Taking the leap of faith will either make you or brake you.
In this case, however, it happened to be both.

#2 – Nothing Stays the Same

Good times take place over bad ones. Friends walk away, making space for new ones.
You find love, then you lose it.
Everything changes.
When I moved here, I knew no one, couldn’t speak a single word in the language, had no idea how to cook for myself; and even worse: I had to google where to pour the liquid in the washing machine, because I just didn’t know.
I know, Mama’s little boy.
Mommy did the chores, Daddy did the groceries.
After all, adulthood can’t be that difficult, right?
Wrong.

Improvise, Adapt, Overcome

The first things you notice is that you are in your own company. A lot.
There aren’t many people to interact with, outside the cashier or the landlord.
It was time to change that, so slowly but surely, using the techniques from Lesson 1,
I managed to meet a handful of amazing people with huge hearts, who made some space for me in their social lives.
My status from unknown expat to a fairly liked Dude was updated.
Boom, a crucial circumstance was successfully changed.
Though this doesn’t mean I was saved, not by a long shot.

Looking at my to do this, a few things were still unsolved.
Especially the one on the top: Income.
After applying for over 30 places, the results were terrible:
22 rejects, 3 interviews, the rest choose not to respond.
I was fortunate enough to finally nail a position as a waiter in one of the restaurants, located at heart of the city. Beautiful design, busy nights and charming people.
Sounds good though, yet things are not always as simple as they seem.
It’s been over 3 weeks since they hired me, yet I was still not able to work for a single hour. The hardest part of getting a job here, turns out, is the amount of paperwork you have to go through. Weeks go by while you’re waiting for the government to post your documents which allow you to apply for work, then again, you have to wait for weeks until your employer processes your documents, and only then; you’re allowed to work.
It’s been 65 days since I moved here, and I still couldn’t get any income.
I developed a new habit of hunting for free furniture whenever I can, with the intent to sell them, but we’ll discuss that later.

If You Don’t Like the Weather in the Netherlands, Just Wait 20 Minutes

Overall, things aren’t as bright as they could be, yet the fact that things are in constant motion keeps my mind safe and sounds. Well, at least partially.
I might find out today that my application was processed, and I’m able work from tomorrow. Highly unlikely, though definitely not improbable.
Just like the weather, life goes through changes all the time.
Sometimes it’s cloudy and rainy for a week, just to be followed by an entire month of sunshine and warm weather.
Or, if you live here, a heavy rain can strike up anytime, even if there wasn’t a single cloud on the sky a few seconds ago.

Compared to Day 1, things are; in a way, better than they used to- and
that’s all that matters.

Hang in there guys, the best is yet to come.
Erik

Even if some obstacle comes on the scene, its appearance is only to be compared to that of clouds which drift in front of the sun without ever defeating its light.

Seneca