Ongoing Vacation

Being unemployed is not as fun as most people think it is. I keep hearing people I bump into on the street tell me how jealous they are of me cause I get to sit at home all day and do nothing while they have to work.

Um yeah, you should be sooo jealous cause I have no money since Child support never arrives when it's supposed to or in the amount it's supposed to and I don't qualify for welfare for some strange reason, so if I have no money I can't exactly spend it on fun things like utilities, food, and gas. Yes I'm having a BLAST, it's like an ongoing vacation in a far away country when you've lost your passport, credit cards and any valid form of ID.

How can being unemployed seem like fun to anybody. Are the people that make the aforementioned comment only basing it on the fact that as a non employeed person I have more free time to clean the house, spend time with my kids and not have the everyday stresses that come from an out of the house job? If that's it then I could understand the sentiment somewhat. They're basically jealous because I have a more flexible schedule.

On the one hand I wake up very early everyday, including weekends to deal with the kids, the house, the extended family, the Boyfriend, the stress of knowing that I have to buy certain things or pay certain things but I simply don't have the funds at that given moment and I don't know when I'll be receiving my payments.

On the other hand I have the option of taking a nap at any moment during the school day, of sitting outside to look at the trees, of taking a three hour lunch if I feel the need or baking cupcakes with my kids right after school.

Unmeployment MIGHT be a bit less stressful but it will never be stress free, I just have different things to worry about now. But there's no need to be jealous, the grass is not always greener on the other side, it's just a little less weedy.