The Housesitter, Part 1, Page 11

PAGE 11, PANEL 1

Side-by-side portraits of Rachel (left) and Jenny (right). Rachel has her signature red hair and wears a black tank top. Jenny has pink hair in a ponytail and wears glasses with a pink top.

NARRATION: "Jenny is my age. I haven't seen her in a few years."

NARRATION: "She went to college, but I stayed behind because I wanted to make comics."

NARRATION: "Later, when I considered going to college, I learned that I couldn't afford to attend a university anyway, even with financial aid."

It’s a little odd thinking back that even when financial aid was more widely available for prospective college students, even then I was too poor to go without taking out massive loans. I didn’t want to do that, as I had been raised to shun credit. It was like cars or drugs or personal relationships or booze: something other people used that ended up causing trouble and costing money. Best to avoid at all costs!

As an adult, I’ve taken on debt of my own for a car and a house. It’s not so bad. Looking back, I wish my younger self had been able to get to a city sooner, as just being closer to higher education would have made it more feasible and less costly.

I did manage to take some college courses in the end, but ended up getting married and employed as a web designer before I had the chance to finish.