Zero Bank

Special K pointed out that I sounded unusually happy on the phone tonight. Maybe it’s because Pink Lady apples are back in the grocery store (God, how old am I getting that that legitimately excites me??) or maybe it’s because of whom I was speaking with. Most likely, it’s because I had more money in my pocket than I’ve had in a week. Yes? Of course, I’ll explain!

It’s not that complex…it’s just that I missed my paycheck. There was a mix-up, secretary didn’t submit my timecard and I went on an end-of-month spending flurry, unaware that my bank account wouldn’t be replenished. The spending flurry? It involved alcohol, a heating fan, Okami and Marvel: Ultimate Alliance, more alcohol, American-Born Chinese and maybe some beer. It got bad for a little while: took the account from $24 to $9 so that I could enjoy a beer with my Teacher Ed classmates on Tuesday. Sold a bunch of old videogames for an emergency $50 so Brian and I could hit Ricky’s Sports Bar on Wednesday (had to see the Warriors opener, you know). And thank goodness for the change jar…it got me $5.50 worth of quarters for gas and $6.50 in quarters for pho so that I could have some semblance of an enjoyable weekend with friends. The district says I’ll have a replacement check on Monday, but perhaps being broke as all hell wasn’t such a bad thing! I mean, it takes me back to those days in Seattle…pilfering my roommates’ food, enjoying the $1.75 Vietnamese sandwiches and exercising for entertainment. I know not to mistake myself for a person who is truly forced to live off of nothing, but it’s a personal little victory to know that I can still maintain myself for a week on very little cash.