IN THE NEWS: Why none of us can get a job

Strangely enough, this article is the bridge between my former life (a cross between TV shows "The Office" and "Entourage") and my current one (too boring for television)...

And do you think it's depressing that this kind of entertainment is privileged in our society at the expense of good writing? I do.


television

A Unified Theory of The Hills

Pretending to be yourself isn't easy.

By Troy Patterson
Posted Tuesday, March 25, 2008, at 2:54 PM ET

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The Hills (MTV) is about the lives—the square-one jobs, the rock-stupid romances, the pricey-looking highlights—of some young women living in greater Los Angeles. These are, principally, Lauren, Heidi, Whitney, and Audrina—though Audrina, being a brunette, might not really count. The Hills, one supposes, is the lives of these women in the most complete way that a television show could be. These are real people pretending to be themselves and making a virtue of banality. ... Read more>>

Things Left Behind

Taking a break from writing, I called a former colleague to chat. Among other flashes of juicy gossip, she told me that the company just hired my replacement and gave my coveted promotion to somebody else. Up until that point, I had been too consumed with the elation of quitting my job and the pressure of finishing my thesis to think of the sacrifices I made in order to graduate. Now, a wave of emotion hit me in the stomach. It wasn't sadness but loss, if that can be a feeling.

Though I certainly do not regret my decision, it's a reminder that whenever something is gained, something else disappears. I won't think about the apparent illogic of departing from my true chosen career path in order to gain a sheet of paper that says I'm qualified to do something I no longer really want to do*. Since it's impossible to un-jump when you're already falling, the best way I can honor my former life is to get my sad self back to work.

*Due to anonyminty, I cannot reveal my degree nor my careerer path, but they do both tie together, just not exactly. That is to say, while my degree doesn't perfectly match my career, it's not a complete waste of time.

THESIS PROGRESS: 12 of 40 pages written*
*That's only for chapter 3, the full thesis is much longer.