While I was delighted to finally graduate from college, entering the workforce was a bit intimidating.
I got my degree in a very specialized field that requires significant experience to excel.
I knew it was going to take awhile for me to start earning a decent living. In the meantime, I was responsible for large student loans, insurance, car payment and all sorts of living expenses. I barely had enough in the budget to cover groceries. I took an apartment in close enough proximity that I could walk to work and save on gas. I chose the accommodations mainly because of the extremely low rent. The apartment building had some problems. The front door didn’t shut tightly or lock securely. The majority of windows were painted shut and yet they all leaked air. There were water stains on the ceilings from leaking pipes and water damage on the walls and floors. There was very limited hot water, poor water pressure and the drains constantly clogged. The oven smoked when I ran it, and the refrigerator wasn’t cold enough to prevent milk from spoiling. My biggest complaint was with the heating and cooling system. I live in an area where the outdoor temperature fluctuates anywhere from negative twenty to the upper nineties. We experience bitter wind chills, rain, snow, high humidity and every type of weather condition. It’s not possible to go without heat in the winter. I set the thermostat as low as possible, rolled up towels on the window sills, dressed in heavy sweaters and still paid ungodly heating bills. Every time the heater started up, it made a frightening noise and spewed tons of dust and odd smells into the air. In the summer, I went without air conditioning. I could afford the high electric bills and couldn’t tolerate the musty smell coming from the vents. I tried running a box fan in the bedroom but kept tripping the breaker.
