I started blogging in 2005 as a way to deal with my post-college depression. I had a lot of hair back then.
I share funny stories and life lessons all written in the same down-to-earth, tell-it-like-it-is fashion that makes me my mom’s favorite blogger.
How can this be? Becky says she isn’t mad at me. Should I believe it?
Apparently I had still not received any Kudos from Becky.
Today Becky and Alex hung around with me.
Christy got mad because I sat with Carolyn at computers. Then we made up.
Good story Jeopardy contestant!
I still haven’t found out the winners. I think I will tomorrow.
What’s even worse is Steve hasn’t asked me out yet! Does he even like me? Peter found out that Ana likes him.
Today I was surfing the internets as one does, and came across an article in consumerist about a mystery fee that Comcast apparently leverages on customers in order to have the customers contact them and complain. Apparently the fee is only leveraged on accounts whose initial offer of discounted prices has expired. If I understand it correctly, it’s a flag for the customer support representative so they will know to raise that person’s monthly cost.
So this raises all sorts of red flags about Comcast as a company. With all the money Comcast is making, why aren’t they keeping better track of the people’s whose initial offers expired? From a business perspective that’s just ludicrous. I’ve myself had to call about mystery charges of minimal amounts (though they never raised the price of my service as a result). I can’t stand how they waste their money on direct mail advertising to me, someone who is already their customer (for internet anyway).
All these thoughts ran through my mind today when I read that article, but the main one that stuck was: The Daily Show might be back from vacation*, Mad Men is going to start soon, and we have spent weeks mulling over and still haven’t picked a cable option!
I read the article, then turned to Will, and said, “Why don’t we just go with Comcast since we already have their internet set up and the $99 initial offer is one of the better ones we have been considering?”
He agreed, and I called Comcast, had a five minute conversation with the costumer service rep and wound up with an appointment for the technician to come out Friday at 7:30 am. I couldn’t resist sneaking in a quip about the lack of other options, which I know will get me nowhere in finding a local business with reputable values to support.
Apparently I am terrifyingly proof that all PR is good PR.
*We know we can watch the Daily Show online, FYI. We like the tv better, ok?
Last January, I concocted a plan. My great friend John was starting up his theatre company, Hella Fresh Theatre. I was in the process of designing his website for him, which features a penguin very prominently. I decided that John absolutely needed an actual penguin mascot to be present for the first performance.
I had a few cubic feet of roving wool I had picked up while working as a Super Sponge Saleswoman and a needle felting tool. Now, for those of you who have never needle felted (and really, why would you?), it is a slow and laborious process. You use a needle felting tool (which consists of a few barbed needles) and you poke a puff of wool many, many, many hundreds and hundreds of times to sculpt that which you’ve decided to sculpt. Continue Reading
I’m serious this year.
I have evaluated my goals and priorities and preparing for the Halloween karaoke contest is pretty close to #1. The actual #1 priority is and has been, unfortunately, predisposed with survival. And keeping the house clean.
I’m taking voice lessons. I think this summer I will take up tap dance again–perhaps have a little routine for my song come October. But let me be clear–I will not come in 23rd again this year.
Last year:
I have been wanting to try my hand at a self-portrait.
I’m not really sure how it’s going.
I have been planning this portrait for many weeks, and when I mentioned to my boyfriend that I was going to start on it the other evening, he said, “You know, I’m not entirely on board with this self-portrait plan. You paint pets!”
He was worried, as was I, that I would be terrible at painting a person. But, I explained, that was the adventure in it! Perhaps I will be–but I have to find out!
I was not prepared, however, for the end of the evening, when I couldn’t even look at it. That’s how terrible my self-portrait was turning out. At first I was so easy to paint–I know myself well. And I had the self-portraits of Van Gogh for inspiration. What could be easier?
It wasn’t easy. I haven’t been able to pick it back up, but my parents have assured me that it’s worth finishing. I said to my mom, “Mom! I look like a cartoon!” and she said, “Well, honey, you do have some cartoon in you.”
I’ve been going through my blog for a couple months now…adding photos, fixing the links. Trying to figure out where the line is between appropriate and inappropriate. In my dreams I actively promote this website. My dreams are fun. Most of the time.
I had a dream of working for myself. Doing what I wanted with my time. When I left my job, I was so excited. I felt like rest of my life was just beginning.
Well, here I am. I work for myself. On rainy days it’s hard to even leave the house. It’s a very solitary existence. I didn’t really think about that, and it’s taken me months to notice. This week, though, with the rain and the constant sirens (Californians can’t handle driving in the rain)…
I’m confronted with my very extrovert nature. I like people. I need people. I get my energy from them, my enthusiasm, my inspiration.
My dream was never lonely. My dream was pure fun.
Even all my creative projects don’t seem fun anymore, without people. It all seems like work. It all seems like sitting here, all by myself, with just my computer and my google chat.
This is it. It’s the end. From now on, no more lonesome old life. Time to figure something out that will work. I’ll meet people at cafes and have work buddies. I’ll plan walk around the lake lunches with my other self-employed friends.
And that’s a plan.
I just found a list I made of ways to make money. It probably dates back to when I had just left my job and was worried. Or a week ago. Hard to say.
Anyway, one of the options is “Move to France.” Not sure how that’s going to help, but thanks me.
I am so used to nudging and coaxing content out of my design clients. I always had sympathy for them, knowing from personal experience, how hard it is to define and talk about oneself or ones business.
I gave myself this week to finalize the content for my design portfolio. I decided after a few years of free-lancing it was time to finally pull a portfolio together. I have my table of contents (that was easy!) and some sentences here and there for the content. By goodness me, do I want to sit down and create the content? Not at all.
My life coach says that when you get it right, it’s fun. I can imagine that it is supposed to be fun, the way exercising first thing in the morning is supposed to be fun and set the whole tone of the day. So will the content for my design portfolio–it will set the tone that clients see, they will know me, they will want to hire me. That is the goal. I can see the goal, I can taste it. I’m excited to create the graphic of myself fishing in the pond of amazing creative ideas for their design. It is going to be awesome.
But structured content creation is not the creative process I relish the most. I love rewriting and editing. I love creating graphics, designing websites. I love analyzing other people’s words for the different meanings the audience might accidentally construe, providing advice and searching the lexicon for the perfect marketing words. I love messing with photos and playing with video editing.
And it is this joy that I must keep in mind as I wade through my puddle of content, slowly straining out the gold pieces and setting them next to each other till I have a castle of sorts. A glorious castle that I’m proud to share.
Oh yes, that is the goal.
