Tonight's Poet Corner: Introspection
Wow. Lot of stuff to cover, actually, because a lot has changed in my life, for better or for worse. So I better crack my knuckles and get started, shall I?
My girlfriend, sister, and I recently moved into our new apartment, which we call The Three Broomsticks (an homage to the Harry Potter series and suggested by my friend Kyle). Let me put this out here right now and say that the place is gorgeous. It's right by the canal in the city, so you get an amazing view of the water and the boats that pass. It's getting more and more decorated and furnished each day, with bookshelves and desks and a coffee table and all that good stuff. While most of the apartment has ungrounded electricity, the surge protectors we have work, so we're not concerned about any sort of blow-out with our stuff. Our apartment manager is fantastic. Our neighbors are respectful. It's really just a good fit.
The main concern I have, of course...is money, as the apartment is definitely a little expensive to rent. I know. Who didn't see that coming?
Now, I'm going to clarify right now that I really like my job at the bookstore that's set to open on Monday, November 11th, in San Rafael (and if you are local and happen to be reading my blog, please swing by between the hours of noon and five; we'd love to see you). I like the people I work with, I like the work itself, I like being surrounded by books, and I really like the possibility of inspiring all kinds of people, youth or adults, to read. Honestly, while it's not an education job, it's a job I do well at, because I read, and I write, and I'm a big literature buff. So that knowledge does help me stay comfortable in this line of work.
However, while I have been offered a permanent position at the bookstore as a bookseller, I am making very little money and working only part-time. And considering that I have to pay, at the very least, seven hundred dollars a month for rent, utilities, car registration, and car insurance combined, I'm left with a minuscule budget in order to contribute to groceries and other apartment necessities. I have actually, in fact, forced myself to follow a strict twenty-dollar-a-week budget for personal wants, such as food or maybe a book or a piece of clothing I might be able to actually afford. But this situation is obviously not very ideal. I am basically managing my money like I am in poverty.
I do not want to leave this bookstore job, and I do not plan to. What I am planning to do is look for another part-time job. Obviously, taking on an education job would be ideal because it'd have fixed hours (most likely 8:30 to noon or 8:30 to 3:30 or something similar) and allow me to fit the bookstore into my schedule. It would offer me a little more money an hour as well. Now, I'm well aware that working two jobs will be exhausting, but I need to be able to write my girlfriend a check for rent every month since she's in charge of paying the total of the rent to our apartment manager. I need to be able to write my sister checks for car registration and insurance every month so she doesn't have to carry the bulk of the payments (which are not cheap). And I really need to be able to have a little more than two hundred dollars a month to help us stay fed and happy.
Obviously, money issues are the kind of issues that stick in your brain, distract you from what you love, and cause a lot of incessant anxiety. A lot of people in the country right now are dealing with money problems, and that's what I've been dealing with over the past week. I've dragged my girlfriend, sister, and the rest of my family into my own mental torment, and it's been painful while also inevitable. I am no longer living at my parents' place. I am no longer trying to rely on them for dinner every night. I am legitimately forcing myself to become independent, and it is terrifying. Everyone around me says everything's going to work out for me, and I really hope they're right.
Anyway, my stomach is rumbling for dinner, and I better make sure to get a decent amount of sleep before work tomorrow. Lots to do before the grand opening. And of course, as always, you'll see blog entries from me trickle in. I hope the appearance of ads on my blog now doesn't dissuade some of you from reading - I really am trying to stay afloat financially in every way possible, and who knows? There might be something you find interesting that can help both you and me. Thanks for understanding, and thanks for your never-ending support of my craft.
Writer's Quotation of the Night:
Words can be like X-rays if you use them properly -- they’ll go through anything. You read and you’re pierced.
- Aldous Huxley
My girlfriend, sister, and I recently moved into our new apartment, which we call The Three Broomsticks (an homage to the Harry Potter series and suggested by my friend Kyle). Let me put this out here right now and say that the place is gorgeous. It's right by the canal in the city, so you get an amazing view of the water and the boats that pass. It's getting more and more decorated and furnished each day, with bookshelves and desks and a coffee table and all that good stuff. While most of the apartment has ungrounded electricity, the surge protectors we have work, so we're not concerned about any sort of blow-out with our stuff. Our apartment manager is fantastic. Our neighbors are respectful. It's really just a good fit.
The main concern I have, of course...is money, as the apartment is definitely a little expensive to rent. I know. Who didn't see that coming?
Now, I'm going to clarify right now that I really like my job at the bookstore that's set to open on Monday, November 11th, in San Rafael (and if you are local and happen to be reading my blog, please swing by between the hours of noon and five; we'd love to see you). I like the people I work with, I like the work itself, I like being surrounded by books, and I really like the possibility of inspiring all kinds of people, youth or adults, to read. Honestly, while it's not an education job, it's a job I do well at, because I read, and I write, and I'm a big literature buff. So that knowledge does help me stay comfortable in this line of work.
However, while I have been offered a permanent position at the bookstore as a bookseller, I am making very little money and working only part-time. And considering that I have to pay, at the very least, seven hundred dollars a month for rent, utilities, car registration, and car insurance combined, I'm left with a minuscule budget in order to contribute to groceries and other apartment necessities. I have actually, in fact, forced myself to follow a strict twenty-dollar-a-week budget for personal wants, such as food or maybe a book or a piece of clothing I might be able to actually afford. But this situation is obviously not very ideal. I am basically managing my money like I am in poverty.
I do not want to leave this bookstore job, and I do not plan to. What I am planning to do is look for another part-time job. Obviously, taking on an education job would be ideal because it'd have fixed hours (most likely 8:30 to noon or 8:30 to 3:30 or something similar) and allow me to fit the bookstore into my schedule. It would offer me a little more money an hour as well. Now, I'm well aware that working two jobs will be exhausting, but I need to be able to write my girlfriend a check for rent every month since she's in charge of paying the total of the rent to our apartment manager. I need to be able to write my sister checks for car registration and insurance every month so she doesn't have to carry the bulk of the payments (which are not cheap). And I really need to be able to have a little more than two hundred dollars a month to help us stay fed and happy.
Obviously, money issues are the kind of issues that stick in your brain, distract you from what you love, and cause a lot of incessant anxiety. A lot of people in the country right now are dealing with money problems, and that's what I've been dealing with over the past week. I've dragged my girlfriend, sister, and the rest of my family into my own mental torment, and it's been painful while also inevitable. I am no longer living at my parents' place. I am no longer trying to rely on them for dinner every night. I am legitimately forcing myself to become independent, and it is terrifying. Everyone around me says everything's going to work out for me, and I really hope they're right.
Anyway, my stomach is rumbling for dinner, and I better make sure to get a decent amount of sleep before work tomorrow. Lots to do before the grand opening. And of course, as always, you'll see blog entries from me trickle in. I hope the appearance of ads on my blog now doesn't dissuade some of you from reading - I really am trying to stay afloat financially in every way possible, and who knows? There might be something you find interesting that can help both you and me. Thanks for understanding, and thanks for your never-ending support of my craft.
Writer's Quotation of the Night:
Words can be like X-rays if you use them properly -- they’ll go through anything. You read and you’re pierced.
- Aldous Huxley
Have a great night and a great weekend, everyone.
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