Moving forward

I’ve been at work now for around two weeks.
My opinion on the place hasn’t changed for the better i’ll tell you that much. I feel like a spoilt little brat complaining about work, I’ve been lucky to even get myself a job! In all honesty though this blog is more for me to record the events of my life after University so I can look back on it in a few years and laugh it off. It’s also for the ones who are leaving University and have become depressed or unhappy with their situation, its horrible for all of us.

 

An unsettling feeling
Work is just like it was before. I’m sure now I don’t want to stay in this place for very long, im still searching for photography jobs. For now this job has to pay my bills so I have no choice but to stay there. We had a meeting the other day, you can tell the managers arn’t experienced. The main point of the meeting was to talk targets and to complain about the state of the stockroom and other negative feedback that THEY let people get away with on a day to day basis. It was a waste of my time to even attend because i am doing the job. If I’m being hired to do a job i do it, its as much for me as it is for them I need to get job satisfaction from it too.

Money side of things arn’t going great. I’ve already had to ask my other half for money, he’s paying the rent and bills this month. I cant put into words how awful that makes me feel. Our anniversary is coming up as well, god knows whats going to go down.

Lights, camera, newspaper…?
I applied for a job at Archant as an image curator, I got a phone call from them today asking to come in for an interview. I am ecstatic to even have the interview, what an opportunity! I also found out in the process of telling my university crew that another girl from my class also has an interview there, doesn’t that make things awkward. She does have a better grade than me (only by a mark) but I have the experience behind me. A little run down I was a the curator for my class’ degree show, it was a lot of work but I did it and was awarded student of the year. I ran our social media and so on so i am confident, but we will see. The interview is on Tuesday I need to ask for the afternoon of work if i’m in that day.

Things are going so well right now! I can’t wait for what comes next. The interview has been a lift in my spirit.

Thats all for now, I’ll keep you updated.
-Adriana Gomes

A job at last

I managed to get myself a job!
It all happened a lot faster than i was expecting to be honest. I had the interview on Sunday the 9th and started the job on the 16th. It’s retail but its been the only thing I’ve managed to get so it will have to do, the pay is decent at £7.35 an hour plus commission on sales of the product. The only problem is the job isn’t full time which I need it to be, the company works weird only managers get full time jobs and the sales associates get part time 6+ hours a week. So far its been decent hours.

The atmosphere is funny.
The sales associates are all ranging from the age of 17 to 21 and then there is me, a 22 year old. The majority of them are alright, I say the majority.. four of them are alright the rest are up their own ass but then again it is early on. I can already tell one of the SUB managers (yeah sub) doesn’t like me, i get the petty jobs of emptying out the bins and tidying up the stock room which I don’t mind. That 1% commission isn’t the end of the world im still getting paid hourly.

I did however find out that one of the managers took a university course in Photography which is pretty awesome, we don’t really have the time of day to speak to be honest. Like I said the atmosphere at work is funny, its all kids so the clicks are real. It’s like back to high school, the one manager who doesn’t like me is a joke. I think that in the work place there is the time to be funny and have banter with the colleges but there are also times to leave that behind and be professional. I cant see myself being there for long.

The contract is really strict, I’m not able to work for another company. No piercings on face (yet one of the girls there has her lip piercing on all the time), no stretchers (which i have), no tattoos showing and so on. I have thought about taking my ear stretchers out by why?! What for? This job that i don’t plan on staying at for very long? No I don’t think so. I haven’t been able to connect to any of the girls on a social outside of work level, I go in there do my job and go home.

Avoid retail
Also I forgot how crap retail is! Working at another retail store in a town away wasn’t the best but it worked, all the girls got on and it was a big well known fashion store. This store is based in the city, the amount of people who go in there without saying “thank you” or “please” is actually atrocious! It’s like people forget their manners just being they’re being served. Retail has got to be one of the worst jobs out there.

 

That’s going to be all for now, keep you posted.
-Adriana Gomes

University is over

This blog is more for me than anyone else, i want to be documenting the journey i had after university plus it gives me something to do. Anyone who is here… keep on reading.

I’ve been relying on Student Finance’s loans coming in every three months during the academic year for three years in a row. That has now stopped. From this October (when i officially graduate) I will be £42,000,00 in student loans debt.
I officially finished my classes a week ago, boredom and lack of money is kicking in and im struggling to find a job. I’ve started applying for jobs, it started of with applying for photography jobs but by now the range has expanded due to having no success. I remembered being told how hard it was going to be when university was over and done with, finding a job in the field would be hard but determination is strong. A journalist job would be the dream job.

I’ve got £163 to my name as of now, yes that’s including the £1,500 overdraft that came with my student bank account. By the beginning of August I will have £450 bills that need to be paid for, these include rent and other home bills. The panic is setting in and I’m officially worried.

Today I applied for around for around 28 jobs raging from retail, photography and hospitality. I’m so desperate for money to pay bills and I don’t want to rely on my parents who are broke themselves or my boyfriend who I live with.

In all honesty I haven’t picked up my camera since I last shot for my degree. I don’t want to misuse this word but I feel genuinely depressed, I cried today because I don’t see my life going anywhere. I spend my days in bed or on the sofa often swapping from one to another every few minutes. The first week after university was great because it had been so stressful and I wanted a break but now im done with that and ready to earn some cash and pay my way. Not like i have a choice anyway.

My tenancy lease finishes in September, we’re applying for another year I hope our rent doesn’t increase im also praying they don’t charge us to continue our lease. I cant afford a cup of coffee as it is. I would have to get a job that pays around £500 a month with taxes already removed to pay for bills and have £50 for food and to clothe myself not to mention cinema, eating out, birthdays, etc.

In an ideal world I would get a job in Archant since its local to me, earning a DECENT wage. If i get a decent job everything else falls into place and I can continue “living”.

This is it for this entry, i’ll update as things happen.

-Adriana Gomes