Seeing Clearly in 2020

One decade ago, I was engaged to be married. I was also unemployed. I’d been part of that wave of college graduates unleashed upon the world in 2008. For us, the job market was virtually nonexistent. Some of my wealthier friends were of course ensured work due to the position of this or that family member, but for most of the rest of us it was an absolute slog. My ex-fiancee’s family was located in another major city, and trying to stay in Austin with me severed her from any connections that could lead to gainful employment. So she and I languished in a torrent of menial jobs, depending upon assistance from our parents and determined to figure something out that would allow us to stay in Austin.

This held up until about mid-2009, when my ex obtained her teaching certificate and decided to move back home. We were so serious about the move that I actually quit my job to focus on finding us an excellent apartment in the new city — we were that serious about moving. It was supposed to happen by the time our lease was up, at the end of the month. We had given our sixty days’ notice to the apartment, forty-five days before this.

And the jobs, the ones my ex had interviewed for, where her mother was connected to this or that principal in the school district, began to return her calls. They unanimously turned her down. So we decided to stay put for another year, until our wedding date, to try to have as much fun as we could.

It turns out that being unemployed and/or working menial jobs is not a good way to have fun. I sold…