Whoops, meant 2k with playing/flipping cards in addition to working. It's certainly doable. I promise my math isn't that bad!
What's wrong with passively earning money as supplemental income? Say I make an seo blog and pull in $50/month, it's a few hours of work for a steady profit that I don't have to invest any more time into. If I come home from work one day, put some effort into making one, it's time that wouldn't be used for anything fiscally productive (already worked that day, have free time) that later turns into a minor net gain. It's definitely nothing to live on/allow me to be unemployed, but it'll pay off over time at no additional expense of time, effort, or funding. Obviously 50 each month won't really change anything, the job alone would cover living expenses (primary goal is clearly survival), anything else is just gravy that lets me throw money into further investments (stocks or cds, I guess) and play cards, which is another, secondary source of income. Having a tertiary money-making venture that asks nothing of my time other than an initial few hours just seems like it's a good idea all around.
Alright, thanks so much for all the advice guys. Some of your points are really good - I've thought about starting some kind of business, having done a fair bit of research into SEO techniques to make money passively through advertising and thought about different ways to invest my time/money now to get some kind of system in place where I'm getting paid passively over a period of time, like with an ebook, or AdSense, etc. The problem is that it's not very consistent unless I treat it as a full time job, and even then I'm not sure where to start with it. I'm going to sell my camera, since I haven't been keeping up with that hobby, and I don't actively do freelance photography anymore. That's an extra $250 in my pocket.
@dcartist - The appeal of homelessness to me is almost-complete existential freedom. The mystique of the open road is just something that's captivated me for a long time. I think a part of this is because I've always wanted an adventurous life. If someone gave me a billion dollars right now, with the stipulation that I couldn't donate it to charity (otherwise the overwhelming majority would go to making other people happy through charity), I would backpack throughout the world while writing or composing. Sure, Oscar Wilde and the other Bohemians may have been deadbeats by modern standards, but they seem to have had amazing amounts of fun and dedicated their lives to something they feel passionate about, which I can definitely agree with. My problem is that I have so many beloved things, like literature, music, animal rights, making people smile, etc; that I couldn't just pick one.
@linvala - I get where you're coming from. I used to do something similar, I flipped a lot when I was 15-16 or so, since I couldn't play in any PTQs that summer, I would go and work with dealers or spend the day trading. It got me a good bit of money, especially with side event grinding, but I'm not looking to solely make a living off of this.
Update: I left the house for a while today in search of a job, came home and talked to my parents some more, eventually whittling them down to allowing me to stay, even if unemployed, provided I can pay them $200/month in rent. Special foods would be on me, like soy products, but staples like rice, spaghetti, and vegetables are free, so the cost of living with gas is maybe 300/month(This food thing is only relevant because I adamantly refuse to eat meat). If I can do that, I can have my car back, a place to sleep, etc. That's a number that'd be extremely easy for me to make with Magic, and my other expenses are almost nonexistent (mostly only gas and dating various women, though I'm well overdue for a new guitar - outside of travel expenses, I've not paid a cent for Magic this year. I borrowed a deck for a few local events, got sponsored by a friend, won each event giving me the next month for free, and turned my winnings into my own deck. Atm I draft, play Standard and Legacy for free and have a t2 deck worth >$800).
The plan is to get a full-time job, or at least 35 hours per week. Even with minimum wage I'd be earning about $2k/month after taxes. I'd put 200 down for rent, give myself 500 to the travel fund, and save the rest, with any profit made from playing cards going towards the travel fund, hoping to make it self-sustainable or at least very, very cheap. Of course, I'd give myself a bit of spending money when doing something social, like taking someone to a movie, but being as frugal as possible with that. I want to keep this up until the fall semester starts, and then turn it into as many hours as possible while going to school and finding the time to play - ideally scheduling my classes to fall upon two days a week, so I could work 25 hours/week, go to class, and play in the events on the days I have school as to not conflict with either school or work. For events like GPs, PT (determined to get back on this year) and East Coast 5ks, I could switch hours for that weekend with a coworker. By the time school comes back around, I completely expect to have at least 10k sitting in the bank for investing. (Philosophically, I'm all about efficiency. What's the point of having 10k that you're not going to use, and it's not doing anything for you? If I can safely invest, it's making me extra money at little cost of time with low risk.)
That sounds like it's reasonable, right? How should I sculpt the plan further? What good ways are there to make money, even if it's only $20/month, without actively doing something that month? How should I invest my extra cash?
Probably just fall back on music or travelling in general. I want to see the world, this lets me have a bit more fun by seeing the world and competing at something.
I'll check out temp agencies, office work sounds good to me. I would take a fast food job at this point, but I absolutely refuse to for ethical/philosophical/religious reasons (meat), not for dignity or whatever.
Yeah, you're right. I am kinda irresponsible - missing a 9:00 class was all on me. I just don't think he should be so angry about the class - if he wants to be angry that I take it so lightly, that's fine, but I paid for it with a scholarship so it's not like he lost anything. I get why he got me out of school - wants me to have money, be a productive citizen, etc - and as long as I'm not homeless then I'll be able to get back to it in the fall. I think he's overreacting but with good intentions.
Players at my store are usually pretty good, there are a few who've been on the Tour a few times, one Nats top8, and I test with a few notable players from around the nation. I didn't go to the PT I qualified for because I was 16 and my parents wouldn't let me.
My goal is to be able to work and go to school during the day, getting enough money from work to pay for playing competitively, with any money earned from that going towards supporting it. School is free with scholarships.
I've been trying to network, ended up getting a job interview but it didn't go so well because the way my school schedule was set up conflicted with the job availability they needed.
Since I won't be in school for this semester, I'm going to try and get an overnight job stocking a Shop Rite or something if a temp agency doesn't work out. With my schedule opening up it should be easy enough to find a job that allows me to save up some money to travel and get an apartment with some friends later on in the year. I imagine that with 40 hours/week, I'll be able to save up enough so that, with winnings, Magic won't be expensive and once I enroll again next semester, I'll have some money in the bank while I try to change to a part-time job or work things out with the schedule so I can go to school, work, and play when possible.
Edit - Captain, the reason I want to go is so that I can see my friends while making money - they were my best friends all throughout high school and I haven't seen them since they left in June. I want to travel, and I want to play at a professional level more often. In some ways, I'm not too worried about being homeless again as long as I have money by that point. I've always had a dream of being like Jack Kerouac, but I suppose it's almost quixotic to have that as a back-up plan (though it made for an incredible summer!). I think that, while it's probably immature of me to say so, I don't really know what I want to do. I know that I want to be happy, and to make people happy, but I'm not sure how. I want to write, or to play music, or to do something that gets people to realise that we're all people, and that alone should make you care for them. None of my ambitions contribute to a real career prospect...there's not much you can do with a Philosophy or English or Music degree, and I just want some excitement in my life, not being a teacher and going through everyday mundanities.
I'll try and make this quick and with everything I think is relevant:
I'm going to be 19 next month, living in NJ now. I've been qualified for the PT before, and have enough other achievements that I know I can play this game. Since I started seriously playing again in late October because of PWPs, I managed to rack up two byes at GPs solely from FNMs and a constructed event every Monday, not having had money to travel to 5ks or anything.
The goal for the 2012 was to finally pursue playing competitively as much as possible, starting with GP Orlando. I have friends at film school in the city so a hotel and everything isn't relevant, all I need is airfare. Unfortunately, even with my best efforts, I haven't been able to get a job for the past few months, and the local store only pays me in store credit. While it may not cost me anything to play, I don't have anything in my bank account. School got in the way of working, since I didn't make the best schedule possible due to a lack of college experience - I never really realised how early 9:00 classes are every day of the week.
I have about $125 in my pocket right now, and here's the deal. I just got an email from my school saying that I failed a class solely due to attendance. My grades on all of the assignments were As, but because I couldn't get up so early, and didn't always have the gas to drive to school, I missed enough classes that even with everything in, the school policy failed me despite having the proper work done. My dad found out, got outraged, dropped me out of school, and isn't going to help me pay for my airfare as a birthday gift anymore - instead, he's decided that I have one month to get a full time job or I'll get kicked out. This isn't an idle threat, I've been homeless before, because he thought it would 'build character.' I spent the past summer living on friend's couches. I was allowed back home because I got run over by an SUV while riding my bike looking for a job - the police forced me to call home, and then they let me back in. Both of my parents have expressed earlier that they wouldn't care if I froze on a park bench.
Right now I don't have a phone, a car anymore (I paid for it but since I was 17, it had to be in his name.), or much money. I know that if I make it to Orlando, it'll be positive EV. Even if I don't top64, I'll definitely rack up enough from side-events to come home with cash in my pocket. I wanted to buy a plane ticket tonight, since Spirit Air is having a sale only valid through 23:59 tonight, but the money is cash in my pocket, not my bank account. I asked if I could just pay my dad the $113 to use his card (found an awesome deal, 113 round trip with fees and my carry-on included), but he threw a fit that I'd even consider it and said no. Once tomorrow rolls around, I won't be able to afford it anymore - it'll be +$50. Assuming I can't get to Orlando, what should I do? I'm still searching for a job like mad, but it doesn't seem to be getting anywhere.
I don't usually eat breakfast. If I do, it's probably a leftover cold slice of pizza from the night before, or maybe some fruit. If I have the time, and they're in season, I usually make some green tea with strawberries and mango. Otherwise, maybe just a coffee.
I really don't like the breakfast food at all. I won't eat meat, so that rules out most things already, and I'm not really a fan of waffles or pancakes.
I don't even like breakfast food for breakfast, so I never eat it for dinner! Dinner is either some kind of meal I've cooked (eggplant parm, various Indian foods, all kinds of soy products) or a post-tournament victory feast (more a single apple or a salad than a feast though) four times per week.
Sorry if this extremely spammy or something but, Nick_, if you could explain, how does this work?
You're from Ireland, have lived in Jersey (the New one), and speak German? The bold bits bedevil me!
Out of interest, how old are you if you don't mind my asking? (It has to do with developing accents and what not.)
I'm only 18! My dad was an American cop in Germany during the eighties, and obviously had to learn the language there. His side of the family is all from Ireland. My mum was also American, but learnt German in high school and also lived in Germany for some time. When dad went back to America, he met mum, and they went to Ireland a bit after they got married. I popped out, lived there a bit, and we went back across the pond to NJ, where I've basically lived the whole lifespan. Since I've always been fascinated with language and sounds/music in general, we spoke German so they could raise a bilingual baby. Of course, it's not fully proper, but I can definitely hold my own in a German conversation. My grammar is spot-on and my pronunciation is really close to Bavarian, but I could stand to learn a few words. Interestingly enough, I also was taught French by my grandparents; and my younger brother didn't learn anything special, but he's learning French now.
I'm from Ireland but lived for a very long time - the majority of my life- in New Jersey, and I speak German at home. People say I sound neutral except for a hint of Irish, which (according to them, I don't really pay attention) comes out as bells and whistles when I get excited or sad.
Aunt - awn't
Route - root for 'take route 9 north...', rowt for 'router'.
Wash - wahsh.
Oil - oy-el
Theater - thee-ta
Iron - eye-in, ion
Salmon - salmin
Caramel - ca-ra-mel
Fire - fyre
Water - wahta
Sure - like sore with a slight h, not nearly enough to be like shore though
Data - dah-ta
Ruin - rune
Crayon - cray-on
Toilet - toy-lett
New Orleans - New Or-leans
Pecan - pee-can
Both - boh-t
Again - ah-gen, a soft 'uh' sound, gen like ken but with a soft g.
Probably - prob-lee
Spitting image - spitting image
Alabama - Al-uh-bah-ma
Lawyer - loy-er
Coupon - koo-pon
Mayonnaise - may-o.
Syrup - sir-rup
Pajamas - pa-Jaam-uhs (French J like Jacque)
Caught - cot, but a bit longer on the o.
Apparently I spent a little longer than normal on the vowel sound in 'colour' as well, but I don't think it really affects the pronunciation any.
What is it called when you throw toilet paper on a house? Toilet papering a house
What is the bug that when you touch it, it curls into a ball? The rolly-polly!
What is the bubbly carbonated drink called? Soda
What do you call gym shoes? Trainers
What do you say to address a group of people? You
What do you call the kind of spider that has an oval-shaped body and extremely long legs? The Harvestman or the Daddy Long Legs
What do you call your grandparents? Gramma, Grampa
What do you call the wheeled contraption in which you carry groceries at the supermarket? The cart
What do you call it when rain falls while the sun is shining? Is there even a word for that? I don't call it anything.
What is the thing you change the TV channel with? I don't watch tv, but if I did, I'd say it's a remote.
It used to run so deep
Full of those beloved hues
Crimson and blues
Those were the simple days
Painting perfect portraits of faces
We'd only found in dreams
Such tones I'd never before seen
I'd send you my thoughts
Violet ink dripping from my words
But you would never listen
Not even from the start
And now the inkwell's dried up
Like the sea of my heart
Oh, that was when you were you
Before you shattered all I knew
I'd send you my thoughts
If I had any left
To think it was you who gave me
such vibrant shades of ink
Well, now I'm scraping the bottom of the vial
The bottom of a bottle stares back at me
And my scribblings are faded
Lacking any kind of richness
Devoid of soul
My favourite colour was always Islands.
But now
All of my words come out as
lonely sandbars.
I'd send you my thoughts
Violet ink dripping from my words
But you would never listen
Not even from the start
And now the inkwell's dried up
Like the sea of my heart
This is a picture of me in one of the rare times where I've shaved semi-recently. Otherwise I look like a young Joseph Stalin, the resemblance is almost uncanny (enough that I used a picture of him as my Facebook picture and someone thought it was me).
Misclick, I don't think I'll go nearly as far as Hunter S. Thompson would, but would a low tolerance policy work? Not getting trashed or anything, maybe just a bit to smoke every now and then.
I have some money saved up, and I'm looking for something meaningful. I was planning on moving back to Ireland once I turned 18, but things changed and I've decided to travel across America like Kerouac. I'm saving up another thousand and some from now until August, then selling everything aside from my car, acoustic guitar, camera, and some clothes to become homeless for a long time - either alone or with a friend, if she comes along. Has anyone done anything like this? What were your experiences like?
Do I think it's worth it to be in a relationship for only a month, knowing the time constraint going into it? No.
But do I recommend it? Yes.
If you want to do one thing right now to help you in the future, whether your new boarding school life prevents it or not, talk to her. Man up. Stop being a wuss, as you said. Try and gain some self-confidence and some experience dealing with people in even a pseduoromantic context, whether it gets far or not. If you gain confidence now, it'll all pay off in the future.
And really...what can you lose by trying? Let's say you ask her out - just for a date, not even a full relationship yet - and she says no. Ok, sure, you'll feel badly, rejected, blah, blah blah. Get over it! Rejection happens. And in a month, she won't even be in your life anymore, you'd be losing your chance anyway. If she says yes? Well, think of all of the possibilities. If you don't do anything, you'll be kicking yourself in the future with all of the what-could-have-beens.
I write - I have a half-finished novel laying around on my laptop, a few movie scripts done, and tonnes of songs. I play guitar, piano, and ukulele, this is the first year where I'm taking my own music seriously; I've always wanted to be like Dylan or Lennon.
I'm just out of high school and doubt I'm going to college. I don't have the money for it and I refuse to be in debt afterwards, and education itself is free nowadays; MIT has older classes online for free, I love learning but don't want to pay for a piece of paper that says nothing but, "Hey, this kid passed the finish line once." I'd probably major in Philosophy, English, or Music.
I actually planned on going to Universiteit van Amsterdam, but life problems got in the way in the past few months and I lost everything I had planned, aside from things based on my own creative talents.
In regards to my Magic background...well, I haven't played a single game with physical cards in a long time. I used to be Q'd for the PT, but never had the chance to go. I've recently relit the fire, and I'm planning on spending lots of time getting back into the game and next year I plan to be fully back into the competitive circuit.
A friend of mine asked me how to dress better last week, I sent him a response over Facebook so I'll give you what I gave him:
Well, I'm not really sure how to start this, so I'll go bottom-up, with an aside on personal styley stuff.
Shoes:
You should have, ideally, four or five pairs of shoes. A pair of simple canvas sneakers, like classic Vans, for everyday use (I have black ones because they match easily and go well with jeans); two pairs of Oxford dress shoes, one in black and one in brown (a shade that matches your brown belt, I like mahogany); a pair of sandals (the ones without a back part, just the toe thong thing) in any colour you want, they're just for the beach and simple spring/summer stuff, and finally, if you want, a pair of boat shoes. Boat shoes are comfy and don't mind getting wet, but they're really just for warmer weather because they're so airy. Sperrys makes the best boat shoes. You can get them in any colour, I really like the navy blue Venetian-style Topsiders. Oh, and don't get square-toed shoes unless you want to look like you just came from the 1970s. Wing-tipped is the way to go.
Socks:
Unless you want to get higher socks*, get simple black socks that go up to your ankles. Your socks usually shouldn't show, especially in wearing sneakers, but if they're low enough, it's no big deal. Fashion isn't too picky about socks, however, your socks should usually be a colour darker than your shoes. Black, of course, goes with nearly anything; and if it doesn't jive with your brown shoes, if they're ankle-height nobody will notice. And if you want to wear some really cool, splashy socks, go ahead, as long as the colours work with the rest of the outfit. Otherwise you're just the guy with the really loud socks.
Pants:
I think you really only, at first, need three pairs of pants, but as your wardrobe increases, you'll definitely need more.
Jeans are the most frequently worn pants you'll own, so get a durable pair. Japanese denim is the best quality denim, but Levis are cheap and great. Get the slimmest pair of Levis you can, 511s are probably their best cut. Get a simple, easy colour to match at first, a dark charcoal grey or black is probably best, then when you have more money you can grab a pair in a shade of blue you like. No holes or distressing, ever!
As far as other pants go, you'll need a pair of khakis and black dress pants (then, just like later on with the jeans, grab a pair of grey ones too). For khakis, I really like Levis 511 Trousers, they're the same slim cut as the jeans are but they're wearable in more business-casual and dressier situations than jeans are. Try and get the slimmest cut black dress pants you can, Express's Photographer pants are great but they're only pinstriped, which I personally don't like. Their Producer pants are good enough, that's what I own.
You can get a pair of chinos too, but I hate them. Oh, and NEVER get pleated pants unless you want to look like some kind of mouthbreathing clueless WalMart-shopping troglodyte. They're ugly and when you sit, they make it look like you have an erection or ten.
Belts:
Get two - a black and a brown(matches your brown shoe). Brown belt goes with your khaki pants and, if you want to wear your brown Oxfords with a pair of grey dress pants, they go there too. Black for everything else. Your belt must ALWAYS match your shoes. A pair of suspenders is also acceptable, but if you ever wear suspenders with a belt, or wear them and leave them hanging...that's just retarded.
Undershirts:
I like v-necks, you like v-necks. Get lotsa v-necks! Get them in white, heathered grey, and black. If you want to wear just a v-neck in hot weather, get some other colours too, but nothing too bright unless you want to keep looking scene.
T-Shirts: NO GRAPHIC TEES.
Shirts: First and foremost, I'm sure I don't need to explain that flannel and plaid are different things. Many flannels are plaid patterned. This doesn't make plaid a uniquely flannel-shirt patten. I like shirts that have a vintage-flair to them. Thrift stores can have some great stuff. Urban Outfitters has lots of great shirts too. Your shirt should work with the rest of your outfit, nothing too loud.
Dress Shirts:
Rule 1: Shirt is lighter than your coat/upper-layers.
Get the slimmest-fitting shirt you can, and if possible, have all of your shirts tailored. You should, at first, get a basic white shirt and one shirt in another colour, like a blue. Express has really nice dress shirts without paying the upper-tier prices. Your shirt should usually be tucked in, I don't for two reasons:
1. I am fat and tucking in shirts that aren't tailored makes me look like I have a huge muffin top.
2. I'm pretty sure everyone kinda gets that I usually have a messy, effortlessly-cool look, and this goes with that. But mostly reason one.
Sweaters, etc (not that you'll need them soon but for completenesses sake):
Get a thin-gauge, slim-cut sweater with a v-neck. It should go over your shirt as effortlessly as it goes under a jacket. The vneck should expose your collar and maybe the first two buttons, that's about all. It flatters just about every face when you have a firm-collared shirt on under it. The sleeves should be pushed up just a little bit, enough to see a watch if you have one on and maybe a little hint of your shirt cuffs. The sweater should end at your belt line. When wearing a cardigan, don't button the last (sometimes the last and penultimate) buttons, you don't want a fussy appearance, a sense of ease is better. With any sweater, get high armholes, so it looks sleek and modern, not like an old sweater from grandpa.
Ties:
Tie usually should be darker than your shirt, but lighter than jacket. Of course, there are exceptions. Your tie should have a pattern or colouring that goes well and brings out parts of the shirt colouring, sometimes a tie can, well, tie a whole outfit together.
I'll get to tie knots later. Yes, there are many ways to tie it, and they're for different situations.
I'll write more tomorrow!
I forgot to write more to him, since I see him everyday in person anyway, but I can write more for you if anything comes to mind.
What's wrong with passively earning money as supplemental income? Say I make an seo blog and pull in $50/month, it's a few hours of work for a steady profit that I don't have to invest any more time into. If I come home from work one day, put some effort into making one, it's time that wouldn't be used for anything fiscally productive (already worked that day, have free time) that later turns into a minor net gain. It's definitely nothing to live on/allow me to be unemployed, but it'll pay off over time at no additional expense of time, effort, or funding. Obviously 50 each month won't really change anything, the job alone would cover living expenses (primary goal is clearly survival), anything else is just gravy that lets me throw money into further investments (stocks or cds, I guess) and play cards, which is another, secondary source of income. Having a tertiary money-making venture that asks nothing of my time other than an initial few hours just seems like it's a good idea all around.
@dcartist - The appeal of homelessness to me is almost-complete existential freedom. The mystique of the open road is just something that's captivated me for a long time. I think a part of this is because I've always wanted an adventurous life. If someone gave me a billion dollars right now, with the stipulation that I couldn't donate it to charity (otherwise the overwhelming majority would go to making other people happy through charity), I would backpack throughout the world while writing or composing. Sure, Oscar Wilde and the other Bohemians may have been deadbeats by modern standards, but they seem to have had amazing amounts of fun and dedicated their lives to something they feel passionate about, which I can definitely agree with. My problem is that I have so many beloved things, like literature, music, animal rights, making people smile, etc; that I couldn't just pick one.
@linvala - I get where you're coming from. I used to do something similar, I flipped a lot when I was 15-16 or so, since I couldn't play in any PTQs that summer, I would go and work with dealers or spend the day trading. It got me a good bit of money, especially with side event grinding, but I'm not looking to solely make a living off of this.
Update: I left the house for a while today in search of a job, came home and talked to my parents some more, eventually whittling them down to allowing me to stay, even if unemployed, provided I can pay them $200/month in rent. Special foods would be on me, like soy products, but staples like rice, spaghetti, and vegetables are free, so the cost of living with gas is maybe 300/month(This food thing is only relevant because I adamantly refuse to eat meat). If I can do that, I can have my car back, a place to sleep, etc. That's a number that'd be extremely easy for me to make with Magic, and my other expenses are almost nonexistent (mostly only gas and dating various women, though I'm well overdue for a new guitar - outside of travel expenses, I've not paid a cent for Magic this year. I borrowed a deck for a few local events, got sponsored by a friend, won each event giving me the next month for free, and turned my winnings into my own deck. Atm I draft, play Standard and Legacy for free and have a t2 deck worth >$800).
The plan is to get a full-time job, or at least 35 hours per week. Even with minimum wage I'd be earning about $2k/month after taxes. I'd put 200 down for rent, give myself 500 to the travel fund, and save the rest, with any profit made from playing cards going towards the travel fund, hoping to make it self-sustainable or at least very, very cheap. Of course, I'd give myself a bit of spending money when doing something social, like taking someone to a movie, but being as frugal as possible with that. I want to keep this up until the fall semester starts, and then turn it into as many hours as possible while going to school and finding the time to play - ideally scheduling my classes to fall upon two days a week, so I could work 25 hours/week, go to class, and play in the events on the days I have school as to not conflict with either school or work. For events like GPs, PT (determined to get back on this year) and East Coast 5ks, I could switch hours for that weekend with a coworker. By the time school comes back around, I completely expect to have at least 10k sitting in the bank for investing. (Philosophically, I'm all about efficiency. What's the point of having 10k that you're not going to use, and it's not doing anything for you? If I can safely invest, it's making me extra money at little cost of time with low risk.)
That sounds like it's reasonable, right? How should I sculpt the plan further? What good ways are there to make money, even if it's only $20/month, without actively doing something that month? How should I invest my extra cash?
Yeah, you're right. I am kinda irresponsible - missing a 9:00 class was all on me. I just don't think he should be so angry about the class - if he wants to be angry that I take it so lightly, that's fine, but I paid for it with a scholarship so it's not like he lost anything. I get why he got me out of school - wants me to have money, be a productive citizen, etc - and as long as I'm not homeless then I'll be able to get back to it in the fall. I think he's overreacting but with good intentions.
Players at my store are usually pretty good, there are a few who've been on the Tour a few times, one Nats top8, and I test with a few notable players from around the nation. I didn't go to the PT I qualified for because I was 16 and my parents wouldn't let me.
My goal is to be able to work and go to school during the day, getting enough money from work to pay for playing competitively, with any money earned from that going towards supporting it. School is free with scholarships.
I've been trying to network, ended up getting a job interview but it didn't go so well because the way my school schedule was set up conflicted with the job availability they needed.
Since I won't be in school for this semester, I'm going to try and get an overnight job stocking a Shop Rite or something if a temp agency doesn't work out. With my schedule opening up it should be easy enough to find a job that allows me to save up some money to travel and get an apartment with some friends later on in the year. I imagine that with 40 hours/week, I'll be able to save up enough so that, with winnings, Magic won't be expensive and once I enroll again next semester, I'll have some money in the bank while I try to change to a part-time job or work things out with the schedule so I can go to school, work, and play when possible.
Edit - Captain, the reason I want to go is so that I can see my friends while making money - they were my best friends all throughout high school and I haven't seen them since they left in June. I want to travel, and I want to play at a professional level more often. In some ways, I'm not too worried about being homeless again as long as I have money by that point. I've always had a dream of being like Jack Kerouac, but I suppose it's almost quixotic to have that as a back-up plan (though it made for an incredible summer!). I think that, while it's probably immature of me to say so, I don't really know what I want to do. I know that I want to be happy, and to make people happy, but I'm not sure how. I want to write, or to play music, or to do something that gets people to realise that we're all people, and that alone should make you care for them. None of my ambitions contribute to a real career prospect...there's not much you can do with a Philosophy or English or Music degree, and I just want some excitement in my life, not being a teacher and going through everyday mundanities.
I'm going to be 19 next month, living in NJ now. I've been qualified for the PT before, and have enough other achievements that I know I can play this game. Since I started seriously playing again in late October because of PWPs, I managed to rack up two byes at GPs solely from FNMs and a constructed event every Monday, not having had money to travel to 5ks or anything.
The goal for the 2012 was to finally pursue playing competitively as much as possible, starting with GP Orlando. I have friends at film school in the city so a hotel and everything isn't relevant, all I need is airfare. Unfortunately, even with my best efforts, I haven't been able to get a job for the past few months, and the local store only pays me in store credit. While it may not cost me anything to play, I don't have anything in my bank account. School got in the way of working, since I didn't make the best schedule possible due to a lack of college experience - I never really realised how early 9:00 classes are every day of the week.
I have about $125 in my pocket right now, and here's the deal. I just got an email from my school saying that I failed a class solely due to attendance. My grades on all of the assignments were As, but because I couldn't get up so early, and didn't always have the gas to drive to school, I missed enough classes that even with everything in, the school policy failed me despite having the proper work done. My dad found out, got outraged, dropped me out of school, and isn't going to help me pay for my airfare as a birthday gift anymore - instead, he's decided that I have one month to get a full time job or I'll get kicked out. This isn't an idle threat, I've been homeless before, because he thought it would 'build character.' I spent the past summer living on friend's couches. I was allowed back home because I got run over by an SUV while riding my bike looking for a job - the police forced me to call home, and then they let me back in. Both of my parents have expressed earlier that they wouldn't care if I froze on a park bench.
Right now I don't have a phone, a car anymore (I paid for it but since I was 17, it had to be in his name.), or much money. I know that if I make it to Orlando, it'll be positive EV. Even if I don't top64, I'll definitely rack up enough from side-events to come home with cash in my pocket. I wanted to buy a plane ticket tonight, since Spirit Air is having a sale only valid through 23:59 tonight, but the money is cash in my pocket, not my bank account. I asked if I could just pay my dad the $113 to use his card (found an awesome deal, 113 round trip with fees and my carry-on included), but he threw a fit that I'd even consider it and said no. Once tomorrow rolls around, I won't be able to afford it anymore - it'll be +$50. Assuming I can't get to Orlando, what should I do? I'm still searching for a job like mad, but it doesn't seem to be getting anywhere.
I really don't like the breakfast food at all. I won't eat meat, so that rules out most things already, and I'm not really a fan of waffles or pancakes.
I don't even like breakfast food for breakfast, so I never eat it for dinner! Dinner is either some kind of meal I've cooked (eggplant parm, various Indian foods, all kinds of soy products) or a post-tournament victory feast (more a single apple or a salad than a feast though) four times per week.
I'm only 18! My dad was an American cop in Germany during the eighties, and obviously had to learn the language there. His side of the family is all from Ireland. My mum was also American, but learnt German in high school and also lived in Germany for some time. When dad went back to America, he met mum, and they went to Ireland a bit after they got married. I popped out, lived there a bit, and we went back across the pond to NJ, where I've basically lived the whole lifespan. Since I've always been fascinated with language and sounds/music in general, we spoke German so they could raise a bilingual baby. Of course, it's not fully proper, but I can definitely hold my own in a German conversation. My grammar is spot-on and my pronunciation is really close to Bavarian, but I could stand to learn a few words. Interestingly enough, I also was taught French by my grandparents; and my younger brother didn't learn anything special, but he's learning French now.
Aunt - awn't
Route - root for 'take route 9 north...', rowt for 'router'.
Wash - wahsh.
Oil - oy-el
Theater - thee-ta
Iron - eye-in, ion
Salmon - salmin
Caramel - ca-ra-mel
Fire - fyre
Water - wahta
Sure - like sore with a slight h, not nearly enough to be like shore though
Data - dah-ta
Ruin - rune
Crayon - cray-on
Toilet - toy-lett
New Orleans - New Or-leans
Pecan - pee-can
Both - boh-t
Again - ah-gen, a soft 'uh' sound, gen like ken but with a soft g.
Probably - prob-lee
Spitting image - spitting image
Alabama - Al-uh-bah-ma
Lawyer - loy-er
Coupon - koo-pon
Mayonnaise - may-o.
Syrup - sir-rup
Pajamas - pa-Jaam-uhs (French J like Jacque)
Caught - cot, but a bit longer on the o.
Apparently I spent a little longer than normal on the vowel sound in 'colour' as well, but I don't think it really affects the pronunciation any.
What is it called when you throw toilet paper on a house? Toilet papering a house
What is the bug that when you touch it, it curls into a ball? The rolly-polly!
What is the bubbly carbonated drink called? Soda
What do you call gym shoes? Trainers
What do you say to address a group of people? You
What do you call the kind of spider that has an oval-shaped body and extremely long legs? The Harvestman or the Daddy Long Legs
What do you call your grandparents? Gramma, Grampa
What do you call the wheeled contraption in which you carry groceries at the supermarket? The cart
What do you call it when rain falls while the sun is shining? Is there even a word for that? I don't call it anything.
What is the thing you change the TV channel with? I don't watch tv, but if I did, I'd say it's a remote.
It used to run so deep
Full of those beloved hues
Crimson and blues
Those were the simple days
Painting perfect portraits of faces
We'd only found in dreams
Such tones I'd never before seen
I'd send you my thoughts
Violet ink dripping from my words
But you would never listen
Not even from the start
And now the inkwell's dried up
Like the sea of my heart
Oh, that was when you were you
Before you shattered all I knew
I'd send you my thoughts
If I had any left
To think it was you who gave me
such vibrant shades of ink
Well, now I'm scraping the bottom of the vial
The bottom of a bottle stares back at me
And my scribblings are faded
Lacking any kind of richness
Devoid of soul
My favourite colour was always Islands.
But now
All of my words come out as
lonely sandbars.
I'd send you my thoughts
Violet ink dripping from my words
But you would never listen
Not even from the start
And now the inkwell's dried up
Like the sea of my heart
Thanks for the couchsurfing, that'll help.
But do I recommend it? Yes.
If you want to do one thing right now to help you in the future, whether your new boarding school life prevents it or not, talk to her. Man up. Stop being a wuss, as you said. Try and gain some self-confidence and some experience dealing with people in even a pseduoromantic context, whether it gets far or not. If you gain confidence now, it'll all pay off in the future.
And really...what can you lose by trying? Let's say you ask her out - just for a date, not even a full relationship yet - and she says no. Ok, sure, you'll feel badly, rejected, blah, blah blah. Get over it! Rejection happens. And in a month, she won't even be in your life anymore, you'd be losing your chance anyway. If she says yes? Well, think of all of the possibilities. If you don't do anything, you'll be kicking yourself in the future with all of the what-could-have-beens.
I'm just out of high school and doubt I'm going to college. I don't have the money for it and I refuse to be in debt afterwards, and education itself is free nowadays; MIT has older classes online for free, I love learning but don't want to pay for a piece of paper that says nothing but, "Hey, this kid passed the finish line once." I'd probably major in Philosophy, English, or Music.
I actually planned on going to Universiteit van Amsterdam, but life problems got in the way in the past few months and I lost everything I had planned, aside from things based on my own creative talents.
In regards to my Magic background...well, I haven't played a single game with physical cards in a long time. I used to be Q'd for the PT, but never had the chance to go. I've recently relit the fire, and I'm planning on spending lots of time getting back into the game and next year I plan to be fully back into the competitive circuit.
I forgot to write more to him, since I see him everyday in person anyway, but I can write more for you if anything comes to mind.