Today the exciting news came from Japan. The university there (or rather B's friend there) is arranging to pay B over $4000/month, which should be enough for both B and I to go to Japan. They will also find us an apartment, which is a huge relief as I know it can be quite complicated to find one yourself in Japan (especially since neither of us speaks any Japanese). Everything is still up in the air to some extent, but it definitely looks like I will be able to go. Even though Japan is quite expensive, $4400/month should be plenty (as we now have an income of about $2000/month). I have always wanted to go to Japan and so the chance to go there is really exciting.
I am trying to find a job for the next few months though, because we will have to pay for our own tickets (at about $2000 total) and it would be much nicer to have extra money in Japan instead. I have a job interview tomorrow actually, although the job is certainly not much to speak of as far as I can tell. We will see, I suppose.
Going to Japan is a little worrisome though. First of all, I will not be able to work there (of course) and so will not have any chance of looking for a job until October. At that point, I will have been unemployed for two years, which seems like the kiss of death to any career aspirations. (Especially since we will be leaving for Singapore in July 2011, where I probably can't work either). Luckily, I will not have to work as B will be getting a stipend from Stanford of about $4500/month (and after that considerably more from Singapore). I think it will be very important for me to get an internship ASAP when we return to the Bay Area. I have been looking steadily for jobs for quite some time now, and nothing has resulted. If the economy hasn't improved significantly by the fall, I think that just in order to give myself some sort of experience an internship will be essential. All the same, it is just another way to definitely doom myself to being a housewife for the foreseeable future (but I don't know if there is really another good option, as we will be moving to Singapore in any case, and my opportunities for work there are probably not that great). And in a sense, I want to be a housewife for a while, since I really want children very soon, and would rather be at home with him/her for at least the first year (otherwise I think it would be too overwhelming and stressful).
I am also worried about my relationship with B. He will be busy doing research, etc., and so I will need to be careful to find my own activities to occupy myself (This is one reason why extra cash would be really nice). I am a little worried about repeating the situation in Shanghai, where he didn't want me to come and blamed me for anything that went wrong as a result. But this time B does want me to come, and is aware of my feelings (and feels bad about Shanghai to some extent). So I think it will probably be fine.
On the whole, though, Japan is going to be really exciting, like an extended vacation: long enough to see many things, but not long enough to get tired of it. It will also be fun for us, since we haven't been on any kind of vacation or done many activities together since we returned from China (lacking the necessary funds). In some ways, it's like an all-expenses-paid trip, to a place both of us have always wanted to visit. I am looking forward to blogging about it as well, since I really regret not having recorded my time in Shanghai and Taiwan better. I hope to take lots of pictures and use this blog as my personal journal. I think it's going to be a great summer!
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