Last night I went to Chris and Jenna's, and then to see Troy, so I was sorta doing fine.

Today, I woke up, and was still sorta ok, but slightly on edge. Then, at work I made the mistake of looking into exactly what my situation is and what it will take to get out of it.

$23370. Five little numbers. They seem so small.

When those numbers tell you how much in student loans you have accrued, and you still have another year and probably a bit over 5000 to add on top of that, plus nearly 3000 in credit cards, they become absolutely terrifying.

Assuming I pay off my cards before I get out of school (which I'm dubious about, but intend to make a serious effort at), that still leaves me almost 30,000 dollars in debt.

At the standard rate of repayment (gotta pay it off within ten years) that's $275/mo. At the extended rate, it's only $137/mo, but that's for twenty years and results in almost $10000 in interest. Fifteen years since graduation may seem like the blink of an eye, but twenty in the future is a major chunk of the rest of my life (I'd be 53 before I finished paying that off, assuming I stuck with the minimum).

Obviously, what is required is to reduce/mitigate the debt as much as possible, and/or get a job where I can afford to pay more than the minimum and yet still afford to live. It's just that my job history doesn't give me much hope.

Options to help reduce the amount owed: Volunteer to go to another country with the Peace Corps for two years. Teaching in certain areas for five years. Law enforcement or military service (bloody unlikely).