Well I have put this off long enough. It’s time for the account of my 2010. If you read my blog about 2009 you might have notice I mentioned 2010 was going to be the best year of my life. It actually turned out to be one of the worst. From fathers and roommates, ex-friends and car accidents, to death and dropouts, 2010 was interesting to say the least. And I would never, ever want to re-live it.
The Roommate from Hell
I was so excited when I moved into Halifax with one of my best friends in 2009. But that was 2009. On January 2, 2010, my roommate called me at my Mum’s place (I was still on Christmas Break) to tell me she was really sick. As a result of the sickness, she couldn’t work and had to move out of the apartment because she wouldn’t be able to pay rent without a job. Naturally, I was sympathetic and told her I understood and asked her to keep me updated. We talked twice after that, both times in January. The last time we talked, she had expressed her concerns about her privacy online and said she would be leaving Facebook. I never heard from her again.
One day my friend, Lisa, was creeping my pictures on Facebook and noticed my ex-roommate was tagged. How could she be tagged if she left Facebook? Turns out she had de-activated Facebook and returned. One thing I didn’t expect was that she had deleted me, my mother, and everyone who was closely associated with me from her friends list. That screams guilty conscience to me. That combined with not hearing from her AT ALL, started the thought process that something wasn’t right.
1. She had mentioned moving out prior to me going home for Christmas Break and I got pissed at her for it.
2. She NEVER talked to me again. It’s been over a year and she was supposedly one of my “best friends.”
3. Her father always went into the store my Mum works at and buys food at her department. He hasn’t since.
4. She called long after she knew she was too sick to work. She went to the doctor 3 weeks before she called me.
5. She claims her mother and step-father moved all her stuff without her knowledge. How, pray tell, would her mother know every single thing that was my roommate’s? Especially considering the amount of belongings in shared spaces (Kitchen, Bathroom, Living Room). Very little was forgotten and none of my things were accidentally taken.
At this point in time, I don’t think anyone who knows the situation believes she left because she was sick. Her sickness shouldn’t have put such a distance in our friendship. I do believe she was sick, I had experienced it first hand, but it was never so bad that she couldn’t work. All I know for sure is she lost a fair amount of friends due to this incident.
Not Gonna Pay This Year’s RENT
Due to my roommate moving out, I had to cover all $1150 of rent on my own until I found a new roommate. Unfortunately, I never did find a new roommate. As a result, I very quickly ran out of money from my student loan. I had to ask my mum and dad to help me pay rent so I wouldn’t get evicted. I ended up taking the bus home every weekend because it was cheaper to pay for bus tickets than food for a week. I ended up dropping my Thursday class and would take the bus home on Wednesday nights and go back to school Monday morning. For over a month I spent more time at my Mum’s house than I did in the city where I went to school.
When April came, I was informed that due to my parents’ divorce settlement, my father only needed to give me child support while I was attending school. Since the school year ends in May and I couldn’t afford to pay for food, much less tuition to summer classes, I had to have the uncomfortable talk with my landlord about breaking the Lease. I had never intended on staying the summer. My roommate’s friend was supposed to sublet my room from May to September, but we already know that wasn't happening. In reality I should have informed my landlord sooner, but we all make mistakes, right?
Upon telling my landlord the situation, he told me to move out ASAP so that he could get someone in by May 1st (less than a week). If he couldn’t find anyone, he informed me I would still be on the hook for rent; obviously. I moved out 2 days later. I have not heard from him or received any sort of court summons, so I’m guessing that is solved.
My Father, My Foe
Those of you who know me well know that my father and I don’t exactly have a great relationship. That went to a whole new level in 2010. When I asked for help paying my rent above what I was already being given via “child support,” my father got pissed that I only contacted him when I needed money and I never send an email just to say how life is going. At this point I was beyond pissed. It’s not like he ever went out of his way to contact me either and let’s be honest, he’s the parent, why should it be my job only to start things? So I told him off; hard core. I was expecting a nasty reply, but instead got a nice(ish) one. Things started looking up and we made plans to talk over coffee.
The weekend came that we were going to meet for coffee and he informed me that he wouldn't be able to make it because my grandfather’s nursing home informed him that he wasn’t doing well and he could be called out at any time. I said sure, let’s reschedule then. Even though we could have just as easily have met and his fiancé could have called his cell phone if the nursing home called. Anyway, we never met up. I went back to school on Monday morning and that evening my father called to tell me that my grandfather had passed away 45 minutes earlier.
I always thought a death in the family would bring the family members closer together, as a support system and a means of memorial at least. But that didn’t happen for my family. After the funeral I only received unpleasant emails from my father, which I decided not to respond to. We haven’t talked since sometime April, when I asked if he could help me move my things out of my apartment.
Car Accidents Happen
On February 8, 2010, I was in a 2 vehicle car accident. I’m still embarrassed to say it happened at a set of traffic lights. I remember sitting at the red light and I said to my friend, Lisa, that it was a really long red light. And it was. I would have noticed if there was a vehicle waiting at the red opposite me and I swear there wasn’t. Thinking it was safe to go I started my turn left when Lisa screamed. The force that we were hit with knocked us into the lane next to the one I was aiming for; you can’t tell me a vehicle could get that much momentum if they were stopped at the lights. Everyone was okay, but I don’t think I will ever forgive myself for getting in an accident with another person in my car. I thank God she wasn’t hurt. I thank God nobody got hurt, minus my sprained finger and some pretty gnarly bruising. To this day, almost a year later, I don’t think I have mentally recovered from it. I didn’t fight the ticket, but I still believe it was not wholly my fault.
Love and Other Drugs
My car accident made me do something I had never successfully done before in my life. I told a guy I like him…via Facebook inbox. How sad is that? Anyway, my accident made me realize I could have died without this guy knowing how I felt about him. Which is exactly what I said when he asked me why I decided to tell him. It turned out to be a great thing.
We had a great friendship. We would chat on Facebook once in a while, we’d talk when I saw him at the bar he worked at, and we had great conversations. He told me things that made me think he really trusted me. We joked around and became friends, but I still liked him and I never got that maybe he didn’t like me back. He never said it, so I thought maybe he’d like me once he got to know me better. When he left for a military course for a month I just knew my chance was gone. He met someone there and we haven’t really talked since. Mainly because I decided to stop initiating every conversation hoping that he would start one.
I remember the last real interaction we had. It was one week after his course had started and he was home for the weekend. We were at the bar and he was not working. At the end of the night he had been dancing with me and my friends and when the slow song came on I asked him to dance, and we did. We talked, sang, danced and joked around and at the end of the song he hugged he goodbye and that was pretty much the end. A month later he was in a relationship. And we haven’t really talked since. Maybe our friendship ran its course, but I hope we'll be friends again some day.
School Daze
Financial stresses, being away from home, and having no friends really took its toll on me in early 2010. I basically stopped caring about school because it was just an added stressor and I wanted to forget about it. Due to failing a course in 2009 I was only taking 4 courses instead of the regular 5. Halfway through the term I dropped another class because I couldn’t be bothered with coming up with a business and trying to run it AND do my other course work. At the end of the term I decided I would be talking some time off of school which I had been tossing around since November 2009. So that’s what I did. I was hoping to find a job, but that didn’t (and hasn’t) work out. I almost took a course in Makeup Artistry, but couldn’t afford the 3000 dollars. Maybe I will this coming fall if I can get a job to pay for it!
Le Fin
So that was my 2010. It was really rough and full of tears, but I survived. I’m glad I don’t have to relive any of that! I wasn't all bad though. We got a new kitten in November that we named Zoey. She's a little brat and I love her. Also, mt best friend and her husband had a baby that they named Jacob. He's so freakin precious! And finally, I had a kick-ass weekend long birthday. Probably one of the best birthdays ever!
I’ve decided that my 2010 has officially been dubbed The Year of “We Haven’t Talked Since.” Hopefully 2011 will be the year of mended relationships! Lets be honest, it has to be better than last year! *knocks on wood*
