Last night, I finally wrapped up a week or so of orientation activities at Pratt. While most of the meetings and workshops were pretty dull (how many times does the Nurse Practitioner from Health and Counseling need to advertise free condoms and lube?), I did get a chance to meet some pretty awesome people from a handful of different departments. And, since hanging out with said people usually involves making the trek to Pratt's Brooklyn campus, I'm learning about that neighborhood as well - which, given that all my classes are on the Manhattan campus, I didn't think I'd really get a chance to do. So, mind-numbing presentations from the Registrar's office aside, it was a pretty good week.
In terms of classes ... I've only been contacted by one professor, who told us to buy a book and read a chapter of it before we meet for the first time. Other than that, I have no idea what I'm supposed to expect. But, judging from the conversations I've had with other students, neither does anyone else. So I'm not too worried.
Next step: back-to-school shopping! The thrill of shiny new notebooks and pencils never dies.
8/28/09
8/25/09
Moving and furnishing, almost complete.
After a few solid days of unpacking and nesting, I think I'm nearing the end of the furnishing process. It took a few trips to mom and dad's house, plus many rounds of shopping and assembling, but I'm pretty close to having a complete bedroom:
Once I buy storage containers that are flat enough to fit under my bed, those boxes in the corner will be gone and I will be free from packing materials at last. In a burst of domestic energy, Sarah did an awesome job putting our kitchen together:
And lastly, we're well on our way to having the coziest living room ever:
So the apartment is starting to feel like an apartment. We've still got a bit of furnishing and decorating to do, but other than that I think we are finally settled.
Once I buy storage containers that are flat enough to fit under my bed, those boxes in the corner will be gone and I will be free from packing materials at last. In a burst of domestic energy, Sarah did an awesome job putting our kitchen together:
And lastly, we're well on our way to having the coziest living room ever:
So the apartment is starting to feel like an apartment. We've still got a bit of furnishing and decorating to do, but other than that I think we are finally settled.
8/21/09
Someone please tell me that I am not a pathetic loser for doing this.
Ok, I did it. I sent my resume to a temp agency. I swore that I would never get so desperate for employment that I allowed myself to become an administrative cubicle monkey ... but until this bartending job gets off the ground, I can't really think of another option. Freelancing is pretty unreliable, and once classes start I won't have a flexible enough schedule to take on a classier part-time job. So, I swallowed my pride and hit send. I have an interview on Thursday.
Given my sorrowful conviction that temping is a pitiful icon of stagnation and failed ambition, I would really appreciate it if someone out there could try to convince me that it is not, in fact, the most pathetic thing in the world. Maybe my perceptions of temp work have been skewed by pop culture - maybe it's not something to be totally ashamed of. Is there a chance that temping is not step one in the soul-sucking process of abandoning your lifelong goals, handing yourself over to The Man, and morphing into a pencil-skirt-wearing corporate drone?
Anyone?
Given my sorrowful conviction that temping is a pitiful icon of stagnation and failed ambition, I would really appreciate it if someone out there could try to convince me that it is not, in fact, the most pathetic thing in the world. Maybe my perceptions of temp work have been skewed by pop culture - maybe it's not something to be totally ashamed of. Is there a chance that temping is not step one in the soul-sucking process of abandoning your lifelong goals, handing yourself over to The Man, and morphing into a pencil-skirt-wearing corporate drone?
Anyone?
8/15/09
And employment continues to dangle itself unattainably in front of my face.
I was supposed to train at the bar this weekend, so I called my boss's assistant on Friday to see what was up. She then explained, apologetically, that they were too busy opening up a new bagel store to train any new bar staff (why a chain of bars needs to open up a bagel store is still up for grabs). She said that once the bagel place was up and running (which should supposedly happen within the next month), they'd give me a call and get me started.
I'm not going to bother complaining about this, because 1) complaining doesn't fix anything, and 2) I knew full well upon registering for my bartending course that I was inserting myself into an industry unabashedly composed of sketchiness, flakiness, and employers who only communicate via text. Honestly, I'm not really surprised that this job is taking forever to get off the ground. Sure, it sucks to keep waiting - and I'd be much more relaxed if I knew a paycheck was in my near future - but I can poke around for other temporary positions and see what happens. I'd rather focus my energy on the glory of my new apartment (or the hunt for a new gig) than mope about having to wait longer for a start date at the bar.
I'm not going to bother complaining about this, because 1) complaining doesn't fix anything, and 2) I knew full well upon registering for my bartending course that I was inserting myself into an industry unabashedly composed of sketchiness, flakiness, and employers who only communicate via text. Honestly, I'm not really surprised that this job is taking forever to get off the ground. Sure, it sucks to keep waiting - and I'd be much more relaxed if I knew a paycheck was in my near future - but I can poke around for other temporary positions and see what happens. I'd rather focus my energy on the glory of my new apartment (or the hunt for a new gig) than mope about having to wait longer for a start date at the bar.
Moving and furnishing, day 2.
Today had ups and downs. Let's start with the downs - that way I'll get it out of my system faster, and we'll also end on a positive note.
Firstly, Sleepy's completely butchered my bed delivery. Despite telling me over the phone that my bed was scheduled to come between 9am and 1pm today, the delivery was actually in their calendar for next Saturday. I realized this at 12:30 today, after calling to check the status of a delivery that turned out not to be happening. No amount of grumbling could convince the Sleepy's man to give me my bed today, so I rescheduled for tomorrow afternoon. Since Sarah is also planning on getting her bed delivered from Sleepy's tomorrow, we picked the same time slot in hopes that the two beds will arrive at the same time - but since Sleepy's has already proven itself capable of being wrong by an entire week, I probably shouldn't get my hopes up.
So that was today's major pain in the ass. Also on the list of ass pains were the two holes that Ikea failed to drill into my desk prior to packaging it, which forced me to do some funky jerry-rigging instead of following the directions correctly - but that was only a minor setback in an otherwise successful series of Ikea DIY projects.
And I think the positives outweigh the negatives. We met the building's super, who seems like a very nice and amenable guy. He's still got some work to do on our bathroom mirrors and our dishwasher, but he's planning on having everything nice and tidy by Tuesday afternoon. And he has an adorable baby girl that I like looking at.
I've also got more than half my stuff moved in, and so far things are fitting without a problem. It's even looking like my closet will be big enough for all of my clothes, which means I may not need to buy an additional chest of drawers. I've still got a few piles left in my parents' living room, but I'm pretty positive it'll all fit in the closet. Having one less piece of furniture would be a big plus.
So that's where I left off today. Now I'm headed out to East Hampton to join my family for a much-needed week of vacation. I'll have to do some hardcore decorating when I get back to Brooklyn next weekend, because right now the place is looking pretty bare:
But Sarah and I have some pretty strong nesting instincts, so I'm sure we'll have a cozy-looking home in no time. Things are pretty scattered right now - but the more we unpack, the more we are totally in love with our new place. It will still take a little while to get fully settled, but we're really excited to finally be moving in.
Firstly, Sleepy's completely butchered my bed delivery. Despite telling me over the phone that my bed was scheduled to come between 9am and 1pm today, the delivery was actually in their calendar for next Saturday. I realized this at 12:30 today, after calling to check the status of a delivery that turned out not to be happening. No amount of grumbling could convince the Sleepy's man to give me my bed today, so I rescheduled for tomorrow afternoon. Since Sarah is also planning on getting her bed delivered from Sleepy's tomorrow, we picked the same time slot in hopes that the two beds will arrive at the same time - but since Sleepy's has already proven itself capable of being wrong by an entire week, I probably shouldn't get my hopes up.
So that was today's major pain in the ass. Also on the list of ass pains were the two holes that Ikea failed to drill into my desk prior to packaging it, which forced me to do some funky jerry-rigging instead of following the directions correctly - but that was only a minor setback in an otherwise successful series of Ikea DIY projects.
And I think the positives outweigh the negatives. We met the building's super, who seems like a very nice and amenable guy. He's still got some work to do on our bathroom mirrors and our dishwasher, but he's planning on having everything nice and tidy by Tuesday afternoon. And he has an adorable baby girl that I like looking at.
I've also got more than half my stuff moved in, and so far things are fitting without a problem. It's even looking like my closet will be big enough for all of my clothes, which means I may not need to buy an additional chest of drawers. I've still got a few piles left in my parents' living room, but I'm pretty positive it'll all fit in the closet. Having one less piece of furniture would be a big plus.
So that's where I left off today. Now I'm headed out to East Hampton to join my family for a much-needed week of vacation. I'll have to do some hardcore decorating when I get back to Brooklyn next weekend, because right now the place is looking pretty bare:
But Sarah and I have some pretty strong nesting instincts, so I'm sure we'll have a cozy-looking home in no time. Things are pretty scattered right now - but the more we unpack, the more we are totally in love with our new place. It will still take a little while to get fully settled, but we're really excited to finally be moving in.
8/14/09
Moving and furnishing, day 1.
I spent today gathering everything I own and dumping it in the middle of the living room. My parents had offered to make a car trip to the new apartment after work, so my goal was to consolidate all of my belongings in one place before they got home. It was too much to fit into the car all at once, but we did manage to cram about half of my stuff in the trunk. Here's the view from the backseat:
From left to right - a bag of towels, a bag of knitting supplies, a bag of shoes, and a bag of extension cords. Somewhere underneath all that are two suitcases of clothes and all of my Ikea purchases. I guess that's what I consider to be the essentials.
The journey began with a watershed moment for the family vehicle, as my mom programmed my new address into the GPS system for the first time:
Unfortunately, the system seemed to struggle with Brooklyn geography - we ended up lost somewhere in Red Hook and had to navigate to the apartment using Mapquest directions from my mom's Blackberry. So a half hour trip became a one-hour trip, and we ended up circling the entire perimeter of the Greenwood Cemetary, but we made it to the apartment and unloaded the trunk.
My bed's getting delivered tomorrow sometime between 9am and 1pm, so I'm going to have to head back to the apartment pretty early (in the unlikely event that the delivery is actually on time). Since the rest of the family is heading out to the Hamptons around noon, my dad won't be able to drive the rest of my stuff to the apartment - but the things we brought over tonight are definitely enough to get me settled.
The checklist for tomorrow:
1) assemble bed
2) assemble desk and desk chair
3) unpack my random crap
4) meet my family in East Hampton
I think I can do that.
From left to right - a bag of towels, a bag of knitting supplies, a bag of shoes, and a bag of extension cords. Somewhere underneath all that are two suitcases of clothes and all of my Ikea purchases. I guess that's what I consider to be the essentials.
The journey began with a watershed moment for the family vehicle, as my mom programmed my new address into the GPS system for the first time:
Unfortunately, the system seemed to struggle with Brooklyn geography - we ended up lost somewhere in Red Hook and had to navigate to the apartment using Mapquest directions from my mom's Blackberry. So a half hour trip became a one-hour trip, and we ended up circling the entire perimeter of the Greenwood Cemetary, but we made it to the apartment and unloaded the trunk.
My bed's getting delivered tomorrow sometime between 9am and 1pm, so I'm going to have to head back to the apartment pretty early (in the unlikely event that the delivery is actually on time). Since the rest of the family is heading out to the Hamptons around noon, my dad won't be able to drive the rest of my stuff to the apartment - but the things we brought over tonight are definitely enough to get me settled.
The checklist for tomorrow:
1) assemble bed
2) assemble desk and desk chair
3) unpack my random crap
4) meet my family in East Hampton
I think I can do that.
8/13/09
Signed.
And the lease is ours. As an added perk, the super already has our keys ready for us and said that we can begin moving stuff in tomorrow (instead of waiting until Saturday, which is when the lease technically starts).
For now, the next step is to get our utilities hooked up (anyone have any idea how to do that?) and look into purchasing a cable plan so that we can get the interwebs (and maybe even a few TV channels). My bed's getting delivered on Saturday morning and our living room furniture is coming on Sunday.
Apparently this is actually happening.
For now, the next step is to get our utilities hooked up (anyone have any idea how to do that?) and look into purchasing a cable plan so that we can get the interwebs (and maybe even a few TV channels). My bed's getting delivered on Saturday morning and our living room furniture is coming on Sunday.
Apparently this is actually happening.
8/12/09
One final setback.
Due to some banking drama, we'll actually be signing the lease tomorrow morning. Not today. But we're still signing it. Soon.
8/11/09
And, done.
We can all breathe a sigh of relief. Because our application was finally approved. And we are signing the lease tomorrow at 4.
I can't think of a better way to celebrate than to go watch the season finale of NYC Prep.
I can't think of a better way to celebrate than to go watch the season finale of NYC Prep.
8/10/09
Progress. Sort of.
Very little happened today on the job front. Even less happened on the apartment front. But some things happened:
1) I managed to tentatively schedule my bar training for sometime on Saturday.
2) Our broker let us know that the building still hasn't completed our credit check.
Not much encouragement. But I'm getting really good at waiting for things to happen.
1) I managed to tentatively schedule my bar training for sometime on Saturday.
2) Our broker let us know that the building still hasn't completed our credit check.
Not much encouragement. But I'm getting really good at waiting for things to happen.
Flarke and Snille. And a living room set.
Since our (supposed) move-in date is fast approaching, I decided to spend this past weekend doing some furnishing. First stop: Ikea Brooklyn.
I'm not going to be ashamed about the fact that I love Ikea. Because I really, really love Ikea. From a practical standpoint, it's a very affordable source of nice, simple furniture. But beyond that, it's a place where you can scoot around on a flatbed cart after snacking on Swedish meatballs. And there are funny Scandinavian words involved. If that's not thrilling, I don't know what is.
But what makes this particular Ikea especially exciting is the fact that you can get there by boat. Approaching Ikea by sea is potentially the coolest thing I've done all summer. Check it out - it's like pulling into the Ellis Island of contemporary home furnishing:
Boats are awesome. And Ikea is awesome. Going to Ikea on a boat? Completely baller.
What's also baller is the fact that I got a cute duvet cover, a full set of sheets, a computer desk, and a desk chair for around $100. The desk turned out to be too heavy to carry home - so, rather than shelling out another $100 to ship a $25 piece of furniture, I asked my dad to drive me back the next day to pick it up. But, other than that, the Ikea trip was a success.
The next stop was Jennifer Convertibles. My parents had generously offered to buy me couch as a housewarming gift (firmly reminding me that I was on my own after that), so my mom and I headed out in search of a good deal. We figured the sale items at Jennifer would be both comfy and affordable ... but we didn't realize that sometimes their clearance sofas come with a free loveseat, armchair, and ottoman. So we ended up with an entire living room set for the price of a marked-down sofa. It's unclear whether it will all fit in the apartment, but we figured we'd take it and see what happens. If things don't fit, there's always Ebay.
I'm not going to be ashamed about the fact that I love Ikea. Because I really, really love Ikea. From a practical standpoint, it's a very affordable source of nice, simple furniture. But beyond that, it's a place where you can scoot around on a flatbed cart after snacking on Swedish meatballs. And there are funny Scandinavian words involved. If that's not thrilling, I don't know what is.
But what makes this particular Ikea especially exciting is the fact that you can get there by boat. Approaching Ikea by sea is potentially the coolest thing I've done all summer. Check it out - it's like pulling into the Ellis Island of contemporary home furnishing:
Boats are awesome. And Ikea is awesome. Going to Ikea on a boat? Completely baller.
What's also baller is the fact that I got a cute duvet cover, a full set of sheets, a computer desk, and a desk chair for around $100. The desk turned out to be too heavy to carry home - so, rather than shelling out another $100 to ship a $25 piece of furniture, I asked my dad to drive me back the next day to pick it up. But, other than that, the Ikea trip was a success.
The next stop was Jennifer Convertibles. My parents had generously offered to buy me couch as a housewarming gift (firmly reminding me that I was on my own after that), so my mom and I headed out in search of a good deal. We figured the sale items at Jennifer would be both comfy and affordable ... but we didn't realize that sometimes their clearance sofas come with a free loveseat, armchair, and ottoman. So we ended up with an entire living room set for the price of a marked-down sofa. It's unclear whether it will all fit in the apartment, but we figured we'd take it and see what happens. If things don't fit, there's always Ebay.
8/9/09
Why does nothing ever happen within a reasonable time frame?
I am currently waiting for two things to happen: final approval for the apartment and a start date at the bar. It's unclear why both of these things are taking so long, but I'd really like to stop waiting and start having both an apartment and a job.
Our broker claims that we'll be hearing back from the building sponsor by Monday morning, at which point we'll be able to set a date for the lease signing. So, provided that the building doesn't decide that 2 renters with 3 guarantors aren't reliable enough to be given a lease, we should be all set by tomorrow. Worst case scenario, we get rejected and all hell breaks loose for everyone and everything around me. But according to our broker (and to my desperate attempts at optimism), that won't happen.
What's more frustrating is the flakiness of my future employers, who don't seem to understand that I really, really need a job. Right now. They were supposed to train me this weekend, but couldn't fit me into the schedule - now they're planning on getting back in touch with me tomorrow about scheduling my training for this coming week. My goal was to have an income before I moved, and I'm trying to nudge the bossmen as gently as possible in order to make that happen - but I haven't yet figured out how to say I HAVE NO MONEY PLEASE GIVE ME A JOB in an eloquent, professional manner. I guess I'll see what they say tomorrow. If I can at least train before this weekend, I'll ease up on the unemployment anxiety.
Our broker claims that we'll be hearing back from the building sponsor by Monday morning, at which point we'll be able to set a date for the lease signing. So, provided that the building doesn't decide that 2 renters with 3 guarantors aren't reliable enough to be given a lease, we should be all set by tomorrow. Worst case scenario, we get rejected and all hell breaks loose for everyone and everything around me. But according to our broker (and to my desperate attempts at optimism), that won't happen.
What's more frustrating is the flakiness of my future employers, who don't seem to understand that I really, really need a job. Right now. They were supposed to train me this weekend, but couldn't fit me into the schedule - now they're planning on getting back in touch with me tomorrow about scheduling my training for this coming week. My goal was to have an income before I moved, and I'm trying to nudge the bossmen as gently as possible in order to make that happen - but I haven't yet figured out how to say I HAVE NO MONEY PLEASE GIVE ME A JOB in an eloquent, professional manner. I guess I'll see what they say tomorrow. If I can at least train before this weekend, I'll ease up on the unemployment anxiety.
8/5/09
What does it mean when ...
... your broker tells you that an apartment is definitely yours, you get all your paperwork in, and then your broker ceases to contact you?
Anyone?
Anyone?
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
