Now that I’ve been working at Radioshack I’ve had way more disposable income than I am used to. (A note to the reader, this is a complete hyperbole, I’m still incredibly broke!) that side note aside I must confess that I am addicted to this website:
It has a collection of thousands of vinyl records all in mint condition and all incredibly cheap! I recently purchased a punk rock classic “Funhouse” by Iggy Pop and the Stooges for only 12 dollars while other places are selling it for 49.99. It is my service as a vinyl record enthusiast to tell you about this website so that you can use it too.
That’s all for tonight! I would write more but the 42 hours this week at Radioshack have left their mark and I need sleep.
Check back more often during the school semester once I settle in at school and collect my thoughts.
See you on campus soon!
Jimmy
So my parents went to New York for a few days and my sister has all but moved out of the house (don’t worry I ordered the Jacuzzi to fill up that empty room…) and I had the house to myself Friday, Saturday, Sunday, and pretty much Monday night.
Did I have a crazy party with dozens of people? Did I make a mess trying to cook 10 pounds of Macaroni and Cheese? Did I dance around the house listening to Billy Idol?
Nope.
Looks like I’ve started to grow up. (finally! Geesh I was in no rush…) Not that I was ever too wild before, and not that I’m the old man feeding the ducks down by the lake, but this weekend really brought to light how everyone gets older and things change. I had a few friends over Friday night and we watched a movie and that was it. I cleaned the house and did laundry on Saturday. On Sunday I went for a hike at the nearby nature reserve Breakheart and then got ready for work. Today I went to work and then came home to do another computer job for someone.
This many sound boring to all of you spring chickens just coming to UML but in reality it’s so comfortable. I feel relaxed and confident that I can someday live on my own and not be a total basketcase (well at least not more than usual…) I think at this point I have to give UML credit where credit is due. If you are a prospective student I am sure you are at least a little nervous about living on your own for what will be the first time for most of you. I remember I thought it was going to be a breeze but believe me, you start to miss home. I think it takes years of “practice” at college to learn how to become more independent and realize that maybe the simple things that your parents have been rambling about for years are really the most important in your life. I really like the way that UML does housing. All of the freshmen live together either in Borgeious or Leitch. I like this because it is much less likely that you will be lost in the shuffle because you will be amongst people going through the exact same thing. It is a testament to how well this system works that I am living with Ryan Cochran, a friend of mine from October of freshman year.
I’m not only talking to the on campus residents: This is also true for commuters. You still have to manage your own schedule, buy your own books, prepare your meals around your schedule, etc. College in general is such a fundamental and necessary experience this day and age that I have no idea what I would be like without it. I don’t mean to say that I have it all figured out and I won’t continue to develop (heck I still have another two semesters – at least!) but I will give you this observation: *drum roll please*
You will change.
How do I know? Because (another bold underline moment here) I have changed. But that’s ok! It’s necessary. You won’t realize it until it’s happened but your personality, your aspirations, who you associate with – it all changes! It is a really bizarre sensation to attempt to describe and I don’t think this entry is doing it justice, but maybe, just maybe when you’re there and you realize how much has happened and how much you have developed, you will understand.
I think something like this happens to everyone in school at various points. I only know one thing, this weekend light “donned on Marblehead” and I really do feel different now.
Has anyone reading this experienced that sort of moment in their life? To the incoming freshmen, are you nervous about living on your own? What do you want to get out of school?
Hey everybody!
Long time no write! I finally made my decision regarding a job and I ended up at Radioshack and I have been so busy trying to finish the training there that I have neglected my first love: writing!
The training at Radioshack is almost done and by the end I will be qualified to work a full shift on the sales floor. Retail is like no other job I have ever had and I have more respect for anyone who has ever been involved in the business. Although the hours are long and the work can be slow it is really rewarding to help out a customer and the paychecks are always a great bonus! ($$$) Any prospective student reading this must understand that money is a rare and much sought after commodity in college and I’m pretty sure it isn’t possible to have too much of it. I don’t mean to sound like a materialist (I’m not – hopefully!) but things come up and when it comes down to it you just need the green. With this flexible job I will be able to still have fun (read: have enough money to have fun) and will still have ample time to devote to my studies.
In other news I am getting ready for school by slowly wiping the dust off of all my stuff from last semester and beginning to pack it all up again. My sister who is moving out of the house is giving me her mini fridge which will prove very useful!
Although I have now been through the move in process three times now it never hurts to have a handy dandy checklist at hand. I prefer this one which hasn’t steered me wrong in all of the times I have had to move back. After all, it isn’t the lists fault that I always manage to forget at least two really important things that require me to come home the day after moving in. I think it is a conspiracy by my parents to have me home one more day ;) (just kidding mom!)
I have been talking to Professor Pierson who is the advisor to the History Club and we have some amazing events already planned. I have also started building a website for the club that will hopefully be live as soon as school starts. If you are prospective student or parent reading this, I’ve said it before and I’ll say it again, please be involved! It will give you more college memories and by keeping busy you will keep from making bad mistakes.
That’s all the time I have for now! Check back for more information about the History Club and my experiences at “The Shack” as my coworkers call it. Do you work in retail and have any experiences you want to share? Sound off on the comment section of this entry!
Check back soon and see you campus (soon!)
Jimmy “the retail king” Martin
Ive got quite a conundrum coming up. The summer school program is about to end (it was a blast!) so I need another job.
I have an interview with UPS to work as a package handler in Chelmsford but I also have an interview with Radioshack to be a sales representative at one of the stores. These two jobs are the polar opposites of each other in that the UPS job is hard physical work while Radioshack is a retail position. Hmm…which one should I go for? The UPS job is Monday to Friday 6pm to 11pm while Radioshack would be little more flexible. I keep having to ask myself, how much are my weeknights and Friday nights worth? The more I think of it the more I would like to work at Radioshack. It is something I’ll have to consider and make my decision soon.
In other news I am about to switch out of my Verizon
wireless plan and switch to T-Mobile and pick up this really nifty phone. Check it out here.
I’ll report back on how the job hunting goes. I hope everyones having a good summer,
Jimmy
I finally got tickets to go see Batman: The Dark Knight. I am a huge Batman fan and will definitely use this blog to write up a review when I see it next Saturday (7/22 – yeah it is that popular!)
I really think it is interesting how the movie series since Batman Begins has gotten a lot darker than the earlier Batman Forever and Batman and Robin.
I’ve never really been a huge comic book guy but out of curiosity I went to my local Barnes and Noble and picked up an anthology of some of the older Batman comics and I must say they are much darker and more serious than I had imagined. I grew up on the much lighter and goofier Batman Forever and Batman and Robin so it has been a real big difference for me to see this more “mature” Batman come onto the scene.
In other news completely unrelated to superheros, the Summer School program is still a lot of fun. It is as stressful as I could have imagined but the rewards have been great so far. All of the students I am teaching are great kids and are really trying their hardest to get onto good footing before the start of the first term in high school.