Filed under: General
So even though I went through all that effort and money to get rid of my Rock Band stuff, today I got talked into going over to Jake’s to play Beatles Rock Band. Again. Well, at the very least, I put off of his invite to come over until the end of the week. After all the numerous times we’ve belted out Beatles songs, it’s hard to believe that we’re not awesome. But somehow we are not. Nonetheless, I enjoy trying to figure out the harmonies to the songs.
But before going over to Jake’s, I felt I had to do something productive so ran a few errands. The most pressing was finding some insulation for the gaps in my doorway. My apartment building is a circus. At one point, I could hear a barking dog, a crying baby, and an opera singer. The barking dog is the worst. The sound just echoes through the stairwell and into my room. And there are multiple dogs in the building. The worst is the one dog below us who howls and cries all day when the owners aren’t home. I feel like I shouldn’t be mad at the dog and direct it towards the owners for torturing the poor animal.
It’s gotten to the point where I looked up what to do about a noisy dog. Predictably, there’s not much I can do. I can confront the owners who would most likely do nothing and I look like a total prick, I can complain to the cops who won’t do jack-shit, or I can do nothing and go slowly insane.
Well, I’m hopeful that I just tune out the exterior noises over time. In my apartment in the East Village, there was a heating pole right next to my bed that would clang incessantly. During that first noisy night, I mentally decided that I could let it drive me crazy or I could deliberately decide to block out the sound as I slept. Surprisingly I was able to muster the willpower to shut out the noise and slept comfortably. I’m hoping I can repeat this effort.
Back to the errands, I found some door insulation but upon installing it, I noticed that the door itself is hollow metal. Thus sound would just reverberate through it and make my insulation useless. Serenity now!
Daily Panic Level: Normal
Financial Outlook: Better (I got my last check from BBDO finally)
Job Scorecard (Interviews – Freelance Work – Freelance Busts): 8 – 8 – 40
Last Night’s Meal: Pepperoni pizza
More work on the app. I was a bit frustrated because today’s work basically nullified half of what I did yesterday. Oh well.
Then I got derailed a bit by sorting through bills and paper records. It was way overdue to organize but I was too lazy to ever get to it before. I still need to get my tax stuff in order. That’ll be the next thing I put off for as long as possible.
I had also decided to mail to my cousin all of my Rock Band equipment. I no longer have a console to utilize them and space is an issue in my new apartment. I’d spent a bit of money on this stuff so was hoping to be able to sell them on Craigslist to recoup some of the cash. But my little cousin in California was interested in it so I decided it’d be better to give it to her than make a few bucks. I didn’t realize at the time that it would cost me $75 to ship it across the country. So not only did I not make any money but I had to funnel more cash to get rid of them.
Still, it’s family, y’know? I was thinking a lot about family while on my last trip. It’s funny how strong and primitive those bonds can be. I have relatives that I don’t ever see that often but feel a definite love for. From high school on, I had always put more of a precedence on my friends, thinking that this is the family I choose not the one I was born with. But over the years, I see how friendships come and go. They can be more intense but can also fade away. My family has always been constant.
You have that circle of people who you chose to have near you because of commonalities. Then you have another circle of people who you have no choice but to be connected to. I always got the merit of creating families out of friends. But it’s only recently that I see how you also need people who you have nothing in common with. They’re there to balance you and challenge you. I like the idea that my cousins and I share little to nothing in tastes but I can still feel a strong bond with them. I’d unquestioningly do things for them that I wouldn’t for friends.
And y’know… I can bum off them if need be.
Daily Panic Level: Normal
Financial Outlook: Good
Job Scorecard (Interviews – Freelance Work – Freelance Busts): 8 – 8 – 40
Last Night’s Meal: Braised halibut with fennel, shallot and mushrooms (leftovers)
I was hoping to get to work on my uncle’s restaurant rebranding today. He’s been asking me to redo the website and is willing to pay me but I also know his business is hurting in this economy so I resolved to do it all pro bono to help him out. He and my aunt have worked their asses off at that place for over 20 years and should probably retire. That doesn’t seem to be in the cards for the near future so if I can somehow help them get more business, maybe they can hire extra hands.
The problem is that their website is just one part of what they really need. I must be a design snob but I can’t just put a pretty face on their website. Evaluating their assets leaves me to think that they need a whole rebranding. I just think that it helps to be able to hand out a business card and have it visually look similar to your website and other collateral.
It’s going to be a lot of work and is already daunting. The hardest part will be selling this idea to my uncle who isn’t design or tech savvy. He won’t understand why he can’t just get by with a site refresh and keep using everything he’s got so far.
Unfortunately my day got eaten up by the app that Vic and I have been working on. We already released a NYC version and Vic is working on one for Vancouver because of the upcoming Winter Olympics, which I think is a brilliant move. I thought it’d just be a slight visual refresh so wasn’t anticipating much work. However, the whole interface ended up changing so all other things on my To-Do list got the shaft. It’s all for the best though because the interface will be ten times better and can be updated for the NYC version afterwards.
It all works out anyway because I was stuck in the apartment all afternoon waiting for the plumber. I set up an appointment block between 1 and 3pm, so the plumber was naturally late. In fact, 3:15 rolls around and I call to check in and the plumber wasn’t even aware he was supposed to show up.
I swear, incompetence is so rampant in the world today. Which is mind-boggling to me because I and most people I know stress doing a good job and treating the customer with great care. In fact, that’s almost a downfall of the New York work culture because we’re always killing ourselves to meet our clients’ demands. Yet anytime I want or need something, I get a half-assed effort or a bitchy attitude.
Okay, now I sound like an old man. And what’s with the kids today and their crappy music??!
Daily Panic Level: Normal
Financial Outlook: Spending has been minimal lately
Job Scorecard (Interviews – Freelance Work – Freelance Busts): 8 – 8 – 39 (I got a job offer in Austin, does that count?)
Last Night’s Meal: Braised halibut with fennel, shallot and mushrooms
I have a job prospect for tomorrow through next Friday so I got up to get my hair cut. By “got up” I mean rolled out of bed at 11:30, and by “hair” I mean the unruly mass that’s gone unchecked for at least 3 months.
Since I’ve moved to an entirely new area, I had to find a new hair stylist. I could go to my trusted stylist from the pre-unworked days but I think a cheaper option is still the smart way to go. So cue the new stylist and of course she lops off way more than I asked for. Siiigh. I try not to be too bossy with people cutting my hair and trust their expertise. I mean, I don’t go into a restaurant and tell the cook exactly how to cook my food, right? Still, I didn’t want much done and “much done” was what I got.
I was near Beacon’s Closet so decided to pop in there to see if I could find any new clothes (or new to me). Lately I’ve had the roughest time finding anything that fits my taste. It’s either too expensive, too cheaply made, too bland, or too gaudy. I seem to have a very limited area of acceptance when it comes to clothing.
I’m also trying to reign in my spending. I got a little cash flow coming in again and I let loose with the purchases. Recently, I bought a new bed frame, new shoes, a new jacket, and new glasses. None of them were cheap. As a defense, I tell myself that I’d been wanting each of those things for a long, long time and it was just simply due. I don’t think I put myself in any financial trouble because of them, but they definitely didn’t help me shore up my credit card debt any sooner. But what’s life without a little reward once in a while, right? Right?
In the afternoon, I get another job offer which would overlap the one I’m anticipating. I still need a 100% confirmation from the first that they need me but can’t get a speedy answer. So rather than deal with a messy double-booking, I respectfully decline the second job. Which is always a guarantee that the first job falls through. Thus, I have seemingly the rest of the week off and not sure when that first job will be starting up.
NOTE: Pissed off looking librarian chicks with glasses in an 80′s music video? Hot.
Daily Panic Level: A tad higher
Financial Outlook: Still fine
Job Scorecard (Interviews – Freelance Work – Freelance Busts): 8 – 8 – 38
Last Night’s Meal: Chick pea salad
Look who’s back! And unemployed again.
I never forgot about this blog, but amazingly, I was employed every day since the last post (excluding holidays and a short trip out to San Fran last week). I even worked on New Year’s Eve day which was extra rough since my roommate and I had decided to throw a New Year’s Eve party.
So much has happened and it seems as though there was absolutely no time to do anything, yet somehow it also feels like I’ve accomplished very little for myself in that time. How is it January 18th already? New Year’s felt like 2 seconds ago.
My trip to Cali was a short, blur of activity since it was mainly for a wedding. I’ve managed to avoid the wedding barrage unlike most people my age, but it looks like my friends are relenting and getting hitched. I already have two other weddings to go to this year. Plus I’ll be back in San Francisco in September for my grandmother’s 90th birthday. I can’t wait to go back. Looks like this year will continue the last’s trend of traveling, of which I have no complaints. I may even try to squeeze in a Vegas trip in the fall.
And that’s one of the best benefits of not having a full-time job. The freedom is amazing. Well, as long as the jobs and money keep coming in.
Today, I’m trying to gather myself back up again. I’m fighting against the feeling of neglect towards all the little things in my life. The plus side is that I’ve already read two of the books in my Winter Reading pile.
I’m hoping to work on a few projects, which includes tweaking my portfolio site. I revamped it not too long ago so am wary that I’ll turn to an annoyed Vic to help me out. But that’s lower on my to-do project list which is tough because I feel as though that should be a higher priority. Alas, I’ve made some promises and I need to make good on them.
One thing I needed to do first is paint this page of a Chinese bible that my mom gave me. Not sure if “bible” is the right term since it’s Buddhism. The official name is the “One Million Heart Sutras in the Buddha” and I have a “Sutra Transcribing Kit”. In simple terms, I have a piece of parchment with faint chinese letters that I need to trace over with a calligraphy pen. Once done, I’ll mail it back to some temple in Taiwan to be among a million other transcribed pages. It’s pretty cool once you think about it.
Of course, it’s easier said than done. I hadn’t used a calligraphy pen since college art class and my hand was unnervingly shaky. I told myself, “Okay, so the first few lines will be a bit sloppy, but then I’ll get better and the rest will be awesome.”
I didn’t take into account that fatigue would set in after about 40 minutes and my jittery hand would stay that way for entirely different reasons. In the end, it took me a better part of the day, about 4 hours to do the entire transcription. And it doesn’t look too bad. Some splotches here and there but overall, I’m pretty proud that I pulled it off without any major disasters. I have no idea what I was writing which makes me wish I had the motivation to learn when I was a kid.
Daily Panic Level: Low
Financial Outlook: Decent. A few checks are expected
Job Scorecard (Interviews – Freelance Work – Freelance Busts): 8 – 8 – 36
Last Night’s Meal: Tabla shrimp, veggies and brown rice
