full of people earning good money but who are bored or dissatisfied with their careers.

I am pleased to report that the school district has a number of options for those who want to skip college. These options include the Regional Occupation Program, which is run in conjunction with Coastline Community College.

Through ROP, students have non-college choices that include culinary arts, film and production and medical office support.

For more information, visit web.nmusd.us/cms/page_ view?d=x&piid;=&vpid;= 1230557228750.

My advice to any student not interested in college is to choose something related to health care. The industry is not recession-proof, but it’s about as close as any could be.

Finally, here’s a big “thank you� to Jane and all of the non-college people who help make the country’s trains run on time: the medical office people, mechanics and construction workers for whom college would not have given them the satisfaction they feel every day and certainly would not have helped clear that clogged sewer line at 2 a.m. as Frank the plumber did for us 14 years ago.

STEVE SMITH is a Costa Mesa resident and a freelance writer. Send story ideas to [email protected].