Hello everybody! My name is Jonathan McAfee, you can call me Jon. I decided to create a blog so y'all can follow me as I take the next step in my career and life as I move back to Purdue University to take on a new job at the Starbucks store I got my start at almost 6 years ago! I figure posting a blog entry on a regular basis will kind of keep me sane and give me an outlet for any negative thoughts, any doubts I may have during this tumultuous first year getting things going. It is also an outlet for my triumphs and joys I am also sure to find along the way! I am 24 years old and a proud graduate from Purdue University with a bachelor's degree in Communication. I am currently single and living in Fort Wayne, Indiana (at least for another week or so!)
I Made the decision to start this blog right at the tail end of my time here in Fort Wayne where I currently reside, and the final days at the Starbucks I have been working at for the last year. Unfortunately I did not start it quick enough to write about my uncertainty throughout the multiple interview process. I also did not have a chance to write about how nervous I was after I actually got hired! I had to immediately set a start date, find a place to live, then sign the lease and everything (something I have almost zero experience doing). As I write this I am pleased to report I signed a lease already with Riverwalk Apartments with a room mate named Jeff. I already know Jeff fairly well thank goodness, so having him as a room mate will be comparatively easier for me than rooming with a stranger.
Riverwalk Apartments is a very nice complex just across the Wabash River from the Purdue University campus. It is a 3 minute drive roughly, it is also a walk-able distance for me so I will be finding a route for both driving and walking I can assure you. Directly across the river from my apartment is a nice little entertainment area called The Landing. It has a movie theater, lots of shops with books, food, etc. I'll make sure to post pictures in some later entries so I can give a better idea of how great a place it is. Now that I have given a back story I will jump right in. I wanted to say a few things about dealing with my last couple days here working at the Starbucks here at Jefferson Pointe mall.
It has been almost a year since I first starting working at this particular store. I started just a couple months after graduation so I did not have a whole lot of down time to relax before saving up to start paying back those student loans! At 23 years old at the time of starting I had already worked for Starbucks a total of 5 years. I worked at the Starbucks in the Purdue Memorial Union part time while I earned my degree. My last day at this Starbucks in Fort Wayne is this Friday, July 1st (almost exactly a year from my starting date). Throughout this very fast year I made some pretty cool new friends in my co workers. I also got a chance to get to know customers better than was possible at Purdue. Regular customers were skeptical of me at first because I was the only guy working at the store but they all warmed up to me pretty quickly. It's always the one biggest draw back of leaving a store after a length of time such as this, you have to say goodbye to the people you get to know and start caring about! That is what this last couple days is all about. Working hard and saying my good byes.
I'm sticking around a while longer after my shifts are done, however, before headed to West Lafayette. The week directly after work is going to be a week of moving furniture down to my apartment. I don't have a whole lot to move so it will be fairly easy to do. I am splitting the moving process between a couple days just to make it even less physically and emotionally exhausting. After the move is complete (hopefully by Friday July 8th) I have that weekend and the week of the 11th to settle into the new place and get used to campus again. I am also using the opportunity to head into the store just about every day to get to know the students I will be supervising the rest of summer and next school year. My new job commences on July 18th so hopefully I will feel ready to start by then. I think that's plenty of information for this initial entry. I promise the future entries won't be this long unless something really exciting happens! I look forward to seeing who subscribes to this blog and look forward to sharing this journey with you guys. Any comments are very welcome if only for words of advice, encouragement, introductions, etc. Thanks for reading!
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