At this point in the year, parents are excited because their kids are going back to school soon and they are taking their summer vacations. This year, everything is different. Parents are out of work, kids are not physically going to school and are working on distance learning. Companies have closed, opened part time or never opened after being shut down by their states. People in cities around the world are social distancing and wearing masks and this is the 'new normal."
My experience has been no exception. On March 20, when Governor Cuomo shut down New York State, my company also shut down. It really wasn't surprising as business had been slow for months and the attorney I was working for wasn't doing anything to get new business. I spent my last day updating my spreadsheets, packing and labeling boxes with the clients name and application status, running errands and packing up my desk.
I have spent the past 5 months watching lots and lots of tv and applying for jobs. Despite having submitted thousands of applications, I have only had a few interviews, no second interviews and a lot of ghosting by employers. In May, when Vermont and New York opened up their borders, I went home and spent a great 3 weeks with my parents. In July, my sister and I went camping at Golden Hill State Park and went to Niagara Falls. The weather was perfect and the campground beautiful. Our campsite was right on the water and waking up to seeing the lake in the morning was nice. The sunsets were spectacular and we even got to see what we believe was the comet. During this time, she got notice that her roommate was planning to move out, so we got me an application and after an hour and a half of going through my bank statements, highlighting my rent payments and income deposits, I submitted my application. About 10 days later, we were on our way to Berkshire, Vermont to visit our Uncle Chris and Aunt Bernie (who is totally awesome btw). On the way, we stopped at Split Rock Falls for what was supposed to be just a quick visit to get out of the car but turned into us swimming in our clothes (not all that unusual for us). From Berkshire, we (she) drove to Bar Harbor, Maine to spend a week with our brother and sister in law and their kids. Again, we had perfect weather. We went to the beach, spent time in town, went cliff jumping and hung out at the house. During this time, Alyssa got a job interview (and then the job) and I was approved to move into her apartment.
Tomorrow (today as I am just now finishing this up) is the big move and while it isn't what I had hoped would happen and where I thought I would be going, I did fulfill my goal of getting out of Brooklyn by fall. It will be challenging for sure, but I'm looking forward to it. I do hope to be able to leave the state by this time next year and be able to move to Charleston, but it all depends on a lot of factors.
