The News

So, it can now be made official... I am hours away from giving my two weeks' notice at ICT. Around August 27th or so, I will once again be employed at the local record store. This time around, I have been offered between 30-32 hours per week (as opposed to 8-20 last year), and possibly the title of assistant manager. With the hourly wage difference, it doesn't add up to much more money than I make at ICT, but, I've decided to make the move for a variety of reasons.

a) Job security... By taking this job, while I may not get much richer, at least I know I'll have a job in October. The way I see it, with the steady decline in hours, it's only a matter of time before more layoffs hit my current place of work. Call it leaving a sinking ship, if you will.

b) Mental well-being... Anybody who knows me will tell you I'm a music lover above all else. That said, I will be MUCH happier working steady at the record store, rather than sitting in front of a computer, listening to telephone conversations all day. It's not a stressful job by any stretch, but I've never been a big fan of cubicles. Simply put, working at the record store is just more "me".

c) Physical well-being... Since starting at ICT, with a few weird shifts thrown in to disrupt my sleep patterns, getting 2 to 3 hours of sleep at night hasn't been that uncommon. By working consistently at more normal hours of the day, I suspect this will be rectified, thus allowing me more consistent rest, ergo I feel better.

d) Financial well-being... kind of... At ICT, I never know if I'll be working 40 hours or 14. It's pretty difficult to pay bills consistently when you have no idea how much money you'll have next week. With the new job, there isn't much variance from week to week; the schedule is set in advance, and you work a full scheduled shift every time, with no worries of being sent home for lack of work to do. I will have a good idea what I'll be making every time. This makes it much easier to plan things, such as how much money should be taken per pay by the credit union. It'll also give social services a much more solid estimate of my income, so they can finish the readjustment of child support payments that has kept them baffled for the past two months. It's an announcement, loud and clear to them that no... there will be no windfall, I am not getting a raise or winning the lottery, it is safe to lower the payments and allow us all to get on with our fucking lives.

So, yeah. I feel pretty good about this. I know it won't make me rich, but at least it'll make me happy. And, to me, that counts for something.