So, time for my first real blog entry since early September. And really, the last REAL entry I made was in mid-August!

What has been going on in Nick's life as of late? Let me explain... No, is too much. Let me sum-up:

Things have been quite up and down for me over the past few months. I went through a time of doubt as to whether or not I should continue working at my church which came about through feelings of inadequacy for the job. I then overcame that. None of my plans I made earlier this year for furthering my education have come anywhere near fruition. None of my plans to move to the Augusta area and find a job have come to fruition. None of my plans to find a job anywhere have come to fruition...

Oh, did I say up and down? I dunno, looks more like just plain down. But I'm not really feeling all that sorry for myself right now so I'll leave it as up and down. The ups just weren't quite as worthy of mention as the downs I guess.

Well, in November I realised that I was going to have to do something come the end of the year. Since I had been planning (quite optimistically) to be in the GA/SC area come late November my roomie, Chris, made new living arrangements: He is moving into a new place with our friend Drew and Drew's friend David on January 8th. So that leaves me without a roommate, increasing the amount I will have to pay per month to somewhere around $600, whereas I'm just paying half of that right now.

Also, come December 24th my monthly student loan payments will start, each being close to $100 a month. So that puts my financial output at $700 a month not including gas, groceries, and other expenses which my parents are covering for me so graciously at the moment, even though they can't afford to do this. I make $500 a month at my church, so there is no way I can survive on that job alone and the job market in Hattiesburg is apparently very bad, as I haven't been able to find one yet.

So I made the decision I have seen coming but have not wanted to submit to: I'm moving home to live with my parents for a time. It's not that I hate my family, though it is harder to live at home than it used to be, I'm just used to how I live on my own and not how my family lives, I guess. It's more that I just don't like Butler, AL. At all. Neither do my parents, really, but God still hasn't taken them anywhere else.

So this past Sunday I announced my resignation, effective December 21, to the church. I told them publicly that God was moving my life in a new direction, which He is. He's orchestrated these events and forced me to one option. I haven't kept it a secret the reason I am having to quit though: I simply can't afford to live in Hattiesburg on the salary I get at the church, and they understand they don't pay enough for it to be a person's only job.

So, in three weeks I will do my last service at Oak Hill Baptist Church and I will head to Butler. Sometime during the week prior to that I will have loaded up all of my stuff (with the aid of my father, his truck, and a trailer) and have taken it to Butler. I'll be living in the basement there, probably, and paying only for cable internet.

Of course, the week immediately following that we will all head to Augusta, GA for Christmas, and may take the next week or two off and have a vacation in the mountains of Georgia. I might even see about taking some time to hang with the Michael of the Rodericks while up that way. And in late January I and my sister and our two friends Michael will be making a trek up to Nashville to see Don Frazure sing in the Britten War Requiem. That trip will be fun!

While I'm at home I'll try to organize my stuff (today I had a very major scare when I couldn't locate my GRE scores or the registration number I'd need to order them again, thankfully I did find them, right where they were supposed to be, but I have many piles of stuff that is not where it's supposed to be and it would be very feasible for me to loose something important like that), look for a job (preferably in the Augusta area), and focus on getting into a graduate school.

Speaking of graduate school, I may be changing the direction I'm going with that. Just as a reminder, I have been looking at getting a Masters of Library and Information Science (Or Masters of Information and Library Science, depending on where you go), a Masters of Musicology (that's music history for those of you not in the know), and a PhD of Musicology. Thereby giving me the education needed to become a music librarian and/or a music history prof.

Well, I have recently been thinking about just going for a Masters of Music in Choral Conducting and then getting my PhD in that as well. I really think I would enjoy this direction a lot and I just need to find out how feasible it will be for me to do this. I will still look at University of South Carolina as well as talk to some of my undergrad profs and see what they would recommend for this rout. (This whole thing being why I was looking for my GRE score in the first place tonight!)

Well, I am going to get to bed now, it's 4am and I promised someone I'd be somewhere at 9:30 to help them with some stuff which I will get paid for doing. Also tomorrow I will be playing two pieces with the WCC handbell group for the Christmas program there. Just like old times, eh! I need to find out what time I need to get there and what to wear!

Well, bye for now, it's good to be blogging again!
- posted by Nick @ 12/05/2003 05:05:00 AM | 0 comments