July has been quite a busy one.
I continued to be a caretaker for my mom, although her regular caretaker is back and she’s becoming more independent, so I haven’t had to give her any serious help in several weeks. Which is all well and good because I got not one, but two jobs.
I got a job at Pizza Hut as a waitress. At first, it seemed like a lot to remember, but once I was working on my own, it all came flooding back to me and now I feel like I really have the hang of it. My coworkers are fun and the job is quite easy. I usually work closing shifts from about four to eleven. Aside from serving dine-in parties and carry out orders, I have a wide range of cleaning duties including taking down the salad bar, cleaning the bathrooms, vacuuming the dining room and wiping down all the tables and counters in the serving area. I’ve been complimented many times by dine-ins (specifically regulars), carry out orders and my boss on how well I’m doing and how friendly I am, which makes me feel even better about this job. I make about $5 an hour, so a lot of my pay is tipped-based where I make about $25-60 a night in tips alone. Although I get stiffed sometimes, generous people make up for it (a carry out tipped me $10 the other day!). Being a server has really made me appreciate other servers and now know how to make their lives easier.
About halfway through the month, I saw the band Streetlight Manifesto in Phoenix. My friend Alyssa was supposed to visit for the weekend and even though that fell through, I still went to the concert myself. It was great fun!
I got a second job at Ross (a retail store) as a cashier. I’ve spoken about how I find it difficult there in this post and still do at times (when I finally got the rhythm of the register, they stuck me in the fitting room with no training). I feel that once I get the hang of it, it will be time for me to quit for school. On the bright side, I don’t get too many hours, so it acts as a nice supplement to my Pizza Hut job. Plus, I get a 20% discount!
I’m still doing my unpaid internship at the Pima County Democratic Party. I’m doing the same things: calling fellow Democrats to volunteer for the local election and registering people to vote. However, voter registration has been bollocks recently as with the release of the new Pokemon Go game, there are large crowds at the park, which is where we now have to register. It’s not too bad at night, although it’s hard to tell how old someone is in the dark, but it’s simply miserable during the hot, hot days. When I told my boss about my last day, he suckered me into giving my information to the Phoenix Democrats so I could intern there. I have to see how busy I am with university once classes begin, but I’m sure I could spare some time to volunteer there, too.
I planned to go to an “adult recess” night: basically, all the fun things you enjoyed in elementary school such as bouncy houses and games… but with alcohol. Unfortunately, the venue couldn’t get a liquor licence this time, so my friend, Lilli, and I decided to go another time. On the bright side, instead of going out, Sydney accompanied me to get a tattoo. It’s a small paper airplane on the back of my neck to commemorate my time abroad and a promise to myself to travel as much as possible. I love it!
Working both jobs can be crazy sometimes, especially when I work both in one day. And with my internship in the mix, I can’t remember the last time I had a full day to myself. In my spare time, I enjoy writing (both for this blog and letters), watching Netflix, cooking and going to the gym.
I’ll be working hard and preparing for my final year of university for the rest of the summer.
What I am listening to: Scripted by Icon for Hire, Blood and Chemistry by Arcane Roots, Total Clarity by Against Me!, Crisis by Alexisonfire, Ellipsis by Biffy Clyro, Favourite Worst Nightmare by Arctic Monkeys
What I am watching: Oldboy (Korean version), The Inbetweeners (season 1-3), 10 Things I Hate About You, Jane the Virgin (season 1), The Theory of Everything, Ghostbusters (2016)
What I am reading: The Martian by Andy Weir