i may be a bird in a cage but at least it's your cage

Buy a desk chair at Goodwill (or similar Carolina thrift store). We bought all three of ours there, over a period of months, for less than $10 apiece, and they were in nice condition. For some reason, desk chairs seem to be something people give away easily.

I join you in New Grad Student weirdness, envy you your job, and envy even more the fact that you're in your apartment. I get mine in two weeks, bah.