The Economics of Love

Love, while a limitless emotion that flows from the heart, has an economic value. Now, I'm not saying Love has a dollar value. But there are certain aspects that can cost money, and while some can be foregone in your usual relationship, a long distance relationship is different. Many of these optional aspects are vital in a long distance relationship, where walking to her house isn't an option, and where your main lines of communication are phone, Internet and if you are archaic like me, letters. So I am here to point out some of the more poignant things that have been on my mind.

Work. In the current economy, unemployment rates are staggering, but one of the key points of a long-distance relationship is the money, and where it comes in from. At the start of my relationship with Sorcha, I had just moved from Las Vegas to Los Angeles. Finding myself sleeping on the floor of a friends room and jobless, the thought of stable work is comforting. Sadly, my endeavors have been fruitless in a way. While I am working on commission with a law office charged with helping people being evicted from their homes (a point that hits near to my heart thanks to a child hood in poverty), it is not steady work, so a search must go on. Steady work is anything in which you know what you will be paid each pay period without fail and you also know what your expenses are as well as how much you can save without living like a squab. An extra part-time (or a commission job where you can pick your own hours) is always good, you can completely put that money into your relationship, making saving for those trips easier.

Housing. Having a home to yourself is important, it cuts out the cost of a hotel room. Any space you can call your own is helpful. I currently call a space of floor my habitat, and with no money to make ends meet, I am not one to try and proclaim dominance over my inkling of space. And so, with that, my desire to have an apartment is sound, but if having an apartment entirely to yourself ends up costing more than you want, looking for a room for rent is also good, most people are good about giving you your due privacy when your paying for it. The downside, is when those visits come around, you have to make sure everyone is okay with long term stays. My personal opinion, is that you should only be spending at the most half of your income on housing, more than that is a bit much, and you may want to consider where you can cut costs on the non-essentials.

Communication. When you can’t trot over to your loves house, a phone call, or an instant message is your best friend. I was lucky enough to have a laptop already, and where I moved into had a wireless connection I could connect too. On the Internet you have many social networks, instant messenger clients and of course the classic e-mail. With so many ways, the Internet is a great means of communication. Sorcha and I use Skype for video chatting, and for text, we use GTalk. I don’t know which venue Sorcha uses, but I use Yoono, which sits nicely to the left of my web browsing on Firefox, so I can chat and surf, and even chat and watch a video without needing to swap tabs around (useful if I am watching something at the same time as her and want to comment). Now on the flip side of this we have the cell phone: text messages and phone calls. Now phone calls are not really big for me and Sorcha, neither of us is a phone call person, we usually prefer the comfort of Skype, but texting is a new development for us. See, through sheer stupidity on my part, I had Sorcha’s phone number but never thought of texting her until after my ability to text was lost. Foolish, I know. Shortly afterwards I lost my phone service, and so it was a neglected factor. Recently I reactivated my service, and I now suggest this to anyone who needs a phone fast without breaking the bank: AT&T has a great $60 a month pre-paid plan with unlimited talk and text. Need a phone? Another $20 will get you something that does the job.

Now this is by no means a whole guide to the economic process of long-distance relationships, but it gives a glance at the three biggest things that can help make or break the already fragile bonds that form miles apart. As you have gathered, I have communication, but am lacking housing and work. Does this mean my relationship is trained? Hardly, I am lucky enough to have found myself a Sorcha, a rare and elusive creature who is understanding, patient, and supportive in so many ways. Without her support, I may not have felt so strongly about our relationship as I do. So thank you for bearing with me dear readers, this is the start of a long road, and I hope you stay the path. Until next time, keep your hard drives warm with love, and have a great week.

P.S. Happy 2nd Monthiversary my Sorcha! I would never have taken on this endeavor with anyone else. You mean more to me than anything else, and despite my frustrations with my situation, I am glad you are with me through it all, you make so much stronger. Here is to two wonderful months, and to many more years beyond us, and the journey that will lead us there. I love you so much Sorcha. <3