Today I Quit My Day Job

That’s right!

I love my bosses. I love the shop. I love the work for the most part. Today, however, I said goodbye to Occult Retail. Sure, I’ll come and fill in if they need a hand so they can take special trips and the like. They’ve been so sweet to me, it’s the least I can do for them.

The store was never a good fit. I travel so far that the minimum wage is lower and I earn less than I would if I worked at McDonald’s in San Francisco. I spend three hours a day on BART or walking to and from the station. And then I pay about $9 a day on my train ticket. When I started there last July, I expected to be there for a few months until I got the funding to start my weaving business. I would work through December as a favor to Storm and Chas since they wouldn’t have time to train a new person in time for the holiday rush. And then in January I would leave.

Ha!

The best laid schemes of mice and men... It has taken months longer than I expected. When my rent increased May 1st, it was the last straw. I just can’t afford the trek anymore. I never got the funding that would let me develop and market my own line of handwoven goods, and my research shows that the market isn’t very receptive to new product lines right now anyhow. Most boutique owners are lucky to be afloat. There aren’t many who would take chances with a new designer and a new product line.

I have, however, worked exceptionally hard to get a weaving contract. It’s going very well. I’ve just climbed up the steepest learning curve of my life, from purchasing and setting up a daunting professional loom to becoming a production weaver in less than two months, while working enough hours at a minimum wage day job to stay mostly above water.

So the time has come for this little bird to fly the coop. My production level already covers the income that I earn at my day job. I’m becoming faster and more accurate every day. Yesterday we worked out some of the details of material swapping that will keep me weaving steadily through the Summer. We’ve got plans made through Spring 2010, and it’s all looking good.

And so today I signed the contract voluntarily terminating my employment at The Mystic Dream. My last day of regular work is next Wednesday. Ah, Beltaine! The time of new beginnings, indeed.