1 "down", 1 to go

Yesterday, my oldest baby transitioned from being our tax deduction to a member of the independent working class that will support ME in my old age. He humored me and agreed to do the cap-n-gown thing -- luckily UT has the good sense to break up the ceremonies into 2-3 hour chunks, so it wasn't as long as it could have been. He is double-degreed - American Studies, and 1 of a handfull that received the new "European Studies" designation (see, Texas is global!)

What's next? He has 2 months to find something to cover rent, food, utilities -- all those boring expenses that come with adulthood. Beer, wine, martinis(!) all will have to take a back seat (or wait until happy hour or someone else has a party.) He has a car that will need to last until he can handle the payments on his dream car, he has some job-seeking clothes (although he learned last week why removing pens before you wash is a good idea), and I suspect a backlog of 4-years of textbooks that he can sell if the going gets tough. He is still employed as a Senate messenger at the Capitol -- so he has modest income through the summer. Then that's it. Reality bites.

It sucks to be shoved out of the nest during a bad economy -- but Texas hasn't been hit as hard as most areas. So we'll all keep our fingers crossed, and try not to hover too close -- he's very independent, thanks to being raised by daycare! Now he just has to close his eyes and jump...and I need to let him figure out how to land on his feet.