Seasonal Work and All That Comes With It

In the seasonal working world, your life after six months is often elusive and unclear. From the time you get your summer job until around July, you can pretend that you don't have anything to worry about because you have money coming in and a comfortable place to lay your head. Once July hits, either early or mid, you begin to realize that October gets here faster than you really remember and once it does come around the bend, which it always inevitably does, you'll no longer have that money or that comfortable place. So comes the normal July conversation.

"What are you doing for the winter?"

I hate that question. Not only because I have no idea how to answer it other than saying, I'll just do what I normally do, which is go back to Michigan (North Carolina now) and spend time with my family until April comes back around and then I'll head out here again. I also hate that question because you usually have to reciprocate it and, honestly, I don't care what you're doing for the winter because it's most likely ten times more fun and cooler than what I'm going to do. During the month of July, one can usually get away with not answering the winter question at all. It's early yet, you have so many options, October is further away than, let's say, this weekend; all fine responses that will get people to leave you alone. August hits and then September and us seasonal workers really should get our acts in gear and know which path we're going to follow but, honestly, we're grown children with occupational ADD. We drive around the country looking for a place that we can have fun at for six months until our ADD kicks in, they kick us out, and we move onto the next place where we can hike, climb and camp until the six month where we discover that we're tired of these people, we're tired of this job, and we're really tired of these dorms.

So really, I have no idea what I'm going to do this winter and I like to think that the sky's the limits, but I really know that my bank is account is limited, which in turn makes my choices limited. Considering it's only July 7th, I do still have a good three months until I have to make that decision, but knowing me, I'll think of something fancy and delude myself into believing that it could really happen until I land back in my bedroom with my parents, wondering where the cash for my next bill payment is going to come from, and an itchy trigger finger that won't stop aiming for Signal Mountain Lodge.