Hello Reality

I had a conversation with a coworker last Friday, while treading water in a pool no less. Apparently her life sucks. When I asked why, she told me money is tight... and that she has over $160k in student loan debt.

And now we're treading in the deep end.

$160k in student loan debt is scary, but that's not all. I know she's bought a house in the past couple of years, does a lot of home improvement projects, and just bought a new truck. Well, actions have consequences. We've both been through physics. We both know Newton's First Law of Motion. Nothing here is going to change unless someone/something causes that change. Of course money is going to be tight under current circumstances.

Probing a little deeper, she didn't seem to have a plan to pay things off and end this unpleasantness. It seemed like she'd rather forget they exist; out of sight, out of mind. Drown in escapism.

Escapism kind of brings us out into the wide world of philosophy. I have this great mental image of philosophers pulling ideas from the air like ribbons of smoke: chaotic and dispersing. Their job is to track the smoke to its source and find that initial kernel of truth. Tangent aside, I can't help thinking that escapism as a philosophy has shaped modern American spending among other things.

So I'm sitting here, thinking about this, still trying to find the parameters of this life after college. Some days it sucks to have to pay bills and maintain a car - psssh, some days it's hard enough to wake up and go to work - but right now this is what I'm supposed to do. I'm supposed to formulate plans to tackle my debts and stash away the dolla dolla bills for retirement. I'm not splashing around just enough to keep my head above water; I'm taking that extra effort to swim to the side, and right now the end is in sight. Hello reality, I'm Jane. Nice to meet you.

Hello World

I wonder if oatmeal tea is something ordinary people survive on, or if I've been the only person in existence to use it for subsistence.

Flashback to a year ago - well little more if we're being precise - and I was a poor graduate student, out of state, out of country, very limited resources. I had a student loan from Sallie Mae and about two suitcases of belongings. I don't regret taking this opportunity (and loan) to study at a prestigious school, but it's definitely made a difference in my financial life upon returning stateside.

And so, now that I have a real live big-person job and am in repayment, personal finance is kind of becoming a hobby. Woo! Maybe I'll even write about it.

Oatmeal tea
Definition: "A warm hug for one's tummy." Consisting of instant oatmeal and black English tea, the concoction both warms and fills one's stomach whilst providing the necessary caffeine boost so integral to the life of a graduate student.