Skip to main content

Punk Rock Work Ethic



Time flies when you’re working your ass off! The situation has changed a lot since the last post. Instead of banging my head up against a wall because I’m unemployed and broke, I’m now banging my head up against a wall because I’m employed and broke. I got hired on at a taco shop part time, but the night shift worker walked out two days before the manager’s vacation started and guess who got to fill in for the eleven hour shifts? It came right after I found out the I was being billed as an out-of-state student at UNM and had to drop out for the semester, so it was actually welcome news. Still, it was exhausting, and downtown Albuquerque at 2:30AM is nuts, but it’s over now and I’m back to my normal part-time schedule (hey, for punk rock former travellers, that’s about as strong a work commitment as you can hope for!).

We got our new apartment (moved in on the second) which is what put the pressure on when I realized I wasn’t getting student loans. Jessie, our gracious hippie landlord, let us move in on the agreement that we would pay August’s rent when my student loans came in, no later than the 28th. The rent is paid as of today thanks to the aforementioned crazy-ass work schedule.

The dire financial circumstances pushed us back to subsistence-dumpster diving, which is less fun than hobby dumpster diving. Also, because we got to a level of hunger and malnutrition that brought us to actually reveal to our friends how bad off we really were, the vegan kick-downs have been amazing. Seriously, a friend who works at a certain Ayervedic restaurant that shall remain nameless has brought us a bunch of leftovers and the feeling of nutritious goodness that you get from eating that stuff after weeks of pasta and dollar frozen pizzas is… well, you know. I really have to give it up to our friends; Daryll even bought a painting from us so we could go to the Goddamn Gallows show on Tuesday, and tomorrow he’s driving Johnny out to Crust In The Dust (I can’t go because I’ve gotta work ).

Everything has begun to turn around now. Like I said, I got paid, and my uncle, after a facebook plea for a $20 loan, gifted me $200, which means our phones won’t get shut off (oh, for the days when $200 would last a month of burritos and Mountain Dews!) and we’ll have food. Christian got a new bike so he’s selling Johnny his old one for $1500; Johnny has been frantically calling around for loans and already got $700 pledged. My bike is supposed to be looked at by a friend of Christian’s in a couple days which hopefully means I’ll be back on two wheels soon. I’ve written down all the favors and loans we’ve gotten so I can return it all in kind later. All I can do is keep moving forward.

I just wish I had some Cometbus to read… guess I’ll have to hold out for Zinefest in October ;) .

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Punk House Blues (and Reds)

You know what's awesome? Having amazing bands travel thousands of miles across the country to play at your house. The Cryptics and the Crystal Methodists were a great show, professional and nice; I wish I'd had the chance to talk to them more but unfortunately I had to deal with a boyfriend who instead of taking care of the house got shitfaced before the show even started and kept yelling and flashing his dick in the front yard. Not fun. I did get records from both bands; I'm starting up a collection from everyone who plays at the house (right now it's just those two, Bad Future, and Catholic Guilt). The landlady got wind of the parties, though, so were going to have to tone it down. Rob, the new roommate, has been great, making sure Vick doesn't die in his drunken stupor and keeping an eye out so that the house doesn't get destroyed. I like having a punk house, don't get me wrong, but I think my idea of a punk house is a lot more creativity and community t...
Post a Comment
Read more

Family

Right now I'm listening to podcast by my cousin. She's eleven years older than me so we've never been very close; we saw each other a few times a year (Christmas, 4th of July, weddings, and baby showers) and I knew she was the only other member of my family that could be called "alternative," (by that I mean she was into things that most people in Ohio were not even aware of). I left the area when I turned eighteen; she had kids and went to school and stayed in the area. A couple years ago she published a book. It's amazing to me that someone I know has published a book. I know a lot of people who have written zines or who show art or make crafts that are sold around town, but not one other person who's done something like this. She recently found me on facebook and said that she thinks we have a lot of things in common so today I googled her name and found youtube videos of her burlesque performance, profiles of her on half a dozen pages, her blog, and ...
Post a Comment
Read more

Summer Vacation

I'm going on the road in a week and it cannot come one moment too soon. I've spent most of my days this summer lying around inside avoiding the sun and the heat (mostly the sun) when I don't have to go to work. I didn't go to school 'cause I wanted time to myself; I should have realized that when I have a comfortable place to procrastinate I'll never get anything done. I just reread old books, watch Netflix, and dye my hair. I guess I've gotten some good paintings done and we've sold some artwork this summer, so that's something. Still, I do miss green trees and water and beaches and towns that aren't fifty miles apart. I'll be glad to see my family and the friends from home who haven't left yet; as I've gotten older I've realized that I had it a lot better as a kid than most of the people I'm close to did. Maybe we'll check out some local punk shows while we're in Ohio. It's been a long time since I've lived...
Post a Comment
Read more