The Rise of Inflation

You know that feeling you get deep down in your stomach. The one that tells you impending doom is approaching. Yeah, I have that. I have that deep in my stomach. Deep in the pit of my body where my little anxious bone resides. Inflation has hit us all. The housing market is garbage. Interest rates are up. The cost of cars are astronomical, even preowned 10-year-old cars are overly expensive. Food is so expensive, that 100 dollars now buys 40 dollars' worth of groceries. This needs to change. SOMETHING needs to change.

The job market is partially to blame. I hold a bachelors and masters, both in psychology. My skills include data analysis, academic research, academic and professional writing, resume review, methodological critique, higher education at the university level, and so much more. However, my skills are not enough for the multitudes of corporations and businesses that "can't find workers". I am stuck in a "too educated for retail" (the hiring managers' words, not mine) and "not enough experience" for corporate work. The fact is everyday people are set up to fail. There is no longer a "pull yourself up by your bootstraps" option. No matter how hard we try, there is not enough bootstrap to grab hold of.

Take as an example the most recent revelation. Inflation is up, energy costs are up, I just had to get new (preowned) car due to my transmission going out, and all of a sudden, now I realize that I only get ONE PAYCHECK IN DECEMBER!!!! It is suffocating. Knowing that your funds are dwindling. Knowing that your very life is crashing. Knowing that you could be homeless in months. I am honestly terrified. I have a hard time eating, and when I do I feel like I will vomit.

Today it's even worse. I actually DID vomit. Thinking about how my finances are crumbling around me, and no matter what I do I just cannot catch up. I have applied to one hundred and thirty jobs; part-time, full-time, contract, you name it. It seems that they all just do not want to respond to the applications. I have a bachelors, a masters, a second masters pending, and for some reason I am unqualified. Or am I just late to the game? All these large companies who cry about not having workers, about not having people applying, about not having the employment numbers they need, and yet I am stuck out in the cold. Is this really the world we live in now?!

I don't live like crazy. Its chilly here right now, but my heat is off. I don't go out and eat a ton, I don't have tons of excess expenses, but I am barely hanging on. I had to liquidate the only investment I had, a few hundred dollars in an e-trade account, to be able to possibly pay my rent, which itself is exorbitant! I have tried creating and online store with my photography and original designs. I have tried this vocal website to supplement my income (with no luck), I have even tried developing myself as a freelancer on Upwork.com for Proofreading, Editing, Resume Writing and Review, Cover Letters, etc. However, for some reason, it just isn't enough. I can't get views, I can't get site visits, and I can't get people to offer me a contract on Upwork. I am honestly terrified of what is going to happen as my finances crash. Will I be kicked out of my current apartment? What happens when my lease is up? Will they raise rent yet again to a number so high that nobody in this town could come anywhere close to affording it? It is honestly suffocating. I am terrified and anxious and depressed. I know many of you feel that way as well. Something needs to change.