I find this very interesting because I'm sort of on the oppoiste tack in life: from middle class to working class (in career terms).

While all my grandparents were definately working class: career enlisted military, electrician then rendering plant manager, nurse, housewife, both my parents are college educated: teacher and Naval officer then chemical engineer.

And yet, my dad especially is much more a blue collar man than he ever was a white collar guy. It wasn't education or job, but attitudes, both good and bad. In the long run his career in the oil business died not because of lack of competence but lack of office political skill...he maintained too long that blue collar attitude that "I'm the best engineer thus I should be getting ahead" never realizing that raw competence was only one part of white collar success...something that showed in his fustration that technical jobs only went so far before you had to go into management.

I think his failure to straddle is one reason when I choose to live the white collar world for the wonderful world of pizza he was so supportive.