That Being An Adult Isn't Always Fun

When I was in tenth grade, I was in both Journalism and Yearbook. I was ecstatic to be in both of these classes. However, they both required that I sell ads in order to get a good grade. This, I was not so thrilled about. Talking on the phone with people--strangers--was not something I was good at. Formal, business like things? I was fifteen! I avoided it for as long as I could but then I had to get started if I wanted to get a good grade, which if you know me, you know I did. I decided to make my first ad phone call at 9:00 at night, figuring that businesses close at 5:00 and I could leave a message. Fifteen year old me deemed this to be a good plan and was shocked when the man answered the phone--I had not been expecting that. So I hung up. I didn't say a word and just pressed a shaky finger to the 'end call' button out of pure terror.

In the years since then, I've done a lot of growing up. I got my license and a car. I could drive wherever I want. I entered the wonderful of the workforce which meant a full bank account and a debit card at my disposal. I could buy junk food, new shoes and movie tickets whenever I wanted! This year, I turned eighteen and like every person ever, I proudly stated that I was an adult! I made a list of all the things I could do now that I couldn't do before. I obnoxiously vocalized the idea that I could do whatever I wanted now that I was eighteen (not true by the way), and as a birthday hoorah I went clubbing for the first time. What fun it was to be an adult!

But alas, being an adult isn't all fun and games. This summer I have started to see that there is more to being an adult than working, driving and going clubbing. Today I went to the post office. I put my health forms in the mail on their way to BU. I had to go to the doctor to get those health forms filled out, which is something I hate and therefore deem very adult like. After putting those in the mail, I got in line and waited patiently for my turn. I finally reached the front of the line and told the worker that I needed to renew my passport only to learn that my local post office no longer does passports and that I will have to spend one of my rare days off driving an hour to the closest place that does. Cue the big adult sigh here. But wait! But this is only the beginning...(of both my day and my adult life)

I get home and I make myself lunch. I have a smoothie and a sandwich with sprouts AND tomatoes because well, I'm an adult and adults eat healthy (haha, as if I eat healthy--hello cookies, carbs and coca-cola!). I take a moment to check my Financial Account on the BU student link only to see that *sigh* yet another day has gone by and the amount remains the same. I've been checking everyday for a week to see if my local scholarships have credited to my account and they have not. This can only mean one thing. That I have to call the Office of Financial Aid. Flash back to my tenth grade self having to make phone calls I don't want to make. I will say that this is something I've gotten better at since then. I'm an adult and that means I do things like go to the bank and the doctor and don't hang up on people when I make phone calls. However, it still isn't a task I ever look forward to. I realize that this is an activity that I can't avoid. I have to sort the situation out because I can't afford not to. So I call. and the line is busy. So I keep calling until I don't get a busy signal (hooray!) but then I get placed on hold (boo). I suck it up and wait on hold. Thirty minutes later, I'm still on hold and I have to go to work, forcing me to hang up the phone and lose any progress I made in the last thirty minutes. I didn't let this deter me though. I was going to get through to these people if it killed me. My bill is due in a week and a half and I can't let this wait any longer. I have the determination of an olympic athlete and my sport is patiently waiting on hold to make a phone call I don't want to make. I know, you're impressed. Just go ahead and give me the gold medal now.

Guys, I'm the Ryan Lochte of phone calls.
I've come so far since 10th grade!

So I spend my break at work constantly redialing until I get put through onto the line. I'm starting to lose hope when...GASP....I get a ring! I'm being put through! I'm going to make it! I'm...on hold. Hold is as far as I've gotten on this mission since this morning so I'll take what I can get. Fifteen minutes later and a man picks up. A human voice! I did it! Victory! Alright, so the process was painful and long. I detested it before I did it and I detested it while I was doing it. Not only is the actual phone call and getting through the busy line something I hate, I hate having to be an adult and figure out things like my finances. When did I get finances?! Luckily for me, everyone at BU is very nice when you finally get ahold of somebody. I explained my situation and got the answers to the questions I had. They weren't the answers I was hoping for and they made my life a little bit more difficult but it was a step in the right direction. It now means changing some plans, rearranging some things and making even more phone calls. But as I've learned, these are all parts of being an adult. If I want to drive a car, work, and go to college I have business to take care of. I don't think things such as phone calls, bank deposits and doctors visits are things that anybody really wants to do but we do them anyway, because we're adults and adults have to do things that they don't want to sometimes. For me, I just keep in mind the great parts of growing up  so that I can get through the not-so-great parts. My greatest motivator right now is of course BU and college in general. I'll trade a few phone calls and post office trips for the most exciting experience of a lifetime any day.