Since graduation in 2012 I was in, what you may call, the "finding your voice" stage of my creative career. Or, as Daily Mail readers would call "scrounging off the state time." A lot of people have some idea what they want to do when they leave school or higher education. But I didn't. I had no idea what I actually wanted to do for a living.
Also, been autistic, most of my time at education was focused on academic stuff and getting good grades. I rarely socialised with school friends. I didn't get a part-time job while studying. I didn't even attend my school prom. I was just wasn't interested. It's only recently I realised this and its consequences.
During that time I had some assistance from the National Autistic Society. It started with been given a mentor that forced me out of the house once a week to meet up. Soon, someone in the office heard about my talents and I was asked to edit a newsletter for them, beginning my professional career. By 2014 I began to instigate small talk without prompt. Something I never did before.
Things were improving. Then my dad died, and a few other relatives very quickly, triggering a bout of depression that needed pharmaceutical intervention. And in 2017 the allowances I was provided by the government were cut. For months I had no income what so ever. So, I was made to sign up to the infamous Universal Credit system that has become famous for reasons that'll mark it as successful as the Corn Laws.
So, I needed money, and Universal Credit was paying me pathetically.
After my stand-up debut in 2016 the thought of finding employment lingered in my mind. I thought that by 2018 I'll get a job. That didn't happen. Because of my lack of social skilling during my school years, I needed help. So I got help.
Last week, thanks to the assistance of Remploy, I got my first ever paid job - delivering pizzas.
On my search to find jobs, I pondered about applying for jobs I found advertised in take-aways looking for delivery drivers. I had been fetching and taking things to and from family members since I got my licence, so I thought such a job will be no different, except that I'll be doing it a dozen times in a couple of hours a night and I GET PAID TO DO IT.
I am still on the look out for creative jobs, and applied to a few. The pizza thing is just something to rake in money until then. And I'm glad I got it, as my finances were not so good when I started.
So that's what's been happening in the past while. And since its Christmas, here's my card to you all....
I admit that I struggled to think of a design for this year's card,
but this late development gave me some inspiration.
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