Thursday, April 20, 2006

Loons for corn

I have been doing quite a bit of soul searching lately, and I have made an important but difficult decision. I had originally planned to go back to Minnesota for the summer, where I would work at Zorbaz on the weekends and whoop it up on the lake during the week. But sometimes, circumstances change.

Since I can work many more hours at Sylvan Learning Center over the summer, I can make as much money here as I would in Minnesota. But more importantly, I will save lots more money if I stay here. My summer lifestyle in Minnesota is quite expensive. Doing nothing and living like a rich person can really drain the wallet.

Case in point:
Pint of good beer on Gull Lake: $5.50
Pitcher of (pretty) good beer in DeKalb: $7.00

Not that beer is the only consideration of course, but the fact that there is more to do around Gull Lake in the summer means that there are more options for spending money. It seems weird to be saying that there is more to do in Brainerd than, well, anywhere, but the fact is, between lake excitement, cookouts, parties, and eating out, the summers up there are nonstop fun.

As a grad student with no real income, money considerations must come into play.

The saddest part about this decision to stay here is that I will miss my friends immensely. And I will miss my friends' children more than I can say. But I have good friends here, too, and we will be having fun. And I will definitely be visiting Minnesota a few times during the summer.

So I'm giving up this:


For this:


Yeah. Good choice.

But I am actually looking forward to a quiet summer. I have a lot of books in my to-read stack. If I need to get away, I can go to Chicago for fun and Cubs games. My family is nearby. My friends here are fun.

Minnesota, Gull Lake, and Brainerd will always be a big part of my life. But this summer, it's DeKalb for me.

8 Comments:

At 1:36 PM, Blogger hannah posited...

if there's one thing i've noticed about life in brainerd since i left for college, it's that it's frickin expensive. i can't believe how much money i spend when i come home.

 
At 6:34 PM, Blogger Tay posited...

i just want to put it out there that i like the new look on the blog.

 
At 7:50 PM, Blogger CoachDub posited...

Thanks Maya. Though I seem to see you more than anyone else from Brainerd!

 
At 7:51 PM, Blogger CoachDub posited...

And thanks, Tay. It was time for a change. So I went for the Picasso theme. I like it, too.

 
At 8:54 PM, Blogger J0hn posited...

DJ Wang will be sorely missed.

 
At 9:14 PM, Blogger Jason posited...

I like the new look and really don't blame you for not being in Brainerd over the summer.

Though it does seem the most exciting thing happening around DeKalb is the opening of a time capsule...

 
At 3:04 AM, Blogger CoachDub posited...

Well, Jason, we are an "urban community in a rural setting."

 
At 7:20 PM, Anonymous Anonymous posited...

coachdub, don't forget that you are within an hour of your own bedroom, a house on a lake, a boat, and a half-barrel of free Honey Brown!

 

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