| 8:07p |
Farewell, YODS!
I arrived home tonight after a long day at Ye Olde Department Store to find my mum, dad and 10-year-old bro Zac excitedly gathered around the TV. Loud music was vibrating through the house. They were watching a DVD of a Michael Jackson concert, circa 1992- endearing yet disturbing, no? It is hard to concentrate on writing with all of this racket. I know that nothing- earplugs, MP3 players, court cases- can block out the power of MJ. So if I start to pepper my writing with MJ phrases (e.g. "It don't matter if you're black or white, eeee-heee!"), just write a little complaint in my comments section and I will deal with the matter personally.
This week, in Carla Gypsygirl Land, something AMAZING happened. After a WHOLE YEAR of searching for a new job, I finally got one! Yes! It is true! I still can't quite believe it myself. I have this irrational thought that I will get a phone call and this new company will say, "Sorry Carla, we've changed our mind. We don't need you any more." I had 3 interviews with this new place, and I told myself that I would be SO angry if I didn't get the job. By the third interview, it got down to me and another applicant- I thought to myself, "I must eliminate them!" But after having already done 2 interviews, what more could I say or do? So I just bought a new top to wear to my interview, and I hoped for the best.
I handed in my resignation at Ye Olde Department Store. I always find it so empowering to resign. It makes me feel mysterious and desirable, and as though I am progressing in life. Some people were surprised, which I found surprising in itself- I mean, pretty much everyone saw me that day that Inga made me blubber all over our designer handbags. My manager said, "Congratulations. You can't stay in retail forever." I felt sad about this, because obviously, SHE has stayed in retail "forever"! I wish that I could have kept working at YODS, but there are only so many rude customers, crazy colleagues and bad pay rates that a girl can take. Now that there is a job-shaped light at the end of the tunnel, I thought I wouldn't mind being at YODS so much. But I still hate it, and rich rude customers still make me mad. I wish I didn't have to give 2 weeks' notice. But at least this weekend was the last weekend I will ever have to work at YODS.
I certainly feel very blessed to finally have a job. God has provided for me, and He has provided in abundance. The new company even met my salary expectations, after I told them that what they were offering wasn't quite enough! Oh, the power of being 25 and assertive. I will be working as a junior graphic designer. The senior designer I will be working with is so nice and funny. When she called me to tell me that I had the job, she put on a weird English accent and then asked me if I minded if she played R&B music in the office. Cool, hey? Anyway, this job is an answer to a LOT of prayer...I was almost about to give up on the design world and study something else. Every week at Bible study, my friends would ask, "What can we pray for you?" And it would always be the same old stuff for me- that I would stop being grouchy at my current job, and that God would provide me with a new job. I really hope this new place works out. I have a good feeling about it, though. In my contract, they even wrote down the dress code and how many sick days I would get. At the old place I worked at, when I asked my boss what the dress code was, he said, "Common sense." How can you wear common sense? Is that a new label or something?
One of the most challenging things about this new job is that it is very far away from my home. I don't have a car. By public transport, I think it will take me 2 hours to get there. I think I will have to move out of home. That is pretty scary- I've never lived out of home before. Sydney is a very expensive city to live in, and I haven't been able to afford a move before. But life is too short to spend 4 hours per day on public transport. I think it will be good to move out of home. I needed a far away job to force me out- I mean, I'm 25 now! Geoff and I don't want to live together until we're married, and I don't want to move in with people I don't know. I've also heard too many stories of friendships that have been destroyed after a stint at sharing a house. I mean, if you have to share a fridge, bathroom and a toilet with anyone, there are bound to be fights sooner or later. I think that's a basic rule of life- anything that involves hygiene, food, water, money and poo can cause conflict. So I am planning to live alone. I am scared that I will get lonely. Who knows, if I move out of home, maybe I will update my blog more frequently because I'll be so bored. There are all of these things that I keep forgetting I'll need- like a microwave, a cupboard and a computer of my own.
Michael is now singing "Billy Jean". Back when I was at uni, I used to do aerobics classes to this song! It took me ages to learn the routines. There was this really chunky Asian boy who would stand in the front row. He was the only boy in the class, and he was the fattest and sweatiest. But I totally respected him, because he tried so hard and danced with such enthusiasm. He was heaps better at aerobics than me, anyway! I never spoke to him- I generally don't like to speak to anyone if I am sweaty- but I have always remembered him.
Speaking of Asian people, I just wanted to say something about my post last week on Asian stereotypes. I was worried that I sounded a bit too mean and sarcastic. But I can't really apologise for that, because I WAS very angry! But when I re-read over my post, I noticed that I sounded quite racist against white people. I wanted to say that I don't think that all white Australians are mean to Asians. I just had a lot of bad experiences as an Asian child, and I am still very sensitive about anything to do with my cultural heritage. I think that childhood hurt came through when I wrote about that stupid stir-fry commercial. I wanted to let y'all know that I love people of all different colours, and that I don't hate white people- especially as I am marrying a man who has such white skin that he calls it his "moontan"!
Okay, I think I have procrastinated for long enough...I'd better walk away from this computer. I am just scared to leave this room in case I see Michael Jackson in a unitard or something, and I am scarred for life. I wish this DVD would be over!
Love,
Carla |