Apartment Plans

Today is supposedly the happiest day of the year. I'm glad to say it has come pretty dang close.

Nicole and I spent the afternoon apartment shopping. Gosh, it felt great to spend so much quality time with her. We talked about life goals and live entertainment.

We ran the gamut of apartments. The afternoon's high- (and low-) lights:

• The pregnant leasing lady indirectly letting us in on her marital dissatisfaction ("How long have you been married?" "Almost eight months, now." "Oh, newlyweds. You still love each other.").
• A complex full of smells: rank B.O. clinging to some longbearded tenant like a torn sleeved, holey t-shirt (like the one he was wearing), smoke wafting from the full ashtrays on every three window sills, and a leasing office smelled like a really cheap motel.
  
• High quality apartments (with high quality prices) that still tried to nickel-and-dime you for perks you would think would be included (parking, basic cable, etc.)
  

But the one we ended up with, is great. It has character. The "urban ski lodge with vaulted ceilings" not the "so tiny the kitchen and bathroom share a sink." Nice pool, large closets, well kept grounds with tons mature tree shade. It seems wonderful.

We're on the waiting list.

"A comma in the wrong place can be a dangerous thing"

So, I start life as a professional editor next week. No big deal, right? The company sent me the contract. I signed it and sent it back, asked a few clarifying questions, and they answered me back.

Then I realized, I have no clue what I'm doing.

No idea about tax rates, dress codes, work loads, commute times, deadlines, internet connections. I still have nothing completely dedicated to this job. I don't even have a real home office (but I do have a coffee table named Lack-—it's always cool to have furniture with names).

And that's not to mention the self-doubt of actually being able to do the job write right. Who in their right mind bases their life on telling other people they're wrong? Oh, yeah. Nice people like me.

I hope most of this will be covered in next week's training.