Goals, goals, goals

I have so many goals, so many expectations for 2016. My lease for my apartment is up in July and I’m already asking myself “what’s next?” Should I get a roommate, move in with my parents, sign the same lease again, or move somewhere new? As of right now, I can afford to live in the same apartment forever, but I don’t know if I’ll be in this spot forever. I’m ready to grow from my currently position and I hope my career grows exponentially this year. Will it be in the same building down the street from my apartment, with the same company, in the same state even? I’m ready for anything, my feet are against the starting blocks and I’m waiting for the gun to go off. I’ve wrote and rewrote my resume, then made just about anyone in a ten miles radius of me read it. I’ve reached out to people at my company for advice. I’ve applied to at least 25 jobs in the past 6 months and there hasn’t been a pull on that trigger. I need to put myself out there and be a force to reckon with on the job market.
All this thinking about my lease ending in half a year triggered me to see if, no, when I could afford a house. It’s a nice goal to have, don’t you think? I’ve come to the conclusion that I will be a renter until I die, unless I get a better job. Can a single girl, close to her thirties, with student loan debt that equals more then she makes in a year, buy a house? I haven’t found anything on Pinterest that meets those specifiers. Ok, I’m single so there’s no second income to consider. There’s a million pins on how to buy a house in your twenties, I’m sorry, that ship has sailed. I can’t find anything other there that deals with handling student loan debt and saving for a home. I think that’s so strange because I know a majority of us have it.
Based on the facts in front of me, I’ve concluded that it’s illogical to save for a house when I still have $30,000 in debt. My savings account earns .01% interest while my loaners are charging me 6% on a large (by my standards) amount of money. Paying off the principle of my student loans will be way more cost effective then saving. I don’t know if it’s that’s obvious to you, but it wasn’t to me right away. I get so hung up on this because after working six years since graduating (sometimes two jobs at the same time), I have another ten plus years working to end up exactly where I am today. In this apartment, down the street from work, with a really expensive piece of paper collecting dust. I know that I will no longer owe a bank for my education, but now it’s time to save for a house and I’m 38…what? I feel like I’m on a hamster wheel.
This year, I would like to dust off that fashion merchandising degree and finally put it to good use. I’d love to find a career that excites me and puts me in a position where my goals are within reach.