<p>I hope this isn't the wrong forum to post my question, but I'd like some level-headed advice.
I am a rising junior who is going abroad in the fall for the full year, to Spain, so my parents and I (mostly my parents) decided it would be best for me to stay at home and work this summer, to earn money to go abroad. This makes practical sense.<br>
However, it does not take into account the fact that I graduated from high school without any friends, so I'm really lonely here. I don't have a car, so it's hard for me to get around in the suburbs where I live. I was severely depressed and was diagnosed with an eating disorder in high school, and being at home somehow drains all the energy out of me and reminds me of a terrible period in my life. I've made it much better for myself in college and have a lot of friends there and feel stable and excited about my future... but right now this awful summer feels like it's going to drag on forever. I feel guilty for wasting an entire summer of my life--I know I should be writing and volunteering and working on my Spanish, but as motivated as I was in school, I just don't have the energy while I'm here. And I am angry at my parents for brushing me off every time I mention how unhappy I am here.
Do you parents have any advice for how I can make it through this summer without feeling like I'm just biding my time? I have 2 jobs, so I'll be busy, I guess, and a couple friends from college will visit me in late June. I have a long list of books to read and movies to see. It just seems like everyone else, the summer before junior year, is doing something fascinating while I'm just being stagnant.</p>
<p>What have your parents said to you?</p>
<p>Sometimes in life we do bide our time. Some jobs are repetitive and uninspiring.YOu can make it through this!
I would suggest physical activity.Start walking or jogging. Or learn a new sport. You only really need a wall to practice tennis. The physical activity will inspire you and make you fit for your adventures to come.</p>
<p>It would be a long shot this late in the game, but are there any overnight camps still looking for counselors? That would be a great way to get away from home and make money at the same time.</p>
<p>I had summers like this in college when I lived with my married sisters and worked in factories. I had no friends from high school or college to get together with either and I felt sorry for myself, as you are, but take a look around at the people you work with and see how lucky you are. In the fall you will be gone but they will still be working at these jobs. Most of my firiends got to work at camps and other fun jobs, but they did not pay as well as the factory jobs so that is what I had to do.<br>
What these summers did for me was to make me a better, more determined student who didn't take alot for granted. It also prepared me for grownup life which can also involve quite a bit of time spend of "biding". You can make good use of this summer and see it as character building or you can blame you parents (BTW, who is paying for your year in Spain?), it's up to you. Life is not perfect, but the happiest people are those who look foward to the challenge of playing the hand they are dealt.</p>
<p>Thanks Denquist--you make a really good point about how most people are stuck in uninteresting jobs their whole life, while I get to go off to Spain for a year in just a few months. I really am just feeling sorry for myself. My parents are paying for tuition, and I'm paying for room and board, all travel costs and other expenses. I'm luckier than most. And it's not even that my jobs are bad, it's just very, very lonely.</p>
<p>ADad--my dad is generally short with me and tries not to talk to me, both because he is angry I am going to Spain and because that's how he's always been. My mom tells me I make her feel like an awful person because she knows I'd rather be at school than with her, and snaps at me or gets a blank look on her face whenever I mention a friend from school or something interesting I learned in class. On paper, it sounds like I'm being a complete b*tch, which I guess I am--it's just a really sharp shift from school, where I was very involved in the community and always had friends to talk to, to here, where our conversations consist of "How was work?" "Fine, how was your work?" "Fine."</p>
<p>Basically, I need to suck it up and not take anything for granted--and yes, exercise! Thanks for all the advice, I just needed a reality check.</p>