i'm coming out

the big news so far this week is that i came out to my grandmother on sunday.  no, i'm not gay but i am unemployed and i have failed to mention this fact to her for the last year. you see, my grandmother is awesome and i love her dearly but she is very old school, old world italian and not super understanding of what a modern girl like me is going through with trying to "find" myself.   she worked incredibly hard all her life. for her, it was a job but not a career. it was a means to provide for her family.  nowadays many women (myself included) are looking for something more fulfilling, especially when we're single and without a family, our careers seem to be a bigger focus in our lives... all the more reason to be doing something that makes you happy. so, while i know my grandmother loves me dearly and always wants the best for me, i avoided the topic of my job with her for the past 12 months... i know she's a smart gal and knew something was up as i had jobs that required me to travel often for the last decade and many times a year to the part of the country she lives in and i haven't been to visit her in quite a while... last year i was in such a transition, having no idea what i wanted to do anymore, going through the process of trying to figure it out, and i didn't want her to worry about me or to nag (all coming from a place of love) so i just completely avoided the subject during my weekly phone calls with her. after all, this is the same woman that calls me every year on my birthday (since i turned 22) crying and saying that she just doesn't want me to spend another birthday alone and without a husband. so, that is why i decided not to tell her about my being in career flux... that is, until this past sunday when she asked me point blank how was work and do i still have a job.  well, i told her i lost my job "a little while ago" and that i was changing careers and taking classes in school and working for an interior designer.  she was so relieved to hear i still have a job.  of course i didn't mention that i was working for free as an almost 40 year old intern.  baby steps, you know?

yesterday interning was very cool. the designer that always seems to give me the most challenging jobs that definitely bring me out of my comfort zone had another one for me... he had me make a large model of a piece of furniture. yikes! i spent the entire day crouched on the floor cutting foam core and measuring, taping and gluing it into this model. it was a challenge but i am happy to say i made it through with only on band-aid needed for a slip of the exacto knife to my thumb.  luckily i was prepared for it because any good design intern needs to have band-aids on hand for just this reason! and my hello kitty band-aids are always in my handbag...

until next time.....