5,299.11

And now for something completely different. Sort of.

Yesterday I decided to put the Peace Corps on hold and apply to study abroad in Istanbul next semester. To do this, I needed two teacher recommendations, a transcript from SSU, a one-page essay explaining why I want to go, an eight-dollar check and a completed application. The deadline is tomorrow. With two days to gather all of these things, I wasted no time and was able to turn in my application today before my linguistics class.

Istanbul. 

To be fair, I still need to complete an interview and sit down with an adviser, but I got the hard part out of the way, and in record time. Both Helt and Clark were encouraging and happy to fill out recommendations, even though we pretty much just met. It helped that I scored 96/100 on Clark's first grammar test. In my essay I hinted at things like "language immersion" and the value of experiencing alternate cultures. True stuff. I'm super excited. 

The Peace Corps will always be there. Plus this buys me a bunch of time to take care of my teeth without cramming three extractions and eleven cavity removals into one month, which is what I would have to do if I want to send out my documents within their recommended 9-12 month window. I figure I can finish the TESOL program like everyone else and apply for the Peace Corps again when I'm well-prepared and ready. 

In other news, Jenny and I are cramming in a few last-minute activities together before she leaves next Thursday. Rock-climbing, salsa dancing... She attended her last bonfire last night, a mellow one, and we were able to arrange carpools to go to the Hardly Strictly Bluegrass Festival tomorrow.

School is going well. Unemployment is going well. 

I wrote a short story. 

5,347.22

Two paychecks [Old Soul]: 1,006.60

Dinner [Zen Sushi]: 21.55

Bill [Netflix]: 15.09

Fun [records]: 8.46

Breakfast [Noah's Bagels]: 13.58

Lunch [Gyro 2 Go]: 5.75

Dinner [Grocery Outlet]: 5.92

It hasn't sunk in yet. Well, it has, in small moments of clarity, but for the most part, he still has no idea what he's getting himself into. He worked his last shift at Old Soul on Friday. That final hour, the longest hour of his life. He clocked out, said a few goodbyes, grabbed his paycheck and left the building. He vowed to never work in a coffee-shop again. 

The free-fall begins. 

He's in love with a girl who's moving to South Korea for a year and she leaves in less than two weeks. He's going to grad school to follow the TESOL Program into the Peace Corps. He's got some dental work to take care of. A friend of his wants to get an apartment with him, and soon. There's no plan for getting another job and the only plan is to not have to get one. The plan is to volunteer at schools and write more and submit things and do more of the stuff he wanted to do all along.

Admittedly, he spends too much money, money he won't be getting back. 

To be fair, when your girlfriend is about to leave the country, you care fuck-all about what you spend your money on so long as it affords you good memories for now. Little things here and there. A night out. A few cheap records. Lunch. Breakfast. A bottle of wine. 

Netflix charges him sixteen bucks for a DVD. 

He still hasn't cancelled Xbox-Live.

In the meantime, he's been making a handful of short movies with his girlfriend. Not those kinds of movies, but cute little videos that will matter more to him in a few months than he can even imagine right now. Captured memories, with a soundtrack. Plus it's a free activity to do together. 

He's put 1000 dollars aside purely for the next two months rent, which is how much he made from Old Soul's last two paychecks. That's ghost money. It's dead to him. After that, rent will be cut from the real meat of the bank-account, and that'll hurt a little more. 

So maybe he'll get smart. Find alternate income. Learn to pick pockets. Who knows? All that's certain is his girlfriend is leaving, homework will be due, bills will continue and the weather will change. He is hopeful. He might be naive. Right now, he doesn't care.

4,414.09

Batteries and milk [Grocery Outlet]: $11.14

Nothing much to say. Kind of in a somber mood, knowing tomorrow's my last day at Old Soul. It's a time of retrospection. Introspection. Goodbyes and good riddances. What will happen next? What opportunities await me beyond the espresso machine? It's time to get serious about finding my niche in this big crazy world. 

4,414.09

4,425.23

CareCredit Payment: $30 

Mocha, with tip @ school: $5 (cash)

Stuff from Office Max: $7.83 (cash)

Breakfast @ Old Soul: $2.00 (cash)

Soda before class: $1.50 (cash)

So I forget sometimes that the "pending" information doesn't subtract from the Account Total, so I found ten more dollars missing today when I saw that everything had gone through. Obviously not a huge deal at this point, but a frown-inducing discovery nonetheless. The good news is I got 33 bucks in tips today. 

Also got some good advice from my buddy Sean about how I should break down my spending habits. He gave me a monthly-spending total of about 200 bucks for food and entertainment, which seems like more than enough. There are a lot of variables that probably affect that total (dental costs, health care, Uncharted 3, things I can't even imagine...) but it's nice to have a rough number. Thank you Sean. 

I gave Iven my old car. 

I'm also proud of myself for eating leftover pizza for dinner instead of going to Crepeville. That's ten bucks saved and an Italian made happy. 

I called Blue Shield to ask about insurance and the lady sent me to temporaryplans.com, since I'm only looking for a quick fix, but most of those plans aren't available in California. What's up with California and not wanting me to be healthy? So that's still a work in progress. At least I was able to send out my Netflix DVD before they charged me twenty bucks for Glengary Glen Ross. 

Just so I don't forget, there's a CATESOL meeting at Round Table (free dinner!) on Friday, followed by a house-warming party at Landon's. Then there's the Reading Partners orientation at Old Soul on Saturday, followed by a house-warming gathering at Melissa's (free cake!). And next week I'm unemployed.

4,425.23

4,435.23

Two tickets to see Drive: $20 

Bottle of red wine from Gross Out: $4.30
X-Box Live: $9.99

Three beers and a bag of chips, plus tip @ Mr. Pickles: $13 (cash)

A coffee and an americano @ Old Soul: $2 (cash)

I didn't mention last time that I have 60 bucks of cold-hard cash stored in a bible in my bookshelf, plus about eight bucks in my wallet and whatever amount of tips I gather from my last three shifts at Old Soul (which should be about 60, minimum). So that's all obviously going to be the first of my income to disappear in the coming weeks, but it's still a nice cushion to start with. Maybe I'll save that for my inevitable desperate trip to Thunder Valley Casino after I learn how to count cards. 

My account dropped twenty pounds from a trip to the movies with Jenny and Jake, but I loved the movie from start to finish, so it was totally worth it. My companions didn't seem so impressed, however, but I think this is one of those movies where you need to know what you're getting into, otherwise watching Ryan Gosling smash a guy's face to a pulp will be a little too shocking. 

Spent part of Sunday doing homework and laundry. Spent the other bit going to an open-house on 16th Street to look at a place with Iven and Andy. Really beat-up house, honestly, but it's got good potential. Needs some work. Probably won't be filling out the application, even though the rent is cheap and the location's not bad. Still nice to be proactive with the house-searching. It'll happen, sooner than later. 

Meredith called, asked me about the vibe at Old Soul, told me she was reluctant to go back to working there. I told her I could understand. I wouldn't want to go back there after spending six weeks in Peru. Anyway, she's got her reiki healing business to keep her afloat. It was good to hear her voice, glad to know she's back home safe.

Tomorrow I need to call Blue Shield about health insurance. Sounds like super fun time. I also need to cancel X-Box Live, once and for all, because I haven't played anything online in months. That's ten wasted dollars.

I've got three shifts left at Old Soul and then the adventure really begins.

4,435.23

4,469.52

"My boss just quit the job. Says he's going out to find blind spots. And he'll do it."
- Modest Mouse

My name is Chris and I'm quitting my job. 

I'm a grad student at Sacramento State enrolled in the Masters International TESOL Program, which is a fancy way of saying that I want to join the Peace Corps and get a Masters Degree at the same time. 

This just started a few weeks ago. I'm taking "Grammer," "Linguistics," "Teaching ESL" and "Writing For The Social Sciences."

Last week I put in my two weeks at Old Soul, a coffee-shop in Midtown, Sacramento. 

Last year I moved to Midtown without a clue that I'd be applying for the Peace Corps or going back to school. I've been blogging about that new life all along, watching myself move from one phase to the next, from one Chris to another, and now that I'm stepping forward into a completely new phase of my life, I've decided to start a brand new blog. 

4,469.52 is the contents of my bank account. 

That's it. 

That's the last of any meager savings leftover from a year at Old Soul plus half of my financial aid check. I paid off my 3,500 credit card debt with the other half. My plan is to ignore my final two paychecks from Old Soul (roughly $1000) and use them for the next two months of rent, to buy me some time before I start chipping away from the block. Because after that, every penny spent will be a negative. 

So what's the point of the blog? 

I like blogs. They keep me honest.

I'm going to keep track of my life without income. I want to see how I handle this. I want to keep a record of this budget experiment so that I might feel compelled to be smarter, more creative and crafty with my money. Can I survive without a job? For how long? What else can I do for money? Will I try getting something published? Will I panhandle on K Street? Will I resort to a life of crime? I don't know. I have no idea what's going to happen. 

Current Monthly Costs:

Rent: 500

Assorted Bills: 100 - 130

Current Life Situation:

I'm commuting to school via bus (free for students). I've been dating Jenny since early March and on October 6th she'll be moving to South Korea. My friend Iven wants to move to Midtown and we're actually going to look at a house this coming Sunday. School is going well, thanks for asking. In order to finish my application to the Peace Corps, I need to send them dental and medical paperwork, and at the moment I have three tooth extractions to take care of no health insurance to help pay for the check-up or immunizations.

Expected Upcoming Costs:

Dental Work: 500 - 1000

Health Insurance: 70 - 80 per month

There you have it. The introduction. 

4,469.52