It's (finally!) official

I got some really good news last week. I passed my comprehensive exam, which means I’m officially done with my Master’s degree! I’m sure the testing lady said a silent prayer of gratitude knowing that I would never bug her again, asking if she could check “just one more time” to see if my results were back. I’m relieved because I will never have to take that monstrous exam again. It’s also a relief to know that I haven’t been lying on my resume when I listed my Master’s degree. Since everything’s official, I started selling all of my old textbooks on the internet. I’ve learned that a very strange law of economics applies to my book sales: the more boring the book was, the more money I can get for it. For example, a snooze of a book on international law brought in $40. Likewise, a book that nearly put me to sleep at least 3 different times in the library sold for almost $100. With this venture, I’ve also started to make friends with the clerks at the post office. On the third day in a row I was there to mail books, they started to catch on: “Are you selling books on the internet?” (Guilty as charged.) I’ve also realized that because I no longer can call myself a student, I’m officially unemployed. I’m doing my best to look for jobs in the area. I’ve dusted off my interview suit, and I’ve also (tried to) put on a thick skin. Because I think no matter how much education or experience you have, the whole job search is still very humbling. Still, I’m trying everything I can to find something. I’m searching the classifieds, talking to local businesses, networking with (the few) people I know in the area. Basically, I’ve done everything except query the kid down the street to see if I could work at her lemonade stand. (“I’m passionate about lemonade! I’m a people-person!”) I’m trying to be patient. But, I won’t rule out the lemonade stand just yet.