Ulterior Motives

Since I can't start looking for a real job until probably December, I have to find someplace to live and a way to support myself until then. My plan is to stay here and look for work at the university (this would be things like shelving books in the library) or at one of the temp agencies around here, and find myself a cheap furnished apartment of some sort. That way, if I end up finding a real job around here (I really, really like it here, so that's what I'm trying to do), I don't end up moving to a completely random city and then moving back here, and also, once I apply for a real job they're apparently supposed to pay my travel expenses when I go to do interviews, which is awesome. So I won't be moving very far in September.

Last night my parents Skyped me to confirm the date I get kicked out of the dorm, and to let me know they're planning to fly out to "help me move." This is a transparent lie. I tried the "well, I'm staying in [city], and I know very nice people with cars, and even if I didn't I have suitcases on wheels, and it would probably only take a couple of trips to move all my stuff, and even if I decide I'm too lazy to do that, taxis aren't very expensive" logical approach, and they pretended I hadn't said anything and continued with the "Yes, mid-September? And we'll get there on a Friday? Very good."

This worked better for them when I was living in L.A. I genuinely needed their help to move around every so often because the people with cars generally left before I did and moving your stuff between storage facilities and apartments sucks, and sucks hard. And you can't do the suitcase on wheels approach when your stuff has to go into storage across the very, very large city because the dorm kicks you out in May and your apartment lease doesn't start until August and you're flying home anyway. They could pretend they were being magnanimous and, as long as they were there, suggest that we maybe take a trip down to San Diego or up to Monterey just for a few days, as long as they were there anyway, it might be nice to see, you know.

When I was in high school, I wondered why they didn't object to my looking at universities so very far away from home. I knew a lot of people whose parents wanted them to stay within neighboring states. Only once I had gotten into a California university, and it was too late, did their ulterior motives become clear. They can tell their bosses "Yes, we need time off to help our children move, it's terrible but the poor things are so far away, and so helpless, and we want to be supportive" and then take off for a week or two and travel. This is the real reason why my declaration that they will have to pry England from my cold, dead hands filled them with glee rather than horror. They have a lifetime's worth of excuses to go to Europe now. I don't know how long it will take before they have reached the point where they are claiming that they have to go to England to dogsit for a weekend, but I bet they can stretch it out until retirement at least.

They've now had six years with California, since David followed me there. They'll get at least two more, since he's going to grad school out there as well, and he may even move there permanently, what with all the aerospace programs there. My dad began by seriously hating on L.A., being all "It's all faded and gross-looking and it all looks the same," (..."you could have picked a school in San Francisco, you know" - he did not actually say this) and now he knows where that great hole-in-the-wall Ukranian restaurant is and how to get everywhere without using a map, a skill that apparently impresses his colleagues when they go out there for conferences. And now they're doing the same thing with England. They will come out here several times a year on a transparent excuse, like "we needed to help you move!" or "it's Christmas and you refused to come home!" They will get to know the area (they are already well on their way, and didn't need maps by the time they left here in December.) They will learn where all the good restaurants are and how to get to all the neighboring areas without using maps. They will consider retiring here (nooooooooo!)

They had kids so they could have an excuse to follow us around.