All comedians MUST go to Heaven. How else would God have developed such a wicked sense of humor?
As I mentioned in an earlier post, I've been looking at the transportation options that I have for the coming year. Buy a new car? Buy a used car? Keep my own car? Sell my car and let my dad give me the little truck to keep back there for a year or so?
Well, sometimes the decisions we think are ours to make get ripped from our little fingers.
Over the weekend I came to the decision that I was going to sell my car and use the money for moving expenses, then I was going to take our little truck to Texas with me and use it for a year or two. I'm probably not going to be driving all that often, and it might be handy to have a truck, even if it is a truck with manual windows and doors (and transmission). I've had a couple of unforseen expenses come up in my personal life in the last few weeks, and so I thought that might give my budget a little more wiggle room.
Today that plan went straight to hell in a hand basket.
You see, I've been predicting that my transmission on my Explorer was going to go out. But I'm a girl with no automobile knowledge, so my dad thought it was just me being fatalistic. Turns out it wasn't. I was reversing out of a parking spot yesterday (after lunch with my mom and dad, where we had discussed possibly just using my car to load up and move to Texas, since it wasn't going to be a daily driver any more), and my car just clunked, and all of a sudden being in reverse was like being in neutral.
Yep, my transmission went out. Estimated cost of a rebuild? $2200. Worth it? Nope, probably not.
So now I'm on my way to go shopping for a new car. At least I can get some trade-in value for it here. Siiiiiiiiiiiiiiigh. I just have to keep reminding myself that everything happens for a reason.
RIP Dora the Explorer.
Thursday, June 30, 2011
Wednesday, June 29, 2011
Summer is an Uncertain Entity
One of the bummers about signing a lease for an apartment in a new city where you're going to be going to law school is that you don't know exactly how long your lease term should be. While everyone in 1L takes the same subjects and reviews the same cases, not everyone has the same opportunities for summer employment, and that employment is what will dictate where you live during May, June, July and half of August.
So the predicament that a lot of law students find themselves in is in deciding how long of a lease term they should sign to. 10 months? 12 months? A lot of times you'll get a price break for a longer (12 month) lease, but the practicality of a 10 month lease is appealing.
I don't have the luxury of making that decision at this point. The apartment that I'll most likely be signing for is a 12 month lease...I didn't have the option of making it a 10 month with an option to renew. Luckily I was able to get the option to sublease the apartment should I be unable to live there for all 12 months.
Ideally I'll get a paying 1L summer gig at a biglaw (market paying) firm in Dallas. Realistically? Those positions are few and far between, and it is more than likely that I'll either have to move back to my hometown and work at a mid-law (but still paying) gig here where I have ties, or work/clerk for free in Dallas over the summer. Either way I'll have to continue paying rent through the summer, so if I do move home for those months I'll definitely need to sublet my place in order to afford it.
Siiiiiiiigh. The trials and tribulations of being a grown up.
So the predicament that a lot of law students find themselves in is in deciding how long of a lease term they should sign to. 10 months? 12 months? A lot of times you'll get a price break for a longer (12 month) lease, but the practicality of a 10 month lease is appealing.
I don't have the luxury of making that decision at this point. The apartment that I'll most likely be signing for is a 12 month lease...I didn't have the option of making it a 10 month with an option to renew. Luckily I was able to get the option to sublease the apartment should I be unable to live there for all 12 months.
Ideally I'll get a paying 1L summer gig at a biglaw (market paying) firm in Dallas. Realistically? Those positions are few and far between, and it is more than likely that I'll either have to move back to my hometown and work at a mid-law (but still paying) gig here where I have ties, or work/clerk for free in Dallas over the summer. Either way I'll have to continue paying rent through the summer, so if I do move home for those months I'll definitely need to sublet my place in order to afford it.
Siiiiiiiigh. The trials and tribulations of being a grown up.
Tuesday, June 28, 2011
Taking a New Approach to Apartment Hunting
So, after careful consideration of several different factors, it was my intent to sign a lease at Cambridge Apartments in Dallas. The area seemed nice enough, the leasing agents were all very helpful, it was in my price range, and there was a one-bedroom unit available.
Unfortunately, my intent meant very little when it came to actually signing a lease. In fact, I never even saw a lease. At the last minute the one-bedroom became no longer available, and that was a bummer.
So I started looking again, this time slightly more panicked (as we're getting closer and closer to my moving date). I widened my net, so to speak, to take in apartments in more locations and at a higher budget. And my belief that when God closes a door he opens a window was completely reaffirmed.
I found a new place that I'm signing a lease on this week, and I'm stoked. It's a 2/1 unit literally right across the street from the law school. Now, I wasn't looking for a 2 bedroom, but I was looking at the floor plan and it looks like this unit will be ideal because I'll be able to have a study area, which sure beats doing my work at my kitchen table. (My dad suggested turning the extra bedroom into a closet. He knows me so well!)
However, there are pros and cons to every situation.
In this instance, I'll be paying a premium for the extra room and convenience in proximity to the law school. After all is said and done, my rent + utilities will be about $200-$250 per month higher than if I had rented at Cambridge. However, I think that not really having to drive anywhere and being in an incredibly safe neighborhood will be worth it in the end.
I'm only worried that really I might not be far enough away from campus. I know that sounds ridiculous. Living so close will be awesome during the school year, but what about finals time? I feel like the stress I will feel on campus (that I could normally get away from if I chose to live somewhere a little more removed from campus) will be just hanging over me all of the time if I'm that close to the source of my stress.
I guess we'll just have to see, won't we?
Unfortunately, my intent meant very little when it came to actually signing a lease. In fact, I never even saw a lease. At the last minute the one-bedroom became no longer available, and that was a bummer.
So I started looking again, this time slightly more panicked (as we're getting closer and closer to my moving date). I widened my net, so to speak, to take in apartments in more locations and at a higher budget. And my belief that when God closes a door he opens a window was completely reaffirmed.
I found a new place that I'm signing a lease on this week, and I'm stoked. It's a 2/1 unit literally right across the street from the law school. Now, I wasn't looking for a 2 bedroom, but I was looking at the floor plan and it looks like this unit will be ideal because I'll be able to have a study area, which sure beats doing my work at my kitchen table. (My dad suggested turning the extra bedroom into a closet. He knows me so well!)
However, there are pros and cons to every situation.
In this instance, I'll be paying a premium for the extra room and convenience in proximity to the law school. After all is said and done, my rent + utilities will be about $200-$250 per month higher than if I had rented at Cambridge. However, I think that not really having to drive anywhere and being in an incredibly safe neighborhood will be worth it in the end.
I'm only worried that really I might not be far enough away from campus. I know that sounds ridiculous. Living so close will be awesome during the school year, but what about finals time? I feel like the stress I will feel on campus (that I could normally get away from if I chose to live somewhere a little more removed from campus) will be just hanging over me all of the time if I'm that close to the source of my stress.
I guess we'll just have to see, won't we?
Monday, June 27, 2011
A Hidden Gem
Today when I was halfway through my daily "de-cluttering" task, I found something that I had completely forgotten I owned. While this in and of itself isn't necessarily an earth-shattering occurrence, I do think that it will help me transition into life in my new place of residence when I move in (approximately) 37 days.
What do you think? I feel like I'll get a lot of compliments on it. Right? ;)
Thursday, June 23, 2011
The Speed of a Turtle
So it turns out that SMU's financial aid office moves at a turtle's pace! I submitted my FAFSA in mid-April and have yet to hear anything back. For the last two months SMU's Pony Tracks website has shown my FinAid Application to be at "Step 3 - Under Review" with a note saying to check back after June 15 for an update.
Guess what? It's after June 15th. And I have no update yet.
So today I called the FinAid office. I don't know who I spoke to, I would assume it was a student worker but I really couldn't tell you. I just asked when I could expect my award and he put me on hold for about two minutes while he checked with someone else in the office. When he came back he said that I should know by the end of the month, or the end of the first week of July at the latest.
That's in a week, possibly two. You know how they say "trust but verify"? Yeah, I'm not holding my breath for a FinAid award before mid- to late-July. Siiiiiiiiiiigh.
Luckily I've taken care of every single other piece of paper work involved in getting my student loans, so as soon as I get the award from SMU and accept my loan amounts then I should be golden. The guy I talked to on the phone said I would have my loan disbursed before school started, so I'll be able to pay tuition and get books and all of that fun stuff.
Once again, we'll see. My friend didn't get his loan disbursement at Tech until 5 or 6 weeks in to the semester. Yikes!
Guess what? It's after June 15th. And I have no update yet.
So today I called the FinAid office. I don't know who I spoke to, I would assume it was a student worker but I really couldn't tell you. I just asked when I could expect my award and he put me on hold for about two minutes while he checked with someone else in the office. When he came back he said that I should know by the end of the month, or the end of the first week of July at the latest.
That's in a week, possibly two. You know how they say "trust but verify"? Yeah, I'm not holding my breath for a FinAid award before mid- to late-July. Siiiiiiiiiiigh.
Luckily I've taken care of every single other piece of paper work involved in getting my student loans, so as soon as I get the award from SMU and accept my loan amounts then I should be golden. The guy I talked to on the phone said I would have my loan disbursed before school started, so I'll be able to pay tuition and get books and all of that fun stuff.
Once again, we'll see. My friend didn't get his loan disbursement at Tech until 5 or 6 weeks in to the semester. Yikes!
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