BROKE

What is the remedy, for doing the job of a web designer, when you are supposed to get paid $20-25 an hour, and only getting paid $13 an hour? What are you to do? I have been patient. I have been here for 3 years. I have shown them what I can do. I have three websites currently in design. What more can I do?

I am constantly getting offers from other companies. Two years ago the City of Peoria or Chillicothe emailed me and wanted me to head up their IT support and to do their web design. How cool is that? The reason I didn’t take it? Because I like my job and just didn’t feel like driving 2 hours a day for work. But it’s like, HELLO! DOUBLE THE SALARY! And it wouldn’t matter much if I had enough money to make ends meet. But Evan needs a new car and at this point, we don’t make enough to have two car payments, and mine isn’t paid off for another year, plus I have been doing the “get your ass out of debt” thing for like 3-4 years now, so that takes up money. But it’s like, what part of “I am being underpaid” don’t they understand?

I try not to think about it too much, but when I think that I could be designing websites for $20-25 an hour, and I am making half that, It sickens me. Not to mention if I double my salary for the last three years when they SHOULD have been paying me more. I would totally have a shitload of money, or be completely out of debt. Or BOTH.

So we are finishing up the living room and dining room (hopefully in the next month) and I want furniture so bad I can’t stand it. But we weon’t be able to get any because we have a wedding loan to pay off first, and I don’t make enough money to get things paid off fast enough. Granted, I could live a staunch life of no shopping, but I still need to have clothes to wear to work, and for god’s sakes, I shop and Wal-Mart, Target, and K-Mart. It’s not like I am wearing prada. We still have to eat and I have to keep my sanity with a hobby, like reading and scrapbooking. But it is just SOOOO frustrating to know that you should be, could be, making more money, and to just sit there for three years and wait. Patiently, until eventually you feel like you could SCREAM!

I love my job. I love my boss. I love the people that I work with. Really. But I don’t love the fact that I have to decide which bills can be paid and which can be “held off” until another two weeks when I get paid again, because I don’t make enough to make all the bills when they are due. How fun is that? And it wouldn’t be so bad if I hadn’t already been doing that for 5 years. UGH!

Of course, you feel the pressure the most around December, because of Christmas. Everyone thinks that you should participate in every little gift exchange, but it’s like HELLO! This is too much! I can’t afford to buy presents for 50 people! So this year the top secret project should help with the stress level. Oy.

PAY ME WHAT I AM WORTH!