there's one thing i seem to have difficulty buying for myself: clothes. i've needed them for quite some time, but whenever i try to buy what i need, i feel guilty. the kids need clothes. we need to pay bills. the husband needs clothes. and so on and so forth. something always seems to take precedence.
yesterday my check came in and was quite a nice amount - quite a bit more than i expected, really. my long term position is over and i'm about to go running around with my resume to try to get interviews. and suddenly clothes have become a priority.
i didn't have interview clothes. heck, i didn't even have enough nice clothes to get me through one week of work any more. the clothes i've owned are so old now that they either have already fallen apart or they look old. they've become shabby - faded, with hems starting to come loose, a little frayed around the edges. they barely work for work, they definitely don't work for the best impression in an interview. and we can pretend they don't all we want, but appearances do count.
i now have a pretty snazzy resumé with 3 good long term assignments listed, 2 by the same school. i now have some very cool teacher references. and one of my supers is, apparently, a good ref to have in the county. so, the resumé looks good. it would be sad to go in with this really strong resumé looking like a rag-muffin and losing the job on account of personal presentation.
so we took that "extra" money and bought me some much needed clothes. 2 outfits suitable for interviews, a couple of pair of pants and a couple of tops to get me through the work week, and a few under things. sometime this weekend i'll go through my closet and clear out the stuff i haven't been wearing for various reasons and pull the old stuff that looks pretty shabby and shouldn't be worn. i still feel a bit guilty about the expense. yes, saxy's check today should cover us, but still, the money could have been better spent.
problem is, if i were to be honest, i didn't get everything i need. shoes, socks, pantyhose (of which i have none), and a few other things were left off the list. what i have will do for now - and can do for now. they aren't quite at the shabby point yet, they just don't quite match what i have. well, except the heels that will look nice with the one skirt i picked up.
so, monday i'll be taking my brand new resume out to the middle schools that are fairly local (since i can't really go too far when we have only one car) and i'll wear the skirt outfit in case a principle wants to talk to me that day. unlikely, but i was always taught to drop off apps and resumés prepared to see the boss or to start working that day. if i get called in by any of these people for an interview later, i can wear the nice pants and blouse.
so, really, now i'm covered. the resumé looks good, i'll look good delivering it, and i'll look good in an actual interview without looking the same (which may not seem like a big deal, but i'm not sure how it would look showing up in the same outfit twice - which sounds silly, i'm sure, but i'd rather give myself the best chance i can than to risk anything just because it sounds silly . . . not that that made any sense, i'm sure). better yet, the necessary bill payments are also covered, so no disconnects in our immediate future (which consists of next week, primarily).
now i just need the full time, permanent job to come through.
