Had yet another fantastic weekend, which now makes several in a row. Saturday began with haircuts for both me and Chavez, then a party in the evening for my friend Siru.
Sunday involved attempting to surf with a hangover, which I discovered isn't a whole lot of fun because I got seasick. But, I still hung out at the beach, which is always enjoyable. Lunch with bpd at an amazing Peruvian hole in the wall, followed by dinner at a co-worker's house in Silverlake which looked like it belonged in an Abercrombie catalog. He and his partner decked the place out to the nines in classic Mission and Craftsman styled furniture mostly made of warm, dark-stained woods and soothing brown and yellow tones. I only half jokingly asked if they had a lake out back filled with swans and paddleboats. Gatsby or Abercrombie, you take your pick.
I've been worrying more of late about a large legal debt hanging over my girlfriend's head. She finalized a divorce about 3 years ago in a very ugly and costly separation. Her former husband willfully dragged out the process as long as possible to inflict both emotional and financial pain. The result is about $40,000 in legal debt.
She's been considering filing for personal bankruptcy for a while, except, that as a condition of taking her case her attorney required my girlfriend's mother to co-sign the contract. Neither she nor her mother have much in the way of assets, except for the money her mother has saved away for retirement. But because of co-signature, I suspect her mother could lose this nest egg were my girlfriend to file for bankruptcy, effectively eliminating this as an option.
All of this has made me question my own feelings about money, about my relationship, and about what this means for my future and my girlfriend's future. I've wondered of late if maybe I should make a career change toward something where I can make much better money like finance or banking or insurance, options I've never really considered because they're just not me.
On one hand, I've increasingly come to believe that a job is just a job and that the creative parts of my life occur when I'm not at work. Despite working in a "creative" industry, I certainly feel that in many ways my current job is just a job. On the other hand, (other than the excessive hours) I really do enjoy what I do and I know I'm good at it. I know I could keep being good at it for a long time to come. And in general, I really enjoy the people I meet while doing it.
I don't love money; I never have. But I've come to hate what not having money does to me and the people around me. I haven't yet figured out how to make lemonade of this one.
This ain't your typical SG rant, but it's what's on my mind so I'll throw it up here anyway.
Sunday involved attempting to surf with a hangover, which I discovered isn't a whole lot of fun because I got seasick. But, I still hung out at the beach, which is always enjoyable. Lunch with bpd at an amazing Peruvian hole in the wall, followed by dinner at a co-worker's house in Silverlake which looked like it belonged in an Abercrombie catalog. He and his partner decked the place out to the nines in classic Mission and Craftsman styled furniture mostly made of warm, dark-stained woods and soothing brown and yellow tones. I only half jokingly asked if they had a lake out back filled with swans and paddleboats. Gatsby or Abercrombie, you take your pick.
I've been worrying more of late about a large legal debt hanging over my girlfriend's head. She finalized a divorce about 3 years ago in a very ugly and costly separation. Her former husband willfully dragged out the process as long as possible to inflict both emotional and financial pain. The result is about $40,000 in legal debt.
She's been considering filing for personal bankruptcy for a while, except, that as a condition of taking her case her attorney required my girlfriend's mother to co-sign the contract. Neither she nor her mother have much in the way of assets, except for the money her mother has saved away for retirement. But because of co-signature, I suspect her mother could lose this nest egg were my girlfriend to file for bankruptcy, effectively eliminating this as an option.
All of this has made me question my own feelings about money, about my relationship, and about what this means for my future and my girlfriend's future. I've wondered of late if maybe I should make a career change toward something where I can make much better money like finance or banking or insurance, options I've never really considered because they're just not me.
On one hand, I've increasingly come to believe that a job is just a job and that the creative parts of my life occur when I'm not at work. Despite working in a "creative" industry, I certainly feel that in many ways my current job is just a job. On the other hand, (other than the excessive hours) I really do enjoy what I do and I know I'm good at it. I know I could keep being good at it for a long time to come. And in general, I really enjoy the people I meet while doing it.
I don't love money; I never have. But I've come to hate what not having money does to me and the people around me. I haven't yet figured out how to make lemonade of this one.
This ain't your typical SG rant, but it's what's on my mind so I'll throw it up here anyway.
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the money thing is a complicated one. i agree that work is work and not your life, but i think of certain other jobs and realize i could never stomach them, no matter how much i was being paid. i refuse to wear pantyhose, schmooze, or sell anything as part of my job description.
that said, my job is veering more and more towards finance and it's not as bad as i thought. but i can show up in sneakers and $2 men's pants from the thrift store, as i did today.
[Edited on Oct 12, 2004 10:50AM]