Workin'

Late in August, as the school year approached, a couple of things happened: First, I finished a revision of my new novel, three-hole-punched it for a binder, and gave it to Andrew to read--the first and only person to lay eyes on this thing. And second, without a messy trashpile of a draft to actively work on, I thought it might be an interesting idea to take on a job outside the house. Gasp! I applied to a couple of temp organizations at Pitt and CMU, and as of today I have a job with Pitt through the middle of December, and the prospect of temp work with CMU starting in January. If I want it. If I want any of it! I was filled with instant regret the second I agreed to the Pitt job. But I'm in it now, and I'll see it through. I mean, it's a good job--office admin at the Writing Center--and the hours are pretty much perfect for still being able to pick up the kids from their after-school activities. And it's about seven minutes from home. Can't complain about any of it.

It's a good time to experiment: Andrew's still working from home with no travel; the kids have after-school stuff almost every day; and we're not trying to plan any vacations. If there was a time to try out a job, this is it. I really like temping for this reason. Dip a toe in, see what it's like, see if it's something I might want to make permanent should the opportunity arise. I really liked temping a hundred years ago in NYC for the same reason. No commitment, no stakes, no stress. Just...trying it out. We'll see how it goes.

Last week, when faced with the reality of leaving the house, I was forced to reckon with my absolute lack of clothes suitable for going out into the world. No suits or dressy things required; but I've been living pretty much exclusively in leggings from Amazon and a variety of secondhand t-shirts. A few new pairs of pants and a few new shirts were required. 

I make my lunch in the morning and leave the house with the kids, drop them off at school, then drive into Oakland. New routines for fall. Shaking things up without being too disruptive.