Krystina Shultz
Staff Reporter
Once again I find myself saying, “Goodbye, sleep,” and “Hello, textbooks!” College is just starting and I already find myself drawn to spend money on posters, clothes, and decorations that just might make my college life more colorful. Then, because of the wounded economy, I have to stop and tell myself, “Hang on, girl, you don’t actually need that.” (I’m not always very convincing).
Luckily, I was able to locate a job over the summer and joined the summer workforce of college kids. While some students on campus also maintained jobs, it seemed that there were more students who spent their summers relaxing. Many students probably spent their summers like Jaclyn Liebowitttz, a sophmore transfer student, who spent her summer relaxing at home and at the beach. Others found themselves clinging to any jobs they could find.
Sophmore Annie McShea, who spent her summer working, told me, “I just wanted extra money for school this year.” Luis Ortiz, a freshman, spent his summer working at a camp, but said that the state of the economy had no effect on his decision to get a job.
The economy is, as my dad likes to say, “a big thunderfuck” that is sitting several miles down the road; but for now we can avoid the storm.
Or can we?
“If the economy had been better I probably would have gotten a waitressing job if there wasn’t such high competition,” said junior Linzie Bonds.
“Yeah, I couldn’t get a job,” said Michael Byrne, a sophmore, “All the places at the supermarket were filled near where I live.”
“’The overall picture [of the economy] is one where the labor market is still kind of treading water. It’s better than sinking, but it’s certainly not surging ahead,” according to reporter Motoko Rich in a New York Times article titled, “Growth in Jobs Beats Estimates, Easing Concerns.”
Maybe my room doesn’t need to be covered in color, especially if I’m going to learn to be careful with my money with the poor economy sitting in the middle of the road.
