Friday was a pretty good day. I got up early and did a ton of research and prep for my phone interview (later that afternoon) with a nearby environmental org. After I felt comfortable drafting my responses to anticipated questions, I decided to squeeze in a ProMatch workshop on Agile Scrum methodology. Agile scrum is a management framework for product development– usually software development. I’ve actually heard John and his sister (who’s in retail software development) mention agile a ton, so it was cool to learn the vocabulary and get the basics down. Honestly, I felt rather empowered afterwards. Of course, like a true nerd, I immediately texted John all the new words I learned. I know, I’m such a dork. What can I say, I’m addicted to learning.
In the afternoon, I had my phone interview. It was a 30-minute call that went pretty well. Beforehand, I started getting really nervous– my fingers went numb, my tummy started gurgling, and I could just feel the anxiety building. I took several deep breaths, did some pushups, and then the phone rang. I was pleased with most of my responses… at the end, the hiring manager kinda alluded to being pretty far along in the recruitment. I dunno how or why these timings keep being so misaligned for me, but reading between the lines, it sounded like maybe they had already extended an offer even, but if that didn’t go through, she said I was definitely near the top, and they would like me to go in for an onsite interview. So I guess that’s good news?!?!
Friday evening, John and I were invited to a Havana Nights-themed bday bash at the local country club. Yup, totally chi chi. I didn’t even know there was a country club nearby! Tucked away in the hills, of course. I spent some time researching what to wear for a Cuban-themed party… my Miami connection advised a short, tight dress, high heels, red lipstick, and a fedora. I tried my best, and I think I pulled it off. Although at the party, I did notice that only the men were wearing fedoras. Ah well.
My friend K was celebrating her 40th bday, and her whole family was there. They were all dancing and having a grand ol’ time. I couldn’t help but contrast that with how my family gets together: every meeting is just talking about serious family issues and life woes. No music, no dancing, no laughing hardly ever. So very different. My friend G has always said that Chinese culture is no fun, especially when compared to Latin culture (She’s spent a lot of time in Central and South America). Yeah, this bday party really highlighted the stark difference. My peeps are lame, man!
Interestingly, I had my weekly call with my dad this evening. Last weekend when I called, my father was so “woe is I.” Seriously. I called and asked what he was doing. Sigh, sigh, sigh. Then, “I’m a gardener and cleaning man and carpenter and painter…” Apparently, several of his rental properties needed repairs and such. God forbid he hire people to take care of that low-level repair shit. Supposedly, he asked the tenant/realtor if she had a contact for simple repairs. No. So that automatically meant that no such service exists for the entire greater Baltimore area, right? WTF? Then Dad proceeded to say, “I’m a principal who is now a janitor.” Eye roll. Sometimes, my father is so ridiculously dramatic. That night, I emailed him a handyman service I found on Yelp. Jesus f-ing Christ.
The thing is, Dad just wanted to feel sorry for himself. I mean, of course, he can hire someone to do the work. But I think on one hand, he kinda wants to do it himself, because he has that curiosity about how things work. I know, because I’m kinda similar. And for relatively simple tasks, he also feels like he has the time since he’s retired. But Maryland summers are no fucking joke. Hot and humid as hell. So he probably started doing the work and then quickly realized he shouldn’t have. It’s fine. We all make these silly mistakes of biting off more than we can chew. And I understand the dilemma. He is still bored as hell in retirement even though he handles probably 10x the amount of shit most retired folks handle. It’s just that coupled with having no friends and being antisocial and spending all damn day, every damn day with my mother…. well shit, it’s enough to drive anyone fucking crazy. I dunno. It’s a chicken-egg issue, I suppose. I wish he could just find something (besides busy work) to get himself back into the zone. He’s proactive but also beaten down, you know? Tired of life. Unmotivated. Unhappy. I dunno. So many times I look at my parents, and I realize how NOT to live life. They worked so so damn hard for so damn long, and now? It’s just sad. Life isn’t over yet and these circumstances are not irreversible, but where there is no will or motivation, it’s hard to see another way.
Already, I’m having to take over some of his projects and logistics, for example, finding a realtor to get his DC condo rented. The current realtor is not my style, but Dad doesn’t want to break contract, so instead, we’re wasting time waiting for the term to expire. So lame, but whatever. I’m not going to argue for every little step with him. That’s what I mean when I say he’s tired. He just doesn’t have the same fire that he used to have. Needless to say, I’m contacting other realtors now to figure out who will take over next. And I’ll likely have to meet and go to the property when I head home later this month. I swear my father has just juggled so much shit for so long that he’s burned himself out. Frankly, there is just too damn much to handle. For me, it’s a good reminder that money never really comes easy. Even passive income is a constant hustle.