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College student resents parental interference

By Amy Dickinson, Tribune Content Agency on

Dear Amy: I am 21 years old and attend college out of state. I am lucky to go to college, except that I can't do anything without parents' approval. They pay for college because they refuse for me to have loans. The problem is that since they pay for my schooling, they hold everything over my head.

If I want to get a piercing, tattoo, etc., I need to ask -- even if it's with my money.

When I come home they only let me go out or visit friends in other towns if I give the names, address and phone numbers of the people I'm visiting.

I understood this in high school, but I can't live like this anymore. I'm at a loss of what to do.

-- A Not So Independent Adult

Dear Not So Independent: Figuring out the solution to your problem does not require college-level deduction. It's really very simple.

 

You are legally an adult. As an adult, you have the legal right to be in charge of your life.

This means that you can drop out of school, sign up for the military or try to get a job and rent your own place, tattoo and pierce yourself with abandon and let the chips with your parents fall where they may.

I gather that you are not ready to take on adulthood to that extent. And, of course, it would be wisest for you to stay in college.

And so -- if you choose to stay in college, your parents will control certain aspects of your life. That's the contract: As long as they are paying the bills, they will treat you like a teenager.

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