Shallow or Smart?

Straight to the point today: Can a blue-collar guy and a white-collar woman have a successful relationship?

[caption id="attachment_1170" align="aligncenter" width="300" caption="Are there any possible couples in this group?"][/caption]

So many women want men with degrees, making six figures, pushing something nice and living somewhere lavish. Can't front, I want that too. The future I always saw was with an attorney, professor or business owner, with frequent dinner parties, networking/charity events and trips abroad. I'm (sorta kinda) on my way to that on my own, so why not want someone who can only advance that? I could just see a well-bred, well-read man from a well-to-do family and with a couple of degrees by my side.

Then I met the current SO and things shifted. He was a "regular joe," without degrees or cultured tastes. He was a (wonderful) bartender, and although having a man who's great with a shaker is ideal, it would be even better if that was just a hobby. It made me think about this article on Clutch, where the writer is apprehensive to share where her crush worked. Yet here we are a year and a half later and I'm trying to figure out can this really work. Do I want to make this work? Would it work better or easier with someone who is "on my level"?

No, I didn't say that I think he's not on my level. That came from a conversation with my parents about him. They don't think he is. Disregard the fact that my dad has never been on my mom's "level" even according to his own definition, but somehow they've made it work. Yet, I do fear reliving some of the same things I've seen growing up: the exasperation of trying to explain different things or why certain things are important. Being limited to what we can do because one person isn't pulling in enough money for extras. Becoming homebodies because someone doesn't have any interests outside of what's on television. I don't want that life!

Sometimes that is the future I see for us and I'm scared out of my mind. Then other times, when we talk about what he wants to do to improve his life, I think we can have some of that dream I've always wanted. I just don't know if letting this go in hopes of something better (especially when nothing better has presented itself) would be shallow or smart on my part.