This is a rather personal, unimportant rant.
I just lost my (lousy) job at Food Lion*. Since I will be leaving for college in three weeks, I see no real need to go out and get a new one, as I have had steady employment for the past eight years, and have a bit o’ cash saved up. However, my mother believes that I need a job, lest I degenerate into a sloth and become unable to do the work required of me in college.
To enforce this, she has banned me from her computer until I am once again employed. Her computer is the only one with Internet access.
I’ve tried pointing out that I will be likely to work in college based on my academic record. She pointed out one of my friends, whom had a better academic record than I did, and flunked out of college on pure laziness. I should have pointed out that the reason said friend had such a good academic record was that his mother and father were constantly nagging him, but I didn’t.
Fortunately, the library a few miles up the road from my house has a very nice selection of computers. But I’m still mad.
Advice is welcomed.
*Why I lost my job, if anyone cares: I told my manager that I would need a few days off to attend orientation at my college. He agreed not to schedule me for the next week. Somehow, I was scheduled for the next week. After 3 days of not showing up, you are fired automatically. I complained when I got back, and my manager agreed to put me back on the schedule. He didn’t. For a while, my mom assumed that I had masterminded a scheme to get myself fired, as I had been complaining about my manager’s incompetence for a long time beforehand.
So your mom wants you to get a job for just the next 3 weeks? To heck with her I say! If you’ve got money saved up, enjoy the rest of the summer. Who’s gonna want to hire you for just three weeks anyway? Trying to find a job for that small amount of time when you don’t need the money is not worth the trouble, IMO.
Oh, and as for advice, I’d mention to your mom the fact that no one will want to hire you for three weeks. Slight exageration, but not far from the truth. Also, it sounds like you’ve been a hard worker both in school and out of it (you had a 3.76 GPA, after all ). You should mention this to her, and mention that perhaps you deserve a 3 week vacation before embarking on your college experience.
I’d compose a list of jobs that don’t mind hiring young people for very short stretches of time, and have application processes that take less than a couple of days. Make sure to include:[ul]
[li]Drug runner[/li][li]Lookout[/li][li]Getaway driver[/li][li]Enforcer[/li][li]Street hustler[/li][li]Porn site star[/li][/ul]
Ask her which she thinks will enhance your college experience most.
And the heck with the computer; take the three weeks off and have a good time. When do you get an opportunity like that?
If for some reason your parents physically force you to take a job, I’d recommend a temp agency for the 3 week period. They’ll usually take anyone for any period of time (and 3 weeks might actually be a long contract for such an organization, as there are usually a lot of quitters in the field).
Robert, there’s an inconsistency in your plight. You say you intended to work during the next 3 weeks. You can (probably) get work during the next 3 weeks by contacting a few temp agencies. So, why not just do so?
When is the next time robert is going to get a three-week vacation from both work and school? Probably not for at least another five to ten years if his experience is anything like mine (most likely 10 years if the company he ends up working for only gives three weeks after five years of service).
You have to be a bit forgiving of parents of an about-to-go-to-college age.
Consider the parent perspective:
You have your child, now a young adult. You have spent your time and money raising this child and, assuming no really big problems (like he is a drug addict), you have these main concerns:
Is my child going to succeed as an adult or will he be a bum? I know many parents with bum children and I don’t what him to be that! Does my child seem more interested in play or work?
I’m spending much hard earned money on this child (especially if they are helping with college)…is this money helping my child get a good start on adult success or am I creating a bum?
Does my child fully appreciate the financial sacrifice I am making or does he appear to think it is what I owe him/should do for him?
(do not underestimate this) Does my child fail and blame it on others? ( this is the loser’s battlecry! - look for common characteristics of adults that aren’t doing well and you will see this. Remember, as an adult if you fail, you fail even if you have the best excuse in the world – this is a hard lesson for young adults to learn!)
Because of these concerns, Parents will focus on work. Here you hit on many worries. You aren’t working for 3 weeks and probably under-worked the weeks you did work. You get to play around and probably played around much when you were working. You got fired and blamed your boss. Even if your boss is an idiot, it doesn’t matter from the parents perspective.
I’m not surprised your mom demands that you work even though it is silly for three weeks.
Can you see her side? If not, you will…in about 25 years!
I hope you are moving away to college. Sounds like that awkward transition from a parent-child relationship to -parent-adult or parent-collge student relationship.
I think your mom is being a bit unreasonable. If you had given them two weeks’ notice next week, and they said “Don’t bother coming in,” (which seems to be a common scenario) would your mom have made you get a new job for two weeks? They knew you were quitting soon and they didn’t want to mess with your schedule demands. I don’t think your plight is that unusual–a very similar thing happened to my sister about a month before she left to join the Army. I don’t think that it even occurred to my parents to make her get another job. They liked the extra time with her.
Perhaps, if you don’t like the temp-agency idea, you could help around the house in your free time–painting, repairs, mowing the lawn, cleaning out the garage, etc. That way, you are an asset and not a bum. Or, depending upon how far away your new campus is, you could spend some time there lining up a new job for the school year, buying books, getting acquainted with campus, etc. You’ll also need some time to pack, right? Say good-bye to old friends? Heck, you won’t even miss the computer.
I don’t see how a few weeks spent not working in a grocery store will make you any less prepared for college, but that’s just me. Then again, if your mom’s going to take this attitude, you might want to get nice and acquainted with that temp agency, since you’ll need it for every break you spend at home, too. Either that, or plan not to spend breaks at home.
). You should mention this to her, and mention that perhaps you deserve a 3 week vacation before embarking on your college experience.