Back to school: Thoughts about my academic future

I don't know how I feel about this year. Way more uncertainty than last. With this being a (traditionally) two year M.S. program I'm in, this is the year where I'm expected to make a lot of decisions. As in, whether or not I'm going to take a break, or plunge ahead into a PhD program, or even take my higher education in another direction.

At the immediate moment, I don't feel I'm ready for a PhD program, be it in this current program, or in sociology.  My program is however, a bit too disciplinary to be taken into consideration when teaching sociology at the community college level.  I'll try and convince people otherwise and see if I can try and teach with my M.S. in hand.

If not an PhD, then what? An MSW was what I was thinking, for more practical, community research-based purposes. I would like to specialize in the type of qualitative research that is non-oppressive, non-intrusive, post (or de) colonial in nature, and does more than gets an academic published in a journal of sorts.  I genuinely want to have the benefits lie on behalf of the people moreso than myself. Ask me again next year about this.

I was also thinking a spanish immersion/proficiency program. Taking a year (or summer) to do that would be great in general.

Then there's just working/researching for a non-profit, community based organization full-time and honing either my DJing, comic book drawing, gardening or urban survival skills on the side.

Yes, I am aware of how unprepared I am should disaster strike, especially being that I'm low-income in class status with rising student loan debt (ask me about this when I get my PhD). I've decided this summer that I want to be more useful to society in general, as these book-smarts aren't going to keep me fed if institutional structures crumble and the world turns to chaos.  So yeah. That's on my mind, too, learning practical/survival skills so I can be of use to people outside of the researcher/educational sense.

I just have to be confident that I'll be able to live off a meager income AND whittle away my loans (if I do take a year off outside of grad school, that is) enough to do more exploring, comprehension and less rigorous mental labor.

Thanks for reading my thoughts. Feedback is appreciated, however school starts tomorrow, so I apologize in advance if I don't get back to you quickly.