Day 39: I Guess the Joke is on Me

Well shit.

As you may recall, I spoke in my last post about an event-staffing job that I had been signed up for by my friends at the Work and Travel Company. They listed the job as lasting from the end of February till the middle of April. I got an apartment in preparation for the two months of work I was about to embark on, only to find out at my job induction that the total amount of work I would be doing was only about two weeks, not two months….

As I mentioned before, plans have changed.

At first, I wasn’t worried. “I can find a job,” I said to myself, “I am living next to a street full of restaurants and I have restaurant experience.” Then my roommates informed me that Lygon street (Melbourne’s Ave) is a dodgy neighborhood, and most businesses are run by Italians who are fans of The Godfather. “Alright, well then I’ll just peace out of Melbourne and go pick fruit.” My back up plan seemed so flawless, until I was directed to the obvious flaw: minimum rent in my apartment is two months, and if I left before then there was a strong chance I would lose my $500 deposit. So there I was, stuck in the city with virtually no job, unable to leave for fear of crippling my already bleak financial situation.

Picture yourselves in that situation. Imagine every plan you concoct being foiled, and feeling trapped.

I bet none of you would be as happy as I am right now.

This is why I am here. This is my first real test at standing on my own, and being a real adult, and I’m excited. Sure, having the event-staffing job work out the way it should have would’ve been nice, and I suppose I still would have been working to earn rent like any normal adult, but this new wrinkle makes my challenge that much greater, which makes the experience far more rewarding.

I won’t say that I haven’t had help. I consulted with my parents, and I received a not-altogether-insignificant loan to assure that I didn’t become homeless, but the money isn’t free. In fact, it puts more pressure on me to find a job, because I can’t stand being in debt to my parents, and if I’m ever going to pay them off I need to sort my self out as fast as possible.

In other news, I found a $50 bill in the street today. Clearly my luck is turning.