Pay No Attention to The Man Behind the Curtain
A few months ago, a friend asked “what’s next?” for me now that I’ve moved to Chicago and landed a job. I replied that I’d keep hunting for a better job, since my waitressing/hostessing gig is only part-time. Then I asked if that was too boring, and he if he wanted a more imaginative reply. “Yeah,” he said. “What’s next on the Bucket List?” “I don’t know,” I said, before rattling of a Christmas wishlist of extracurricular activities. “I’d like to volunteer more. I want to take acting classes and maybe start going to auditions. I’d like to meet someone. I want to see more plays. I’d like to lose 10 pounds or so. Sometimes I think boxing or dancing or flying lessons would be cool.” Not-so-subtly buried in there was the desire to date again. (Also the wish to earn more money so I can actually afford to do all those things.) Which brings me to this (rather long and disjointed) post. Quick backstory: In the wake of a long-distance relationship that ended ove