Job Hunting - Day 1

"Good morning, VIETNAM!!!" - such a classic movie.

Seriously, happy Friday to all of you! 

As the title says, today's the first (serious) day of my job hunting. I've tried to job hunt before, but I've been quite lazy and uninterested in said job hunting. With my recent graduation and a grandiose $50k of debt (thank you, high quality college education) hanging over my head, I can't afford to spend any more time lounging about. 

The truth of the matter is, I don't know what I'm doing! Although, that can be said of any recent college graduate, I'm the first in my family to have made it this far. I'm the first with a formal education in my family (whether I'm truly educated or not, that can be debated), and I'm the first to be seeking a career, not a job. It's a bizarre feeling that I'm the first in the family to make a positive impact in my family.

So today, I set up a LinkdIn account, to portray my more professional side(???, I don't know what to say), as well as erasing (well, to the extent of my power) any dubious "events" on my social media (I really don't have any...I think, but I can never be too safe, I suppose). Oh, and I've got a résumé down. And that's all I got.

Not. Very. Productive.

The problem lies with me - "What do I to be? Who do I want to be?" I've been so used to being the busboy, the landscaper, the cashier, or the manufacturer that I don't know what else I could be! I can't see myself being in the upper echelons of the workforce here in the US. I'm too accustomed to being a blue-collar worker that becoming a white-collar worker seems an impossible goal to achieve.

I must reflect on what I want for myself career-wise and go from there. In the mean time, I'll be looking for postings online and nearby and hope to the Good Lord Upstairs that I can find something that I want and can do and can be immensely satisfying. It's such a shame to end today's post on a bummer note, but on the positive side, this also is a good exercise in whittling out what I don't want to do for my career, which is nice. I'll update you guys this upcoming Monday. Until then, fellow readers!

P.S.: I've gotta find a new name for you guys - "Readers" is too generic for my taste. You guys need a cool name or something.

Quality Time With "Veronica"

Recently, I did something that I haven't done in such a long time on my university campus - I had quality time with a friend and we spent almost 2 hours just talking, making lame jokes, and just having some bit of fun. Considering we're down to the wire (our final week of the Spring Semester), I was somewhat surprised that we somehow made some time to just talk and develop our friendship together, and getting to know more about each other.

Spending time with "Veronica" (not her real name, but she did request that I use that pseudonym for her) was quite an exquisite respite from the inexorable pressures of these remaining few weeks. I haven't had this type of quality time with a fellow friend and classmate in months. It seems that I have spent just about all of my free time studying and conducting research for two demanding essays and reading the text for four classes in our campus library. Now that it's all behind me (for the most part), it was a nice change of pace to be outside, enjoying the gentle breeze, the flora, the fauna (just some squirrels, really), people watching, and the company of a friend. I hope to have more experiences in the future. I can't help but feel these little moments create those defining "college moments" that many of us fondly recall as we age over time.

College Textbooks...

WHY U SO EXPENSIVE???

Ugh. Today I visited my university to find my classrooms and assess the costs for my textbooks. The total cost of my books this semester just made my heart sink. Approximately $800 (with taxes included) will go to purchase my required tomes for this Fall Semester. $800! And here's the kicker: all of these books (except for one) are used! Used! What the frack, man?! 

This is, by far, the most I've paid for books. For the most part, I've only paid 300 on average for books. This, as you can see, is an anomaly.