23 Going on 65

I've been living in Louisville for 4 weeks now and still no job. This city's job market is nothing short of sluggish and saturated, and I'm just one of many victims, I'm sure. I've been in the hiring process with 3 different companies anywhere from 3-8+ weeks and no one seems to be in a hurry to add another payroll check to the company books. I've even resorted to looking for a crappy, summer, in-between job just to feel productive and help pay the bills, but that's proving to be just as difficult. Anyone know where the unemployment office is, because I just might need to cash in on those government checks! Goodness knows I'm trying...

My calendar is no longer a functional piece of art, but rather a constant reminder of how mind-numbingly bored I am. To top it all off, it's been a nightmare getting cable and internet in my apartment, so I don't even have my usual vices (blogging and Soap Net) to fill my time! I've rediscovered reading for fun, which has been a hard thing for me to relearn after 17 years of an academic dictatorship. I also have become slightly infatuated with watching Friends on DVD courtesy of my good friend S; I started with season 5 (why? I don't know.) and am now ready to start season 9. Oh, and movies. Lots and Lots of movies!! I'm actually quite tired of staring at my television.

Most of my friends have jobs, so I'm left to my own devices most hours of the day and many days of the week. I go and bum internet from the famous Heine Brothers at least every other day to keep up with the essentials and answer emails.

Now, the lack of formally schedules events has given me the opportunity to discover some interesting things about Louisville:

1. free Shakespeare in the Park performances of Macbeth or Romeo and Juliet
2. a fabulous selection of used music and book stores whose employees are always interested in chatting about said music and book discoveries
3. the many coffee shops of Bardstown Road that provide excellent people-watching and a comfy chair to sit in while reading a magazine
4. and the two great free publications: Velocity and Leo Weekly, both of which have ignited a determination to someday be able to complete their tricky crossword puzzles.

Honestly, as bored as I am, a small part of me is afraid I'm going to learn to enjoy the random ways I've found to spend my time a little too much. 24 hours of every day are at my disposal to sleep, wake, work out, shop, meet friends for meals and discover Louisville at my leisure... all that freedom is a little enticing! I need to find a job before my mind kicks into full-blown retirement mode and I start planning my day around feeding my cat and going to the bank to check my ever-depleting savings account!

Now if you'll excuse me, I need to go back to my ELLE magazine and people-watching because in 30 minutes it's time to go home and feed my cat....{image via gosia janik}