Career change at 37 yrs old. my true love? GRAPHIC DESIGN?

Maybe it is maybe it isn't. To get a degree worth having you'd have to go to a four year school. Do you have the money and time to dedicate yourself into getting a four year graphic design degree? Do you have the money to buy all of the professional programs you'll need to participate in this course? Are you ok with taking on 40k or more of debt for this degree at age 37? If the answer is "yes" then by all means go for it. I HIGHLY suggest a professional education for graphic designers. I run into WAY too many people who have dubbed themselevs "designer" just because they posess a pirated copy of photoshop and some clip art. Design goes FAR beyond knowing how to run the programs. If you want to dedicate yourself to this then go for it. If your plan was to teach yourself... good luck... you won't find a job easily and degreed graphic designers don't get paid much so without a degree you'll be making what you are at the copy shop. EDIT: DO NOT WASTE MONEY BUYING A MAC - I cannot stress this enough...

Go to local graphic design school, or university. If you want something quick they have 2-year associates degree school such as the Art Institutes. Learn the softwares. Buy the graphic techniques books and learn from them... where there is a desire, there is a way. You can also leverage your retail skill to sell your works to people and make money. Oh, buy a Mac... it's a good computer for a GD. Good luck.