Present me is thanking past me right now, because I got my tax return today. I am so grateful that when I had a good job I socked away all that extra cash in the po' people's governmentally-sponsored savings account. This money is allowing me to pay all my bills that are due right now, plus pay back some family who have helped me out during this slump, plus I now have the extra assurance that my rent is paid for the next two months.
That is such a huge relief right now, as I have been riding on this very thin wire of, "Oh, things will get paid some way." Hustling to get the bills paid, not ever really sure if my rent is covered until someone/something swoops in and saves me at the last minute. Since I am working part-time right now, I am earning somewhere in the range of 45% of my monthly expenses. Without the help of some very generous family members I would not have been able to stay in my home, and for those people I am VERY grateful.
This is not to say that I have not been trying to find gainful employment, but that is another post for another day. I've been on something like 20 job interviews in the past several months and applied at over 90 places. I'm currently taking a break from applications to reset my intention. I think I have pretty clearly tapped the well of administrative jobs in Phoenix that pay anything close to what I need to cover monthly expenses, so I am looking at other avenues. I told my sister I would be taking the massage therapy exam so I can get my license back and start doing massage again, possibly at a spa or yoga studio. The only thing holding me back from doing that for the past two months was the cost of the licensing exam, so now that I can cover that, I need to get on it.
Which means that I need to start studying for the test. Anyone of my friends who has a good grasp on anatomy/physiology want to come over and quiz me? It's been a few years since I last took the exam (like twelve, to be exact) so I could use the help. I'm sure with a little brushing up, I will do fine. I'm a good test-taker.
Another thing that has been going on is that I am struggling to get my oldest to get a job. Before, when I was gainfully employed, I wasn't too worried about it. I figured he would get a job when he felt like it, and I wasn't pressuring him to hurry up and do it. I don't really give him money for anything, and neither does his dad at this point. I figured when he got tired of not having cash to buy new clothes or go and do fun things with his friends, he'd find a job. Now, it's to a point where I need him to have work to contribute to the household. He has been living off of us for 19 years, and it's time for him to start paying back for some of that free room and board. He knows that once he has a job he will be paying rent and contributing to the monthly grocery budget. He seems entirely happy with that arrangement, but it's been a matter of getting him to go pick up job applications, and then fill out those applications, and now to go back to those places and turn in the applications. Today we have an appointment to go drive around and drop off the apps he has so far picked up. I think his chances of getting a job are pretty good once he turns in some applications. He has a good resume, from taking part in several clubs and volunteering while he was in high school. He was a full-time student last semester, but this term he is taking fewer classes, so now he has time to work.
I've just stepped away from my laptop to try to let this post sink in a bit and see if I could come up with a tidy way to wrap it up, but I haven't yet. So I'm just going to hit post. I'm sure eventually, this blogging thing will come more naturally and I will have neat and tidy little endings for my posts, but that's not right now. And I'm okay with that.
That is such a huge relief right now, as I have been riding on this very thin wire of, "Oh, things will get paid some way." Hustling to get the bills paid, not ever really sure if my rent is covered until someone/something swoops in and saves me at the last minute. Since I am working part-time right now, I am earning somewhere in the range of 45% of my monthly expenses. Without the help of some very generous family members I would not have been able to stay in my home, and for those people I am VERY grateful.
This is not to say that I have not been trying to find gainful employment, but that is another post for another day. I've been on something like 20 job interviews in the past several months and applied at over 90 places. I'm currently taking a break from applications to reset my intention. I think I have pretty clearly tapped the well of administrative jobs in Phoenix that pay anything close to what I need to cover monthly expenses, so I am looking at other avenues. I told my sister I would be taking the massage therapy exam so I can get my license back and start doing massage again, possibly at a spa or yoga studio. The only thing holding me back from doing that for the past two months was the cost of the licensing exam, so now that I can cover that, I need to get on it.
Which means that I need to start studying for the test. Anyone of my friends who has a good grasp on anatomy/physiology want to come over and quiz me? It's been a few years since I last took the exam (like twelve, to be exact) so I could use the help. I'm sure with a little brushing up, I will do fine. I'm a good test-taker.
Another thing that has been going on is that I am struggling to get my oldest to get a job. Before, when I was gainfully employed, I wasn't too worried about it. I figured he would get a job when he felt like it, and I wasn't pressuring him to hurry up and do it. I don't really give him money for anything, and neither does his dad at this point. I figured when he got tired of not having cash to buy new clothes or go and do fun things with his friends, he'd find a job. Now, it's to a point where I need him to have work to contribute to the household. He has been living off of us for 19 years, and it's time for him to start paying back for some of that free room and board. He knows that once he has a job he will be paying rent and contributing to the monthly grocery budget. He seems entirely happy with that arrangement, but it's been a matter of getting him to go pick up job applications, and then fill out those applications, and now to go back to those places and turn in the applications. Today we have an appointment to go drive around and drop off the apps he has so far picked up. I think his chances of getting a job are pretty good once he turns in some applications. He has a good resume, from taking part in several clubs and volunteering while he was in high school. He was a full-time student last semester, but this term he is taking fewer classes, so now he has time to work.
I've just stepped away from my laptop to try to let this post sink in a bit and see if I could come up with a tidy way to wrap it up, but I haven't yet. So I'm just going to hit post. I'm sure eventually, this blogging thing will come more naturally and I will have neat and tidy little endings for my posts, but that's not right now. And I'm okay with that.
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