It’s been an eventful year so far and we’re only in the second month. I’ve published my first book, which is pretty awesome. I still have to finish the print layout to have a physical version available. Sales have been very meh so far, but that’s really what I expected to happen. I am prepared for the long slog to success when it comes to my writing. The only thing I’ve really been disappointed about is the lack of time, energy, and motivation I’ve had lately to continue writing. Still, given the reality of my situation I’m not getting to bent out of shape about it.

The year started off well enough. I went home for the holidays and had the chance to visit all of the people I never get to see being stuck living so far away. It involved a crazy amount of driving though (about 3,000 miles) so it wasn’t so much a break or vacation as a frantic attempt to visit everyone. Still, it was my one chance for the year to do it. Coming back to work was a little tough when all I could think about were the people I’d just left behind. Eventually though, I managed to get back into the swing of things.

All was well until the time came and went for my first paycheck of the year. This was nothing new, unfortunately. During my short time with my company, they’ve been late paying me for at least 6 or 7 paychecks. When you’re paid twice a month, it’s really tough to suddenly have to wait until the next normal payday to get both paychecks. It was frustrating to the extreme, but there was little to do as they always managed to catch me up. It wasn’t until the missed a second payday that I became seriously concerned. I also found out I wasn’t the only one who hadn’t been paid. It turns out NONE of the other employees were paid, and we were all very concerned. So here we were well into February and we hadn’t been paid for any of the work we’d done in 2014. I was down to enough money for food and another tank of gas, but nothing for bills or rent. The fact that no one had been paid also had me seriously worried about the future of the company.

To make a long story short, we were finally paid yesterday. Almost 2 full months into 2014 and only for hours worked in January. I have since discovered there are five open lawsuits against the company for unpaid wages. The ship was sinking all year and I had no idea until this latest fiasco. At this point I’m pretty sure I won’t see another paycheck and that the CEO of this messed up company will suddenly disappear. Not that it matters much as I have since received an email notifying my I’ve been let go.

All of this crap had me thinking over the past couple of months that it was time to make a change in my life. Make some decisions and changes to improve my situation. Hopefully. The first thing I’ve decided is I’m taking a break from the 9 to 5 rat race to go back to college and finish my degree. The shenanigans this year just reinforced how unhappy I was stuck away from the people I love doing work that, while important, demanded a lot of sacrifices from me. When I really think about it, I’ve been going where life takes me for the past 9 years or so. With the responsibilities I shouldered over the years I’ve had little choice about what I do and where I live. I like it’s time to go against the flow and make some decisions for myself.

So now here I am, getting ready to leave the life I’ve gone with for years behind. Big changes. I’m going to be a full-time student again. I’m not really sure how to feel about it just yet. I know it’s going to be strange walking into my first class. I haven’t been there for 15 years. I’ll be one of the older students in the class. The kind I used to wonder about when I was a kid fresh out of high school. Despite my fears and uncertainty about such crazy changes, I’m also very excited and more hopeful than I’ve been in a very long time. New life, here I come!