Well it's all over. I somehow finished a project (finished as in had something to present). I moved a car load of stuff out of studio. I made it to graduation day. I got to hear Jodie Foster and Steve Wynn as commencement speakers. I got my UPENN diploma. I returned my cap and gown. And then I headed off to Iceland for a week, where I got to hang out at the Sirkus Bar in Reykjavik, and then got stuck in a blizzard on a mountain in a tiny Toyota Yaris in a town that I can't even pretend to pronounce. Somehow I made it home yesterday after being in Iceland, New York and Philadelphia all in 24 hours. And now??
I actually am not really sure, which is a really weird sensation for me. I have never had a real lapse between school and work. In undergrad I always had internships lined up and ready for the summer and went straight from school to work. After graduation in 02 i took 1 week off between finishing school and starting work for 2 years. Even last summer I had a clear job lined up. But now? I have been on what seems like 100 interviews, but things are still pretty amorphous. I am looking a mostly small Philadelphia firms, which is probably part of the reason I am in this situation. It is difficult for these smaller firms to commit to hiring a new person. I have started thinking of expanding my search to New York, although I really love it here.
All the while, my bank account is shrinking and my loans are looming larger on the horizon, and I am feeling a stress that I am totally unfamiliar with...absolute uncertainty.
I guess part of the problem is that after 2 intense years of school and 6 years altogether of blood, sweat and tears, I don't want to settle into a static pattern now. I want something more, and that may be totally idealistic, but maybe that's not such a bad thing at this point.
Anyway, I am still sending out more resumes, researching grant opportunites and praying to win the lottery. In the meantime I am going to try and keep blogging here...I figure this transition period is sort of school related. If you are interested in some pictures from Iceland you can check them out here:
http://www.flickr.com/photos/ayancone/
5 Comments
YEAH! another round of graduates!!!!
Good luck with the job search... don't limit your future to philthydelphia.. It's time to dream of where you want to live since there are few ties holding you down right now. Those will pop up quickly enough, but don't get stuck in a rut. So take a few risks and choose bozeman, or savannah, or tallin estonia...
Also relax and enjoy life again, your brain will be a tad crispy from being in the frying pan for the past two years. it took me almost 9 months to recover from grad school at penn.
congratulations...and very nice photos of iceland. i can't wait to head up there one of these days (soon). if i was you, i think i'd have stayed in reykavik and tried to get a gig working with studio granda. but that's just me.
Sirkus bar is pretty nifty!
My parents went to Iceland last fall and really liked it. Did you see Bjork? My mom hadn't flow in years but is now all into it. They are going to Alaska in August. Is that blurry photo Stynger!? I heard he's a supporting actor in Nacho Libre. Congrats by the way. I think most of the confusion is the result of the strange euphoric effect that fresh, non-fart smelling air outside of Meyerson has on the brain.
nice pics, thanks for sharing!
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