Our family moved to a new home after we were unceremoniously told to vacate the house we were renting so that it could be sold for a better profit margin than we were providing as tenants. I like this new home better, but with it comes the burden of paying for the elevated rent of a 3 bedroom house...and this makes me think of my future as an employee once I finish this graduate program at the University.
I am almost finished with my Master's program. I am half way through this semester and my grades are A's and 1 B. I need to pull off straight A's this semester, though, in order to raise my cumulative GPA so I can get off probation and graduate next semester. All things going according to my master plan, I will graduate in May, 2014. Or, I will be stuck at the University until December, 2014. I really do not like the way that sounds, as I need to find employment as soon as possible.
In fact, I need to find a job right now, having eaten through that student loan I took out (literally, I need to start packing a lunch and stop spending money at the campus Subway). I am used to working menial jobs, having held numerous minimum wage jobs before I returned to college at age 27 to complete my Bachelor's and start my Master's degree. I have no objection to delivering pizzas or cashiering again. I am not one to think that a college degree entitles me to a good career. I have a degree, but I must prioritize my life and having a neat title is less important than getting paid as soon as possible.
The economy makes me nervous, especially since part of my excuse for staying in school was to avoid the sluggish job market. Now, a year later, it doesn't look like the situation is more stable so I face the dilemma of either applying to a PhD program to escape again or plunging into the work force as another desperate, 30 year old wannabe.
I think that academia has become a secret hide-away for me ever since I turned 18. I found no freedom in the endless sweeping, mopping, and cleaning of my minimum wage jobs and the community college class was the only place where anyone really cared what came out of my mouth (or even encourage me to speak in the first place).
I have my own issues with academia--racial, class, and sexist mentalities that some professors cultivate privately and which a few of us are privy to, but overall at least I get my chance to speak through my essays...and the books! I cannot imagine my life without access to the University's massive library.
I will miss the academic setting--the campus teeming with bright-eyed freshmen, the campus clubs recruiting for new members, the interesting lectures in class, the Starbucks on campus, but alas, all things are impermanent.
I make it sound like my college years are behind me, but the truth is I still have 1.5 semesters to go. Until that time, I have an interview with a telemarketer tomorrow. I hate telemarketers. I never want to be a telemarketer, but then again, I have to pay for my kickboxing classes somehow!
Post script: On that note, I lost 5 pounds the past month doing kickboxing. I am still 171 pounds, which is actually a heavy weight for me, but at least that is down by 5 pounds this month...and I feel a great adrenaline and endorphin rush doing kickboxing. It is very fulfilling and challenging. My shins ache and I hobbled around all weekend on painful legs, but the weight loss and the post-exercise glow makes it all worth while.
I am almost finished with my Master's program. I am half way through this semester and my grades are A's and 1 B. I need to pull off straight A's this semester, though, in order to raise my cumulative GPA so I can get off probation and graduate next semester. All things going according to my master plan, I will graduate in May, 2014. Or, I will be stuck at the University until December, 2014. I really do not like the way that sounds, as I need to find employment as soon as possible.
In fact, I need to find a job right now, having eaten through that student loan I took out (literally, I need to start packing a lunch and stop spending money at the campus Subway). I am used to working menial jobs, having held numerous minimum wage jobs before I returned to college at age 27 to complete my Bachelor's and start my Master's degree. I have no objection to delivering pizzas or cashiering again. I am not one to think that a college degree entitles me to a good career. I have a degree, but I must prioritize my life and having a neat title is less important than getting paid as soon as possible.
The economy makes me nervous, especially since part of my excuse for staying in school was to avoid the sluggish job market. Now, a year later, it doesn't look like the situation is more stable so I face the dilemma of either applying to a PhD program to escape again or plunging into the work force as another desperate, 30 year old wannabe.
I think that academia has become a secret hide-away for me ever since I turned 18. I found no freedom in the endless sweeping, mopping, and cleaning of my minimum wage jobs and the community college class was the only place where anyone really cared what came out of my mouth (or even encourage me to speak in the first place).
I have my own issues with academia--racial, class, and sexist mentalities that some professors cultivate privately and which a few of us are privy to, but overall at least I get my chance to speak through my essays...and the books! I cannot imagine my life without access to the University's massive library.
I will miss the academic setting--the campus teeming with bright-eyed freshmen, the campus clubs recruiting for new members, the interesting lectures in class, the Starbucks on campus, but alas, all things are impermanent.
I make it sound like my college years are behind me, but the truth is I still have 1.5 semesters to go. Until that time, I have an interview with a telemarketer tomorrow. I hate telemarketers. I never want to be a telemarketer, but then again, I have to pay for my kickboxing classes somehow!
Post script: On that note, I lost 5 pounds the past month doing kickboxing. I am still 171 pounds, which is actually a heavy weight for me, but at least that is down by 5 pounds this month...and I feel a great adrenaline and endorphin rush doing kickboxing. It is very fulfilling and challenging. My shins ache and I hobbled around all weekend on painful legs, but the weight loss and the post-exercise glow makes it all worth while.
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