What Unemployment Is Like
Every year around Spring I publish a few blogposts before the site goes into its annual winter hiding. It would be poetic to attribute my inspirations to the fresh air, but in actuality it's because I get billed $300 for the upkeep of my website in June. I get an email alert about this in May. I thus start writing again in May. I wrote one post in 2018 and a few more the year before. With unemployment and all, I figured I had no excuse not to surpass last year's pitiful record.
When you've been commuting to an employer for the last five years then you suddenly have to stop, it gets weird. If you're lucky, your body let's you sleep for an extra 30 minutes on your first Monday morning of unemployment. If you're me, your eyes open at 6am. Now that it's been a couple of months since I've had any sort of routine, my body does just about whatever it wants. Today I had been awake for two hours, when finally I decided I need to put my phone down and get up. This was at 5am. I've been awake since 3am.
I was nervous and excited about my unemployment. The month of July was dedicated to simplifying my life. I started a journal, frequented my yoga studio, and dedicated my evenings to seeing friends. I decluttered the apartment prior to the move, though I admit to also spending a significant amount of attention on Netflix while I 'packed'. Television has since lost my interest and I've switched to books. I spend about three to four hours reading everyday, my favourite hour being at 8am with a fresh pot of tea.
August was a month of adjustment. I was oddly fearful of exploring the new city alone while J was at work. The bus system seemed inconvenient and I positively refused to drive, so I spent a lot of time at home. This is slowly changing. I now have a membership to a yoga studio, a favourite farmers market, and a dog to walk during the day. Oh yes, if you've somehow missed my Instagram spams, I now have a dog named Winston.
The annual debate commenced of whether it is now still summer or finally fall. I'm just awestruck it's already September - everyone seems to be in agreement about that. I'm currently quite calm about my lack of income, though I expect this mood to shift fairly soon. So here's to hoping that my unemployment doesn't last more than another month or two.
