"Kele, filla, saba, nani, norou"
It's been an insanely long time since I last posted, but every time I came back to look at the journal, I just couldn't think of what to say. I have however, been keeping up with you on the friends' list, nearly weekly. Now I thought I would at least post a little update on general life happenings.
I decided to graduate early and now that I'm doing job interviews, every single person I talk to wants to know why. Why did I graduate early? The absolute truth? It was getting to be too expensive to stay, and I would have probably ended up going straight to grad school afterward, or applying and not getting in. The answer I've been giving? I didn't take a gap year before college though I wanted to (hey, people don't really do that States-side), and I thought I wanted to be a doctor, and made the mistake of not realizing quickly enough that I didn't want to. So now I'm getting a feel for the real world and the oh-so-glamorous professions in corporate law. Both are pretty true. But the most truthful answer is somewhere in between the two, compounded with the tidbit that college just wasn't that much fun for me. Everyone says that college is the most fun of their entire lives, and I don't think it has much to do with college at all, but the circumstances. You're usually supported by your parents, living away from home, with nearly complete freedom. Nobody tells you that you have to be home by midnight, or to do your homework, or go to class. You can choose to do what you like, accepting that the consequences of your actions are only your own to bear. And I have a very important bit of knowledge to impart: grades in college actually matter when you want to get a job, and not just in investment banking. People ask you about them, and you better have good grades or a damn good explanation as to why you don't. That's part of my reasoning for the gap year: making up for previous dalliances, I guess. The one comforting bit is that they usually don't ask for a transcript, so while you can't quite lie (or at least I won't), then can't tell exactly tell where you got those grades.
So here I am, a college graduate who couldn't even drink at her own dinner. I wanted to move to San Francisco or Seattle after I graduated, but it's just not practical. The expense of having to fly out/move all my stuff and pay rent and buy/lease a car just didn't make things fiscally responsible (I can't believe I just typed that) for saving up for grad school. So I'm living at home and commuting 1.5 hours each way into NYC's financial district and pounding the pavement until some takes pity on me, gives me a cubicle and something to do that will bring home a paycheck at the end of the night (or fortnight, so to speak). I can at least say I'm only 20, so it's not as bad as it could be. I think I can hope to make the distinction between choosing to live at home because it saves money, and choosing to move out. It would be at least 1000/month to live anywhere close enough to the city to make it worth it (like any of Jersey City/Hoboken or Brooklyn or some place like that with young professionals) and that's 12,000/year in rent. That's 12,000 less than I would have if I stayed home. I guess it's not so bad commuting from home. The jobs I'm looking at would have me working early and leaving late so that keeps the bus journey at 1.5 hrs or less each way (fingers crossed).
So I'm waiting to hear back from job stuff. I'm hopeful I've got at least one advocate at my first choice, and even if the specific position doesn't work out, I'm pretty sure they have other positions that they would consider me for. At one point in one of the interviews (there have been 7 so far, for one position. Yes, seven) I had an out of body experience wherein I realized I was actually talking. I think my my disembodied sentiments freaked me out a little bit, but I managed not to freak out in front of anyone, so I'd say I'm set, right?
I think I've changed a bit since we last spoke. Things ceased with said silly boy. I went on a couple of dates this year but nothing really jived. So I had fun partying and just figuring myself out. I don't listen to metal music any more. I've evolved into more regional, and retro sounds, and well as alternative stuff. Is there a ton of other stuff to say? I finished up majoring in Medieval/Renaissance Studies with a focus on Renaissance British literature, though my real passion in the field (realized too late, I'm afraid) is actually Medieval Mediterranean history and architecture. I never intend(ed) to go to graduate school in the field so I suppose it doesn't matter much. Such is life, though. I will post again when I have more details about stuff.
And I think the whole LJ asshat business is just that. People have a freedom of speech, so if they don't speak out on your site, they will somewhere else, and just by hosting a group, doesn't mean you support or don't support the group. It means this is a service you offer and you knew the consequences of allowing free access to anyone on the planet. So suck it up. It's the libertarian in me that says if little girls want to starve themselves, you aren't the ones advocating it. It's their personal decision, LJ, so deal with it.
I decided to graduate early and now that I'm doing job interviews, every single person I talk to wants to know why. Why did I graduate early? The absolute truth? It was getting to be too expensive to stay, and I would have probably ended up going straight to grad school afterward, or applying and not getting in. The answer I've been giving? I didn't take a gap year before college though I wanted to (hey, people don't really do that States-side), and I thought I wanted to be a doctor, and made the mistake of not realizing quickly enough that I didn't want to. So now I'm getting a feel for the real world and the oh-so-glamorous professions in corporate law. Both are pretty true. But the most truthful answer is somewhere in between the two, compounded with the tidbit that college just wasn't that much fun for me. Everyone says that college is the most fun of their entire lives, and I don't think it has much to do with college at all, but the circumstances. You're usually supported by your parents, living away from home, with nearly complete freedom. Nobody tells you that you have to be home by midnight, or to do your homework, or go to class. You can choose to do what you like, accepting that the consequences of your actions are only your own to bear. And I have a very important bit of knowledge to impart: grades in college actually matter when you want to get a job, and not just in investment banking. People ask you about them, and you better have good grades or a damn good explanation as to why you don't. That's part of my reasoning for the gap year: making up for previous dalliances, I guess. The one comforting bit is that they usually don't ask for a transcript, so while you can't quite lie (or at least I won't), then can't tell exactly tell where you got those grades.
So here I am, a college graduate who couldn't even drink at her own dinner. I wanted to move to San Francisco or Seattle after I graduated, but it's just not practical. The expense of having to fly out/move all my stuff and pay rent and buy/lease a car just didn't make things fiscally responsible (I can't believe I just typed that) for saving up for grad school. So I'm living at home and commuting 1.5 hours each way into NYC's financial district and pounding the pavement until some takes pity on me, gives me a cubicle and something to do that will bring home a paycheck at the end of the night (or fortnight, so to speak). I can at least say I'm only 20, so it's not as bad as it could be. I think I can hope to make the distinction between choosing to live at home because it saves money, and choosing to move out. It would be at least 1000/month to live anywhere close enough to the city to make it worth it (like any of Jersey City/Hoboken or Brooklyn or some place like that with young professionals) and that's 12,000/year in rent. That's 12,000 less than I would have if I stayed home. I guess it's not so bad commuting from home. The jobs I'm looking at would have me working early and leaving late so that keeps the bus journey at 1.5 hrs or less each way (fingers crossed).
So I'm waiting to hear back from job stuff. I'm hopeful I've got at least one advocate at my first choice, and even if the specific position doesn't work out, I'm pretty sure they have other positions that they would consider me for. At one point in one of the interviews (there have been 7 so far, for one position. Yes, seven) I had an out of body experience wherein I realized I was actually talking. I think my my disembodied sentiments freaked me out a little bit, but I managed not to freak out in front of anyone, so I'd say I'm set, right?
I think I've changed a bit since we last spoke. Things ceased with said silly boy. I went on a couple of dates this year but nothing really jived. So I had fun partying and just figuring myself out. I don't listen to metal music any more. I've evolved into more regional, and retro sounds, and well as alternative stuff. Is there a ton of other stuff to say? I finished up majoring in Medieval/Renaissance Studies with a focus on Renaissance British literature, though my real passion in the field (realized too late, I'm afraid) is actually Medieval Mediterranean history and architecture. I never intend(ed) to go to graduate school in the field so I suppose it doesn't matter much. Such is life, though. I will post again when I have more details about stuff.
And I think the whole LJ asshat business is just that. People have a freedom of speech, so if they don't speak out on your site, they will somewhere else, and just by hosting a group, doesn't mean you support or don't support the group. It means this is a service you offer and you knew the consequences of allowing free access to anyone on the planet. So suck it up. It's the libertarian in me that says if little girls want to starve themselves, you aren't the ones advocating it. It's their personal decision, LJ, so deal with it.