A Semi-Stream-of-Consciousness Reflection on the Near Future
or This Is Atypically Personal
or possibly In Lieu of A Year In Review
Growing older typically comes in steps. Birthdays arrive in regular intervals to warn you that you are one year closer to dying. Periodic visits to an optometrist always come with the news that your eyes are just a little bit worse this time - probably just enough to require a change in prescription. Every oil change is 3,000 fewer miles left on your vehicle's engine.
Then there are bigger, one-time-only steps.
-You buy your first vehicle.
-You have your first drink.
-You go to college.*
-You get married.
-You buy a house. On and on and on.
Sometimes there are bursts of steps all at once, a staccato burst of action not unlike the opening beats of "15 Step." I find that this is one of those times.
Schools
Graduate school was a fantastic failure. While my official record will never show anything lower than a B-, an examination of the work I had returned to me paints a different picture: I suck at that level of thinking. Just as problematic is the fact that the way things are approached at that level is miserably uninteresting. In fact, I'm so bad at it that I've decided to leave the graduate program and go to Purdue for a second undergraduate degree in mechanical engineering. I'm going to be that college student that is clearly older than everyone else. The one that people look at and say "Why is HE here?"
If all goes according to plan, my wife and I will be back in the New Carlisle area again by July of this year. It could be that we will have a house of our own. It could be that we have a small apartment somewhere. We may even end up living at her parents' house for some time. That's a lot of change in one six month period. New house, new career-direction, even the town is new.
Homes
Indianapolis is more my town now than New Carlisle ever was. I had my driver's license up there for one year before I came down here to Marian. People talk about common roads in South Bend, Michigan City, and La Porte all the time when we're up there, but "Juniper" means a yew-like bush to me, not a road near Notre Dame.
Still, being home in New Carlisle is one step in our long-term set of goals. It's the "house" part that's so difficult. We're looking at a beautiful new place near my parents' house, but even small houses (even in this market) are wickedly expensive things.
Do you know what a mortgage payment looks like? Death. It looks like death.
Jobs
To help combat death, I'm applying for jobs in the area. I never would have guessed that I would ever be applying for a temporary position at Kohl's or some such place, but that's where we are right now. Sarah is doing everything she can to help us save up for a house and I want to do everything I can, too. If that means working the back stockroom with illegal immigrants at Marsh...so be it.**
Here's hoping Target has some immediate openings.
Then, when we get home, Sarah will need a job at a hospital somewhere in the area. Even though nurses are always in healthy demand, the application process is still something that makes most people want to tear their hair out. It's not fun. But again, it's a step forward in our planned future together, and that makes it worth the effort.
Socialization
A different sort of milestone is also approaching. Away Message #2000 will mark the end of full-time AIM on this computer. I've never been one for cell phones. The ability to be contacted anywhere at any time is something I would like to avoid for as long as possible. Leaving AIM on all day has been a good balance between making it possible for people to get in touch with me while being able to prioritize messages and respond when I have some time. But lately my AMs have grown stagnant, a reflection of the monotony of days and weekends of studying that amount to failing grades.
Maybe when we're settled someplace new, AIM will return. Or maybe when I'm chasing kids around the house at all hours of the day and need amusing anecdotes left for me, it could make a comeback. For now, email and Facebook will suffice.
All of this makes the battle to stay young rather intimidating. But we'll all keep fighting that good fight, for we refuse to go gentle into that good - er - our late twenties.
* - Previous two not necessarily in this order.
** - Note to Marsh hiring team: Please have a sense of humor.
or This Is Atypically Personal
or possibly In Lieu of A Year In Review
Growing older typically comes in steps. Birthdays arrive in regular intervals to warn you that you are one year closer to dying. Periodic visits to an optometrist always come with the news that your eyes are just a little bit worse this time - probably just enough to require a change in prescription. Every oil change is 3,000 fewer miles left on your vehicle's engine.
Then there are bigger, one-time-only steps.
-You buy your first vehicle.
-You have your first drink.
-You go to college.*
-You get married.
-You buy a house. On and on and on.
Sometimes there are bursts of steps all at once, a staccato burst of action not unlike the opening beats of "15 Step." I find that this is one of those times.
Graduate school was a fantastic failure. While my official record will never show anything lower than a B-, an examination of the work I had returned to me paints a different picture: I suck at that level of thinking. Just as problematic is the fact that the way things are approached at that level is miserably uninteresting. In fact, I'm so bad at it that I've decided to leave the graduate program and go to Purdue for a second undergraduate degree in mechanical engineering. I'm going to be that college student that is clearly older than everyone else. The one that people look at and say "Why is HE here?"
If all goes according to plan, my wife and I will be back in the New Carlisle area again by July of this year. It could be that we will have a house of our own. It could be that we have a small apartment somewhere. We may even end up living at her parents' house for some time. That's a lot of change in one six month period. New house, new career-direction, even the town is new.
Indianapolis is more my town now than New Carlisle ever was. I had my driver's license up there for one year before I came down here to Marian. People talk about common roads in South Bend, Michigan City, and La Porte all the time when we're up there, but "Juniper" means a yew-like bush to me, not a road near Notre Dame.
Still, being home in New Carlisle is one step in our long-term set of goals. It's the "house" part that's so difficult. We're looking at a beautiful new place near my parents' house, but even small houses (even in this market) are wickedly expensive things.
Do you know what a mortgage payment looks like? Death. It looks like death.
To help combat death, I'm applying for jobs in the area. I never would have guessed that I would ever be applying for a temporary position at Kohl's or some such place, but that's where we are right now. Sarah is doing everything she can to help us save up for a house and I want to do everything I can, too. If that means working the back stockroom with illegal immigrants at Marsh...so be it.**
Here's hoping Target has some immediate openings.
Then, when we get home, Sarah will need a job at a hospital somewhere in the area. Even though nurses are always in healthy demand, the application process is still something that makes most people want to tear their hair out. It's not fun. But again, it's a step forward in our planned future together, and that makes it worth the effort.
A different sort of milestone is also approaching. Away Message #2000 will mark the end of full-time AIM on this computer. I've never been one for cell phones. The ability to be contacted anywhere at any time is something I would like to avoid for as long as possible. Leaving AIM on all day has been a good balance between making it possible for people to get in touch with me while being able to prioritize messages and respond when I have some time. But lately my AMs have grown stagnant, a reflection of the monotony of days and weekends of studying that amount to failing grades.
Maybe when we're settled someplace new, AIM will return. Or maybe when I'm chasing kids around the house at all hours of the day and need amusing anecdotes left for me, it could make a comeback. For now, email and Facebook will suffice.
All of this makes the battle to stay young rather intimidating. But we'll all keep fighting that good fight, for we refuse to go gentle into that good - er - our late twenties.
* - Previous two not necessarily in this order.
** - Note to Marsh hiring team: Please have a sense of humor.
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