Unemployment: Pros & Cons

It's been a little over a month since we arrived in Denver and my quest for gainful employment has already had its share of ups and downs. I interviewed for and was offered a community relations position that paid okay but would require me to commute 45 minutes each way to a Po-dunk town in the middle of absolute, God-forsaken nowhere. After much discussion and a mini-meltdown (Tom is a lucky man!), I decided against taking the job because one of the positives about moving out here was that I didn't have to take the first job that came along and I didn't feel like that was the right job for me. But what if that's the only job that's going to come along? I've been torturing myself with that question, but I have to believe that another opportunity will appear... hopefully sooner rather than later. In the meantime, I need to embrace the more laid-back Denver lifestyle and attempt to enjoy unemployment instead of obsess over it. Much easier said than done...

Here's my breakdown of the pros and cons of being sans job...

PROS

• Stress-free evenings and Sunday afternoons. I mean, what do I gotta do tomorrow?
• Unlimited gym time. If I can't make money, I will be buff. I am making working out my unofficial job.
• No annoying alarm clocks and not having to make the decision to either sleep another 20 minutes or blow-dry my hair.
• Getting to see a lot of Tom, especially when he isn't traveling and is working from home.
• Discovering that I enjoy doing chores like making the bed, laundry, sweeping, dishes, cleaning countertops, etc. All this free time has awakened the sleeping clean/neat freak in me.
• Oprah. Yes, I am embarassed to admit this one. But she doesn't come on until 4PM, which is basically the end of the day, so I don't feel that guilty sitting down for a little tube time.
• I am reading books again. It used to be that I only had it in me to read the New Yorker each week, but now I've made a pact with myself to read books too. Currently reading: Little Bee and Housetraining for Dummies.
• The mall is not crowded on Tuesdays at 11AM!
• Enjoying the sunshine! Not being cooped up in an office from 9AM - 5PM gives me plenty of opportunity to get my vitamin D.
• Exploring Denver. I need to get a little bit better at this one. I've gotten to know our neighborhood, but there's so much more to see and discover.

CONS

I started to write this list and then I got freaked out and it reminded me that I need to be positive and not dwell on the negative. :) Anyway, you all know the cons - no money, guilt over not contributing, stress and uncertainty of the job search, daytime TV sucks, not having a set schedule gives me anxiety, etc.

When I'm at the gym at noontime on a Thursday and I look at some of the women who are there with me, I wonder - what do you do? how are you able to be here? is this just your life? or is this how you keep yourself sane? Because it's how I'm keeping myself sane right now.

I hope that everyone will remind me of how I was crabbing about being unemployed when I am working again. Because I know that when that day comes, I'm going to wish that I could stay home and go to the gym!

A few photos...

I'm not ready to post interior photos yet - there are a few things that we still need! But here are some of the exterior of our building and the surrounding areas...

This is the front entrance of our building and the bridge at the end of the street goes across the Cherry Creek. That's also the entrance to the Cherry Creek bike path.

An exterior of our unit, which is on the corner bottom level. Look at our little balcony and the floor-to-ceiling windows!

The access to the Cherry Creek bike and walking path, which wraps around to Commons Park, REI, Riverfront Park and where Cherry Creek meets the Platte River.

A view of where the Cherry Creek meets the Platte River. That's the big REI on the right and there is green space all around where people hang out. Kind of like Denver's version of the beach!

Denver Observation #4

#4: People in Denver like fancy cars. Much like California and much unlike Massachusetts, cars are a big status symbol in Denver and the roads are filled with Mercedes, BMWs, Range Rovers, Audis and other high-end vehicles. It's funny, though, because it's pretty obvious that people here would rather drive the lowest-end Mercedes or BMV than the most tricked-out Nissan or Toyota. In the garage of our apartment complex, Tom's car (Honda Accord) and my car (Scion TC) pale in comparison to our neighbors', which include fancy-dancy Beemers, Range Rover Sports, Audi TTs and Mercedes of all shapes and sizes. After living in Boston, I sort of forgot how much cars mean to certain people and in Denver they seem to mean quite a lot.

Domestic Bliss...

Today Tom and I were the picture of domesticity...

Early to rise at 8AM so I could make it to 9AM boot camp class at my gym and he could go work out at his gym. After sweating out the three beers we each had last night, we headed out to get my flat tire fixed (yes, I got a flat tire this week - PAIN IN OUR ASSES.) and found out I needed to get two new tires. UGH. We hit up Home Depot and Triple B while the car was being worked on. When we returned home we didn't think we'd have the energy to tackle our to-do list, but we both rallied and made some real headway on a few things, including getting rid of another 500 pounds of cardboard and Styrofoam, hooking up the Bose 3-2-1, prettying up our new ladder bookshelf with photos, organizing the guest bedroom and setting up the lighting in our bedrooms and living room. We are getting there - slowly but surely!

Now we are headed out to get some dinner and a few drinks, although I'm sure we will be home at the same time we were last night - 10PM - because there is lots of stuff to do tomorrow too.

Oh, and it's raining today in Denver... boo.

Under $100!

In my last post I lamented the high cost of pedicures in Denver, but I've found something that negates that gripe: $92 (w/o tip) for a hair cut and highlights! I can't remember when - or if - I've paid under $100 at a salon, except for when I was working for Riviera and I got a discount at one of the salons the magazine advertised with. So hooray for Ashley at Luxe Salon in Denver for giving my lion's mane a great revamp on the cheap!

Denver Observations #1, #2 and #3

I've been noticing things about this new city...

#1: Perhaps it was my own preconceived notions about Denver, but I figured that this city would be overrun by vegetarians and those who only eat "organic," "raw," "macrobiotic," or (the absolutely worst diet on the planet) "vegan." Much to my relief, though, Denver is surprisingly carnivorous. Don't get me wrong - I love veggies, don't eat red meat on a very regular basis and I have no problem with vegetarians - but I was slightly concerned that there would be a surplus of overly-healthful restaurants and I would feel extra guilty indulging my fairly regular burger cravings. Turns out this place is overrun with places that serve great burgers, along with steakhouses, bbq joints and hot dog stands. Who knew? I guess the really granola-crunchy, veggie folks are hiding out in Boulder?

#2: There is no H&M or Ikea. Now, I am not a huge H&M fan, but it's a good place for shopping on the cheap and I've gotten a few cute shirts and dresses there in the past. As for Ikea, I'm definitely missing it. Tom and I decided that we were ready to move past Ikea furniture and invest in nicer, more durable pieces, but everything else at Ikea, including lighting, random decorations, kitchen stuff, photo frames, etc., is great, and, more importantly, cost effective! Boo. Bring Ikea - and, okay, H&M - to Denver!!

#3: Pedicures are like WHOA expensive. So it's flip-flop weather here in Denver and my hooves are hurting. This morning I researched some of the run-of-the-mill nail salons in the area and the average price for JUST a pedicure is between $37 and $50. I know I was spoiled in California where it's possible to get ones toes done for $20 including tip, and I got used to paying more when I was living in Boston, but the prices here in Denver are unbelievable. And this is horrible to say, but I think I can correlate Denver's low Asian population with the high cost of nail care in the city??

What day is it?

That's what I keep asking myself every morning when I wake up because the days are running together and I can't keep a clear grasp of the calendar. Is it really Wednesday, April 14th? Have we really been in Denver for 12 days? It feels longer... or maybe shorter? I'm not sure.

Anyway, I've learned a few things in the past 12 days. 1) Moving is really hard work. 2) Disorganization causes me major anxiety. 3) Tom is good at putting things together, even though he doesn't think so.

Since we got here, we've been going non-stop. Between making big purchases like bedroom and living room sets to the daily trips to Target and/or Bed Bath and Beyond, we've been spending money like it's going out of style then coming home to either put stuff away, put stuff together or organize stuff. Our living room stuff is all here (except for the side table that won't be delivered until sometime in May) and our bedroom stuff is coming today (assembly required, unfortunately). I've been trying to decorate here and there as I can, but the insane amount of cardboard and boxes in our kitchen and living room has made that difficult. We are getting there though, slowly but surely... I will post pictures once I feel like the place is picture-worthy. The apartment itself is beautiful and we are going to be really happy here once everything gets done!

This morning I put together our vacuum, which was a much more difficult feat than I expected. Turns out I am horrible at reading directions and Dirt Devil is horrible at writing them. I kept at it, though, and managed to get it assembled and working. Yay!

Tom is off at meetings in Denver this week, which is nice because he is home every evening. Next week he travels to Austin, then the week after he will be in Houston. It's good for him to get into a work routine out here, and it will be good for me to figure out my routine while he's traveling.

Ok - I need to go use that new vacuum that I just put together. There is a major amount of stubborn Styrofoam specks all over our floors that are driving me CRAAZY!