WHERE THE WILD THINGS ARE

Spike Jonze. Maurice Sendak. Monsters. Arcade Fire.

This gives me goosebumps!

The loss of my innocence

From my darling mother I inherited brown hair, brown eyes, an inability to keep plants alive, and an unfaltering love for Daniel Day-Lewis.

It started with Last of the Mohicans. It is my mom's favorite movie, and I was forced to watch it when I was too young to stomach its mature themes. The movie literally haunted me.

I first watched it on a tiny silver television we found stuffed in a downstairs closet of a solid old house that we were renting on the shore of Christmas Cove, Maine. The violence was excessive and the throbbing love stories woven into the plot were above my prepubescent comprehension.

Despite all this, there was one thing I clearly understood: Daniel Day-Lewis was a one hot hunk of man.

...we now own Last of the Mohicans on VHS and DVD.

WANTED: THAT JOB I WAS PROMISED

I googled "new grads recession jobs" in an attempt to find articles that would help answer why the hell I can't get a job and to find a bit of reassurance and support.

I know everyone is struggling--unemployment checks are the most common type that I cash at the bank. I hear heartbreaking stories everyday and a staggering number of my customers have little red flags that pop up when they do a transaction because their mortgages haven't been paid since November.

It's hard not to get completely discouraged, and it's been a wicked blow to my confidence that I haven't been able to start a career, or apply any of the skills I worked hard to earn in school. So many people, myself included, can't help but feel like it's their fault they aren't able to find their place.

So googling "new grads recession jobs" stacked a few really great articles in my lap. And, yes, that is how I phrase my googles. Just yesterday I googled "cat pee inside everywhere" and "anxiety bank teller fear." Google helps me work out my issues, one incorrectly phrased query at a time.

An article on Allbusiness.com was obviously written by a robot, because it churned out all of the typical "duh" advice spewed on the news all of the time that doesn't actually help at all. They had one particularly discouraging blurb:

The possibility of an economic recession is leading employers to set high expectations for new hires. As a result, it has become more important than ever for job seekers to leverage their experience, enthusiasm and long-term value to employers to have the best chances of surviving potential layoffs due to budget cuts and downsizing.

I don't know how much more enthusiastic I could be short of dropping to my knees at interviews and waving my arms above my head shouting, "I can DO THIS! PLEASE let me do this!!!!"

Penelope Trunk's Brazen Careerist, a really encouraging blog full of career/life advice from a successful woman who's "been there," had this to say on the subject of new grads vs the economy:

The best thing you can do for yourself is take time to figure out who you are and where you fit in the world. No one teaches you that in school. You need to do it yourself. Grad school is a way to delay this process, rather than move you forward, according to Thomas Benton of the Chronicle of Higher Education. So instead of dodging tough questions by going back to school, try being lost. It’s normal, and honest, and you will end up with more self-knowledge and less debt than your grad-school counterparts, and in many cases, you will be similarly qualified for your next big job.

Ahh, that's the kind of advice I've been looking for.

And this one I especially love:

You don’t need to be learning the perfect thing in your job. You just need to be learning. Don’t tell yourself you need a job that gives your life meaning. Jobs don’t do that; doesn’t that make you feel better? Suddenly being in the workplace doesn’t seem so bad.

I've been trying to look at the wide wide WIDE range of jobs I've had since graduating last May in this way. I've learned a bit from all of them. Learned what I hate, what my strengths are, and what I need to improve upon (i.e. stop being so shy and try to drop my voice a few octaves so I don't sound like a 14 year old/muppet.) I've also had the chance to meet a huge array of wonderful people from all types of backgrounds, all working for the same cause. We all just want to find a bit of peace while we earn our keep, and to enjoy it day by day.

And, just in case you didn't get the point yet, Penelope slams the final nail into the grad school coffin here:

In a world where people did not change careers, grad school made sense. Today, grad school is antiquated. You invest three to six extra years in school in order to get your dream career. But the problem is that not only are the old dream careers deteriorating, but even if you have a dream career, it won’t last. You’ll want to change because you can. Because that’s normal for today’s workplace. People who are in their twenties today will change careers about four times in their life. Which means that grad school is a steep investment for such a short period of time. The grad school model needs to change to adapt to the new workplace. Until then. Stay away.

In the fall I was hell-bent on attending grad school. I got the recommendations, the applications, the transcripts, and the fancy heavy-weight paper that says "I fucking mean business" but just couldn't commit. Do I want publishing? Creative writing? Teaching? Law? I have no idea. I want them all. So until I can commit/afford such an investment, I'm just going to keep working and learning...in the school of hard knocks!

Framingham vs Economy vs Cultural Rift

An interesting article about how the recession-depression is affecting the culturally conflicted Framingham, my home town.

Lauren Conrad: Trust Fund Tart, Designer, Intern, Reality Star, Author....?

My peer, Lauren Conrad of "The Hills" and "Laguna Beach" fame, has written a young adult novel "loosely based" on her own life experiences.

Plot: A 19 year old girl moves to LA and becomes the star of a reality show.

It's just too easy to mock this one.

The best part? L.A. Candy is the first installment in a 3-book series!

L.A. Candy is a reference to cocaine...right? Cute.