Ever since I graduated from college/university in 9/2020, I've been one of many people affected by the COVID-19 pandemic lockdowns. As this was the peak of the lockdowns, job opportunities for recent graduates and in-person socialization opportunities were effectively gone, leaving me with no choice but to stay with my family for longer. While I got into doing and contributing to some free/open-source software projects myself and got back into video games on 3/2021, this stuff alone wouldn't be sustainable long-term financially (but didn't mean that I would stop doing this stuff entirely).
Over 2021, 2022, and the first 4 months in 2023, I've had some success in applying for technology-related jobs and a few retail ones, and got a few online interviews, but none ever got me an offer. I actually had some luck recently (from 11/2022 to 2/2023) getting hired at a local Office Depot as a seasonal sales advisor (with the assistance of a job recruiting agency), but it was only a temporary job. Still, it wasn't all doom and gloom, as I got some experience in shelf-stocking and handling customers who need help.
While working this job, with the help of one of my family members, I was able to attend a meetup where I met someone who I could become close with, and potentially become roommates with. This gave me an opportunity for me to 'escape' my family's home, and by extension, suburban life, as someone who can neither drive nor has a drivers' license to do so. My diagnosis of mild autism made this situation considerably worse, as my socialization skills with outside people are not fully battle-tested.
Fast-forward to April 18 of this year, and now I found luck after 2.5 years: By way of personal connections (meeting some people at a gaymer-oriented meetup), I now have been hired to work at a Vietnamese-style restaurant, though I have to go through some training at first. So far, none of these jobs I worked at are directly related to technology, but I will gain other skills that can help in other aspects of life not directly dealing with computers. Later on, when technology companies aren't dishing out layoffs so frequently (nothing to do with me being lazy - I'm waiting for a good time to try again), I'll think of finding something better, but a restaurant job will have to suffice for now. This unfortunately means that I will have to move closer to the Houston, Texas, area in order to attend this job more reliably, but it's no big problem since I have roommate mentioned earlier that I can move in to live with together.
I feel excited for the facts that I was the one to find this kind of job, that I will finally have a chance at improving my social life so soon, and I can finally transition from living the suburban life to more urban life (where I can get to more places without having to drive a car). At the same time, I'm feeling a bit nervous that I'm pushing major change on myself so soon rather than until next year, but I would still have to eventually face this change, so why not take advantage of opportunities now, I thought?
I now look forward to what will happen next in my life, now that I will be living away from my family long-term, outside of a university dormitory setting. I hope that my life will be great in as many aspects as possible! I'm open to advice as to what I should expect next from becoming more independent.
Over 2021, 2022, and the first 4 months in 2023, I've had some success in applying for technology-related jobs and a few retail ones, and got a few online interviews, but none ever got me an offer. I actually had some luck recently (from 11/2022 to 2/2023) getting hired at a local Office Depot as a seasonal sales advisor (with the assistance of a job recruiting agency), but it was only a temporary job. Still, it wasn't all doom and gloom, as I got some experience in shelf-stocking and handling customers who need help.
While working this job, with the help of one of my family members, I was able to attend a meetup where I met someone who I could become close with, and potentially become roommates with. This gave me an opportunity for me to 'escape' my family's home, and by extension, suburban life, as someone who can neither drive nor has a drivers' license to do so. My diagnosis of mild autism made this situation considerably worse, as my socialization skills with outside people are not fully battle-tested.
Fast-forward to April 18 of this year, and now I found luck after 2.5 years: By way of personal connections (meeting some people at a gaymer-oriented meetup), I now have been hired to work at a Vietnamese-style restaurant, though I have to go through some training at first. So far, none of these jobs I worked at are directly related to technology, but I will gain other skills that can help in other aspects of life not directly dealing with computers. Later on, when technology companies aren't dishing out layoffs so frequently (nothing to do with me being lazy - I'm waiting for a good time to try again), I'll think of finding something better, but a restaurant job will have to suffice for now. This unfortunately means that I will have to move closer to the Houston, Texas, area in order to attend this job more reliably, but it's no big problem since I have roommate mentioned earlier that I can move in to live with together.
I feel excited for the facts that I was the one to find this kind of job, that I will finally have a chance at improving my social life so soon, and I can finally transition from living the suburban life to more urban life (where I can get to more places without having to drive a car). At the same time, I'm feeling a bit nervous that I'm pushing major change on myself so soon rather than until next year, but I would still have to eventually face this change, so why not take advantage of opportunities now, I thought?
I now look forward to what will happen next in my life, now that I will be living away from my family long-term, outside of a university dormitory setting. I hope that my life will be great in as many aspects as possible! I'm open to advice as to what I should expect next from becoming more independent.
