Once Written Twice Shy

Motivation comes in work shaped packages.

2006-07-24T16:03:00.000-07:00

So it's the 24th of July, which in Utah is technically a holiday. Where am I on this holiday, gentle reader? I'm at work. Yes. At work. Full 8 hour day, at work. Other people are at parades and going fishing. I work for an international company that doesn't recognize state holidays. Soo...I spent the whole day fuming, since I had nothing to do work wise, (the old game of hurry up and wait) and plenty that I needed/wanted to do that had nothing to do with work. Such things turn into motivation for me. Write. Write. Write. Writing is what I love. Writing is my chosen craft, as well as being the craft that just won't let go. It wells in my head all the time. If I'm just sitting around somewhere I itch for paper and pen to write...something...anything... I'm a writer because I am compelled by some inner muse to write.

I've learned that being a writer is the easy part. There are millions, maybe even billions, of writers in this world. The hard part is 1: Writing stuff that other people want to read. 2: Getting it to where those that want to read it can. 3: Getting them to pay for the right to read it so that I don't have to work for other people anymore since it makes me crazy. The humanization of the Internet and the blogosphere has made some of this easier, but it's still a matter of right place, right time, right price.

I'm still mulling the formula for finding said place, time and price. I'm not sure it's actually a quantifiable matter. However, I do believe it's possible...and after a long day at the office grind I do know that it's worth going for. Hope...is the essence of dreams, and what is man without a dream?

~J

Book Projects in process

2006-07-18T13:42:00.000-07:00

Waiting for Prince Charming - Writing 50% complete
Sorcerer's Child - Writing 100% complete, Editing 25% complete
Sorcerer's Journey - Writing 50% complete
Blood Bow - Conceptualized
Shaman's Oath - Conceptualized
Whispers from the Grave - Writing 75% complete
Mutant Policies - Writing 100% complete, Editing 5% complete

Thus far there is a small press interested in Sorcerer's Child, which is about to go back into circulation again after an updated edit. :)

Progress.

Slow.

But progress.

~J

06/05/06 - Beyond Fitness update

2006-06-05T08:19:00.000-07:00

There isn't one. I've heard diddly squat. Sooo...today will be a new letter and a call to the BBB. Maybe I'll write them a second letter about the nature of customer service.

More updates on other stuff later today, but just wanted to get that out there. Beyond Fitness is bad news...run while you can! You'll get better exercise that way.

~J

5/30/06 - Buttsweat opens doors

2006-05-30T14:28:00.000-07:00

So today at work I was watching someone else head to the security doors, stop, back into them to activate the magnetic switch and then go through the doors. This reminded me of my younger brother, who was convinced for a long time that there were biometric security doors that could take a reading of your buttsweat and open the door based on your unique chemical composition. Now, I may, or may not, have had anything to do with convincing him of this and not mentioning that the doors really opened by way of magnetic security cards in the wallet that was secured in the jeans back pocket. He was rather ticked when the truth finally came out, but he's never forgotten the phrase "buttsweat opens doors," and has turned it into a more literal version of the right kind of work opening doors as he serves a proselytizing mission for the Church of Jesus Christ of LatterDay Saints. He's found that doors don't always open just because you want them too, or because you work hard. You have to have that magnetic card that actually opens the door, not just the right buttsweat. And yes, it makes me giggle everytime I type the word buttsweat.

So lately I've been thinking about this and my own efforts as a writer. I think often I come upto doors expecting them to open just because of buttsweat, not realizing I don't have the right security card to actually work the lock. I get frustrated when I'm not passing the door, but I didn't bother to find out what was really required to pass. I just want the biometrics to read me, know that I'm talented - that I've got buttsweat - that I can do the job and open the gates. It's then that I realize I'm missing part of the point and that I need to step back and look at the situation again. Organize, rededicate, come at the problem from another angle and get my hands on the right magnetic card instead of just relying on buttsweat. And sometimes, I realize I'm holding the right key, but standing at the wrong door.

5/27/06 - X3 and other meanderings

2006-05-27T10:22:00.000-07:00

Meanderings first:

1: I still suck at every day posting. That's still the goal, but I'm not going to beat myself up over it too much. Havinig a goal is about the process of getting there, not being perfect in the first week.

2: I've kept my dishes cleared up on a constant basis for almost two weeks now. This is a distinct sign that something is either wrong with me, or that I'm slowly getting my life organized. Take your pick.

X3 - Warning...there may be spoilage here. I'm gonna try to keep it unspoilt, but that's hard to do. Bah, who am I kidding...I am not. Spoilage galore. So...You've been warned. If you don't want to know anything the stop reading...

I mean it...

Not kidding.

You asked for it.
.
.
.
There's a monster at the end of this book.
.
.
.
.
.

Saw X3 last night. Tummy full of ravioli, good friends in attendance, nice theater, not bad seats...just so you know I was set up to enjoy myself and came in with an open brain, trying to focus on the established movie histories and not the comics, though the comics do come in as part of my opinion anyway. I can't say I've read ALL of them, but endough that I'm even more of a certifiable geek than previously mentioned. Just in case anyone wondered.

The over all:

It was a 50/50 kind of movie. There were parts I adored. Things that made me laugh out loud. Things that I'll be quoting at later dates with much snickering. There were also parts that I LOATHED. Things that left me going what the heck was that? Places where I WANTED to connect with the characters and was left flat. In the end I found myself sitting there for a full minute after the credits just trying to decide what it was I'd just experienced...

Then the yelling started.

The good:

-The opening danger room session and preview of the Sentinels. This was a nice note to open on, actually. I liked the tone and the team building. Though the appearance of the words "In the not too distant future" nearly put me into giggling fits, as all good MST3K fans should have been.

-Fastball special!!! I love the fastball. Heehee. I also liked it's use in the end of the picture and the teamwork that came into play there.

-Special effects and action scenes in general. I didn't really fear that this aspect was going to suck. The trailers looked good, and there's been a lot of development in the last few years that pretty much guarentees action will get it's due.

-Bare chested Piotr. Strong silent type..yummy.

-Upsidedown Beast and "oh my stars and garters". I can't say Beast is my favorite of the Xmen, but he gets some nice moments that I do rather like.

-Introduction of the mutant 'cure'. I've always liked the possibilities with this storyline. What it means to be a mutant and what it means if it can be taken away. Should it be taken away? All tying into the government question of using a cure or a disease as a weapon. It's biological warfare on the grounds of making them 'well.'

-Bare chested Logan. I can always be happy about a bare chested Hugh Jackman. I bought Van Helsing, not because it was a great movie, but because it was Hugh. I'm female, sue me.

-Iceman vs Pyro. I've been waiting for this since last time and it does not disappoint. Pyro is an appropriate jerk and Iceman gives as good as he gets.

-Full ice Iceman. Gooo Bobby. We've seen him turn a little blue, but full ice was just plain cool. If there are more films I want to see this again. Loved his 'ice' skates too. I also have to say that I liked Bobby being between two girls. It's very true to his character from the comic days, not to mention he's a teenaged guy...liking several girls isn't uncommon, and he didn't push it too far. He was just an inattentive boyfriend and I think it was well played.

The bad:

-Too much story in 104 minutes. Everything felt rushed and just as I was settling into one storyline here came three others. I never got my fill of any one story, just too many bits of others.

-Too many characters. As much as I like many of the Xmen there were just too darn many at once all trying to get a bit of screen time. This goes back to the above point. Too much for one movie to handle, so NONE of them got what they deserved as far as character development, interaction or progression. Some of my favorites were either killed, pushed off screen, or stood around just looking neat but doing relatively nothing.

-Character deaths. Okay...I like a good character death. Done right it can be a powerful binding and motivating force. I don't think all characters need to live happily ever after, nor should they. Some deaths serve a much better cause. In the case of X3 the deaths of Cyclops and Xavier ticked me off because they weren't allowed to be powerful. Hinted at, given as a reason to rally, but still not allowed full impact. I watched the funeral scene and it did nothing for me. Didn't make me weepy. Just made me annoyed because the personality of the Professor in this installment didn't make me love him. He was cool, distant and almost unconcerned. Where is our tolerant father and friend personality? And why in the hell did he let Magneto come in with him to face Jean any stupid way? As far as Scott...yeah, he has a perpetual stick up his butt...but did he deserve to be wiped out off screen? A friend of mine mentioned, and I agree with this point, that it was a way to make sure he could be brought back in later films with the excuse of 'well, you never SAW the body' sooo... Yeah. But it was still a death without dignity and without real recognition. No one went to LOOK for the body. No one even said diddly squat when Jean admitted she might have killed him. For being the 'leader' of the Xmen his loss was lack luster and under played. We didn't even see emotion from Xavier save to worry about Jean, and the revelation of not only the Phoenix being loose, but Scott being dead should have given way to more than... "What have you done?" Bad form.

-Jean Grey. Okay, I admit it. I don't like Jean Grey as the world's most powerful whatever.
For me it never felt like she worked for any of it. She was born powerful. Professor Xavier controlled her. She got the love of BOTH Alpha Males without having to do much more than stand there and look good. And in this movie, save for 2 rather intense scenes most of what she does is 'look good'...or look ominious...or...something. She doesn't even speak. I think she has maybe a dozen lines in the entire film. She doesn't have any revelations. She doesn't commit to anything, not the good guys, not the bad guys, not fully to herself. I would have been dandy with her going after everyone, but she stands there and looks...very maroon.

-Rogue's choice. I'm a little torn on this one. I understand and approve of one of the Xmen making the choice to be healed. Rogue and Beast were always the most torn on the part of wanting to be 'normal' so it even makes sense that it's her, but I wanted her not to give into the pressure of normalicy and to choose to stay different. For Rogue it's been such a battle about fitting in and now she's still different from everyone, just in the opposite way. There's a lot of room for what happens when her powers come back, as the impression at the end of the movie was very much that returning powers was possible, but still...I wanted to see that strength of character in her.

-Final thing I'll mention. Magneto in a cute little rest home type facility in the end. What kind of moron puts a charismatic leader into a low security rest home? I KNOW he lost his powers, but power was not the only thing that made Magneto strong or a threat. If greatness was only about power then many others in the ranks of villians would be the ones in charge. Give credit where it is due. I also would have loved to see Mystique visit him once he'd lost his powers. Call me a sadist.

And that's what I think about that.

~J

5/25/06 - Beyond Fitness...beyond help?

2006-05-25T15:08:00.000-07:00

First things first... Yes, I know I'm sucking on this blog every day goal, but I'm not going to give up. I've just figured out that I really have to start blogging earlier in the day, as I turn into a pumpkin around midnight.

That said....Beyond Fitness is a training organization that is resident in many Gold's Gym locations across the country. Because of one very cute trainer who caught me on just the right day with just the right pitch...I signed up for personal training. I realized later that this might just be a bad idea, but later was after the 72 written cancellation policy deadline. Therefore, I decided to give this whole thing a try. I signed up, I showed up...I did my part. The same thing can't be said for the various trainers that I worked with in my 11 week stint.

I was forgotten, ignored, injured, and cancelled on. I had my time cut short on all but a couple of occassions. Many things that should have been explained never got that far. I was making progress, but only because I did my own training schedule and eating schedule and pretty much went back to training myself. Now I was just paying a small fortune to train myself.

By the time I reached my forth trainer (in a period between 3/11 and 5/20) my patience was worn thin. When he FORGOT that I was coming, and then his stand in replacement, who happened to also be the General Manager took my time to start me lifting something and pitch sales to other gym attendees I knew that was the end. So I did what all pushy customers who don't want to pay any more money do. I wrote a letter. A two page letter with detailed information about my gripes and a refusal to pay any more out for this crap.

I got a call this morning. Talked to one rep. Talked to his supervisor. She's going to talk to her supervisor. In theory I'll get a call back. If I don't, expect yet another letter. I am NOT paying upto $900 for 7 work out sessions. Not going to happen.

So we'll see if they redeem themselves.

I'm not holding my breath.

Stay tune for updates.

~J

5/23/06 - The Customer is the boss...

2006-05-23T20:45:00.000-07:00

So today I spent nearly 4 hours in a Customer Service Training course. This was an interesting choice by our management team...which is to say it was a stupid decision, but I like to stay employed. In the 4 hours I learned very little that I didn't already know, and less that I couldn't figure out for myself. What little interesting information there was could have been presented in less than an hour with much less butt in chair time.

One thing I found interesting:

A satisfied customer will tell 3 other people about their experience.
A loyal customer will tell 10.
A dissatisfied customer will tell 25.
A customer you argue with will tell 50.

These stats are a bit dated, which lead me to ponder how online blogs and the personal communication that the internet makes way for affect these numbers.

Whether satisfied or dissatisfied a customer has potential to get the word out to far more people now than ever before. This does, naturally, rely on customers having the technological know how to put up a blog in the first place and to have more of an audience than immediate friends and family. Still...the potential for reaching many more folks is so much higher now than it ever has been and, yet, customer service still lacks in most major businesses.

Is the fluidity of a customer base such that folks really just don't care, or have the basic lessons of customer service been so forgotten as to seem a myth?

5/21/06 - Still behind...

2006-05-21T22:48:00.000-07:00

Still behind in my mental processes, but posting before the evening is over. I missed yesterday, which annoys me, but try try again. :)

I think I have my thoughts narrowed enough to post up my planned schedule tomorrow. Want a final mulling on it tonight.

Musing for today:

I believe that the answer to the world's energy crisis is harnessing the hamster like energy of three year olds. One energy collector on the top of a playland and we'd be set. And they work for the cost of animal crackers!!!

5/19/06 - Late again

2006-05-19T22:58:00.000-07:00

Okay, so I'm still getting organized about this thing.

There are thoughts in this brain of mine somewhere. Just have to get them all scribbled down.

Today's accquisition: SNES emulator, CRPGS....Aveyond...wooohooo!

Games to play and review. Love it. :)

5/18/06 - Well phooey

2006-05-18T22:59:00.000-07:00

Okay...so it's 3 minutes to midnight and I'm posting. One of those days that is more about journaling. I started today with dropping oatmeal down the stairs if that's any indication on how things have gone. It's been a busy day, that went from oatmeal to a 4hour listening training exercise for work... I have thoughts on that to share, but those need to mull. So for today...short...but there. Goal still intact.

~J

5/16/06 - Blog organization

2006-05-16T13:44:00.000-07:00

So I've been puttering around trying to decide what to do with this new blog goal of mine, and decided a few things. First I've concluded that blogging and journaling are different things. Journaling, which a lot of folks do, tends to be for a specific audience of friends and family and generally meanders about what I had for breakfast and how my day is going. This morning it happened to be protein pancakes with whipping cream, but I'm not sure anyone actually cares - though it is a really good recipe. Anyway, I digress and that wasn't the point.

Blogging can include some of these details when they work in with the post, and really SHOULD include personal stories and thoughts, because that's what keeps a blog interesting and not just another dry article on x y or z, but blogs are usually a little more organized and focused.

It is said that the best writers write about what they know. So if you want to write about something you don't know about you better learn. This lead me to trying to decide what topic I wanted to write about... then I decided I'd have to start about 16 different blogs to cover all of my random interests...which is not effective either. I don't have time for that.

So my current idea, which I'm going to try at least for the next few weeks is to split up my blogging into themes for each day of the week. This lets me deal with lots of ideas, but in a semi organized fashion. I may decide that I hate this, but figured I'd at least try it for a couple weeks. Not that I have that many readers just yet, but blogging has to start somewhere.

Now...just have to break down the days of the week. That should be easy...

Shouldn't it?

5/15/05 - Mid May goals, editing marriage proposals and Net Neutrality. Just another Monday.

2006-05-15T11:55:00.000-07:00

I've been reading up a bit on setting goals and such. So my current goal, among other things, is a blog entry a day since at this point I'm over a month out. Bah.

I've decided I'm not going to try to go back over the last month, but just keep on from here.

I got one of the more unique editing requests that I've had in a long time yesterday. Someone wanted me to edit the marriage arrangment proposal for a family from India. It's kinda a cross between a personal's ad and a resume. It was an interesting edit all said and done, though brought up some of the cultural differences not only in expectation for that kind of situation but also vocabulary.

Another thing that has been on my radar today is the issue of Net Neutrality. This issue boils down to the idea that one of the strongest features of the net is that everyone out there is equal as far as their pages being able to be found, accessed and used. While you can do a lot of SEO to drive traffic to your page, the small page owners pretty much have the same access gate as the large ones. It's part of what drives profitability on the net. Well, some of the large Telcomm companies don't feel like they're getting a fair shake...which means they're not taking a cut of everything you do beyond the prices you pay to get access in the first place, so they, of course, want more. They want to be able to control where you can go on the internet and how fast you can get there. If a company pays the right price then their page stays accessible all the time. If not...well...you may get there, sooner or later...maybe. This is counter to the very heart of the Internet and information exchange. Are there pages that I don't want to go, or that I wouldn't want family members to access? Sure, but most of those can be taken care of other ways and in ways that are MY choice. I don't want my telcomm company deciding whether I can visit amazon.com today or not.

Get involved. Write your representatives and tell them to vote AGAINST the Communications Opportunity, Promotion and Enhancement Act, a bill in congress now that would give telcomm companies the right to control accesses.

I popped over to http://www.savetheinternet.com/ and filled out their petition, adding my vote for the internet to stay neutral. I want my sites to have the same chance as any other site, and I like my internet just the way it is.

~J

4/14/06 - Staying up until 4 am is a sign of stupidity

2006-04-14T08:36:00.000-07:00

Which says a lot for me considering I managed to stay up until 4:30 am, even better, followed by the alarm going off at 7:30 so I could get my collective self into the office. There was great temptation to call in and proclaim myself dead...but that kinda limits future growth and I have a powerful daily need to eat, and food costs money, so here I am.

In further news I've decided my trainer should be beaten as the man apparently has no comprehension of the phrase: I have a bad shoulder and it can't take excessive weight. Five shoulder wrenching exercises later his next appointment came to find him, cause she couldn't wait for the last three minutes of our session to be finished and I banished him, mentally calling him names the whole time. I am not a whump...but OUCH. This morning I'm all wrenched out and would love for someone to come and play trampoline on my back.

Anyway...moving on to the subject of writing, cause in theory that's what this blog is about, this weeks articles are on fishing, business and exercising. It's an interesting spread, though a lot of quick turn around work right now, which is sometimes easier than others. I still have larger outstanding personal projects and have to figure out how to get into a routine again when it comes to those.

At least I'm never bored...

03/31/06 - I'm going to Disneyland!

2006-03-31T15:21:00.000-07:00

Okay...well...erm...technically, I already went to Disneyland. The 'I'm going to Disneyland' post never actually posted. It was supposed to, but...there you have it.

Sooo...instead, for your viewing pleasure, the "I went to Disneyland and all I got was this T-shirt" post.

All in all...

I loved it.

Despite the rain, which was really the only drawback.

Disney is an interesting place. They have rides, just like other places. They have lines, just like other places. They have employees, just like other places. But in all of these things they are also completely and utterly unique.

Disney is a place about details, which is what, in my opinion, sets them apart. The rides are both enjoyable and beautiful, with attention given to the little things. Like the dripping pipes in the Tower of Terror, and the 1940s style water canteens strapped to the Indiana Jone's jeeps. You feel like you are caught completely into the moment because of the little things that have been added to keep you in the world of any particular ride, or area. Even what's underfoot changes, from boardwalk, to cobblestone, to spongy earth. The lines are set up to be fun, providing for things to look at, and in some cases do, while you're waiting. Thirty minutes in an interesting line is much faster than thirty minutes staring at dirt. Employees in costume and character make a difference to the experience of the ride, and 'cast members' dedicated to keeping the park clean and welcoming make for an open and inviting environment. All in all it was delightful from the grand castle to the clean swept cobblestone.

So something for me to think about in my writing...the Disney way of doing things. The devil is in the detail, but so is the enjoyment!

~J

Testament to Perseverance

2006-03-15T11:19:00.000-07:00

There is snow on my lawn, and my sidewalk and my flower gardens...mid March and the cold is just hanging on. Which is fine, really, we need the water, but I was noticing this morning the fact that my daffodils are pushing up through the snow anyway. It is their time and season and dangit they're gonna grow. Now, they are taking advantage of being planted next to the house where it's a little warmer, but day after day they're pushing up through the snow and look to bloom in the next week. Something about that just strikes me as a life lesson...

The after math after the fall...

2006-02-24T13:23:00.000-07:00

Something in one thigh and the alternate hamstring is stretched. My comment for this is...ouch. I'll get over it though.

In other random news I have about 14 articles to do this weekend. Na a bad way to increase the "I'm going to Disneyland" fund.

I've also decided that I like: www.timewastersguide.com. Maybe I'll even link it eventually.

~J

A weird feeling...

2006-02-23T15:38:00.000-07:00

For well over a month now I have been a keyword and webcontent writer. Just one of those little extra things I've been experimenting with. It's kinda fun, and a really good writing exercise, truth be told. Defined for you is what to write on and how long the rest left open, but you must fall within those parameters and be on time or you don't get paid. So I've been trundling along, churning out a lot of these articles...and for the first time I saw one of them in electronic print associated with the website it was supposed to be associated with. The only problem and the thing that sits a little weird... It was on a popup. Those things that I HATE and there was my article on how to play Texas Hold'em - my last 30 articles have been on the specifics of poker, I'm learning a lot. I'm not sure if I should be embarassed that this is where my paid writing career is visiting or just laugh and keep collecting my cash for it. Currently I'm voting on the later. It's good work. It's teaching me and it keeps me writing all the time. Guess I really can't complain.

Now stop closing down those popups and read that stuff!!!!

~J

02/23/06

2006-02-23T09:49:00.000-07:00

OOOOUUUUUCCCCCHHHHh.....

And today, gentle reader we reaffirm the fact that ice+boots=splits... Unwarmed up splits are agony. Unwarmed up splits while carrying several things including your breakfast so you can't catch yourself are worse. I have an owie on my knee and I'm sure I've wrenched something nicely.

I want a nap.

More later...hopefully of substance.

~J

2/15/06 - LOOONG

2006-02-15T14:14:00.000-07:00

SAAD A tale of holiday horror

For the amusement of others, my SAAD experience. SAAD standing for Singles Awareness Appreciation Day.

7:30...the alarm clock goes off. On the wrong station. What is usually the mostly non startling sounds of B98.7 has turned into very loud thrash metal of an indeterminate station. I have no idea what the tuner was bumped to, but it was bad and sent me and the covers fumbling out of bed, whacking the top of the alarm clock until the pain stopped. My alarm clock may never be the same, but I was definitely awake.

So I took my new awoken self to get ready for work. Because I am a masochistic idiot, I stepped on the bathroom scale. It screamed I'm sure and, as punishment, told me I was up four pounds from the day before. Dang sugar cookies.

Giving up on making the scale change by sheer force of glaring I headed for the shower, forgetting that I had washed out a garbage can the night before in said shower. I took my glasses off, got the water started, stepped into the tub and right onto a piece of moldy orange peel that I had missed in my cleaning up after the garbage can. Ewwwww... This lead to much jumping around on one foot and trying to get the orange peel OFF of the other foot, both dangerous to do in the shower with the water running. I was fairly sure I was going to slip any minute and break my head. Imagine the embarrassment of being a headline in the newspapers. 30 year old woman found dead and nekkid in shower after stepping on moldy orange peel.

Somehow I managed not to slip, cast off the orange peel and finished the shower without further incident. However, upon getting out of the shower, I knocked a container of baby powder off of the towel shelf. It hit the ground and promptly sent up an Old Faithful style geyser of baby powder all over the bathroom. The bathroom in which all my fixtures are green and the floor and toilet rugs were once dark navy, now kinda baby powder white over blue. No time to clean it up, thanks to the shower dance I'm already running late.

Getting dressed required proper SAAD attire and I had set that out the night before. Black slacks, black shirt, black jacket, black shoes, black knee hi socks all in a nice pile on the dresser. Picking up the shirt I realized that Mount Saint Baby Powder had left myself covered in white powder which showed up beautifully on black fabric. One wash rag wash down later I could finally get dressed. Slacks, shirt, jacket, no problem. Socks. Problem. The knee hi black nylons I bought were in this cute little plastic container that looks like something you get from a machine in the front of a grocery store. Compact and costs about 33 cents, which is perfect, in my esteem for a pair of socks. I popped open the plastic container and found...one sock. Just one. Two feet...one sock. You do the math. So the one sock and the little plastic container got thrown away and the search began for the thicker trouser socks that I know I bought last week but hadn't put away yet. Ten minutes later I locate them behind the dresser where apparently they had skidded when I'd cleaned off the dresser two days earlier. The only fortune was that they hadn't landed in the mousetrap back there, nor did I manage to stick my fingers into it while fishing the socks back out. Socks on, shoes on, I'm dressed, thank goodness for little favors.

Clock says... 8:20. I'm supposed to be on the road by 8:30 to get into work by 9. Crud. This means running into the kitchen to gather together something resembling lunch and pack up the cookies I made the night before to share at work. Cookies first, all in neat little rows in big Ziploc bags. That went easily enough. Lunch assembly: orange, banana, protein bar, protein drink, yogurt, give it a spin and toss towards 'stuff I have to take with me' pile. Breakfast...yes, I eat breakfast even if I don't have much time. First choice would be toast and cottage cheese, as there is no real preparation to it. I grabbed the loaf of bread and found that it was trying to become an intelligent life form. A green intelligent life form. So much for toast as the last of the loaf makes a swan dive into the garbage can. That means quick fried eggs, which I managed to break a shell into and burn my finger fishing said shell back out. Ah well, at least it's food. Eggs slid onto paper plate and added to stuff for car pile. I can eat and drive, it's one of those skills that I've honed over the years. May not be a good skill, but we all have to have something. It's now 8:30. I'm going to be late.

The next dash is back to the baby powdered bathroom, where blow-drying my hair just stirs the dust and requires giving my clothing a wet rag wipe down and as I put a toothbrush into my mouth the cell phone rings. I'm not sure what insanity it is that forces us to answer ringing phones. It's a pavolvian thing I'm sure. It's my roommate, so I answered it, tucked the phone up to my ear and, through a mouth full of toothpaste spoke. "Hewwo."

She's on her way to work and has the same question I'm pondering of "can't I just take today off?" We figured that President's day was a mostly useless holiday, unless you want to buy furniture, and you get that day off. Why not SAAD? It made sense to me, but most jobs don't follow such logic and besides griping a bit there isn't much we can do about it. I finished teeth brushing and vitamin gathering while on the phone, and finally let her go with a promise to talk about food for the night on email later.

Now I'm REALLY running late and went to scoop up all the stuff to take out to the car which caused my wrists to scream in utter hellish agony. Apparently the fibromyalgia pain that was flaring up because of changing weather had decided it was no longer going to be ignored. Everything tumbled back out of non working fingers and I forayed back into the Bathroom of No Return for painkillers and my wrist wraps. Wraps on and back to the living room to gather up everything I need and muscle it out the door. Only as the door closed and the wind hit me did I realize that my coat was still in the house and I only have my suit jacket to protect from the cold. One look at all the stuff I'm already carrying and the fact it's nearly 9 I decided that I just didn't care and ran for the car anyway. I shoved everything into the car, being careful not to smash the cookies, or the rapidly coagulating plate of fried eggs and started the car up. Instantly the 'put gas in me right now you idiot' light turned on and the car started to beep at me. Which it is programmed to continue to do until I put on a seatbelt and promised it gas before I get to the freeway. That seemed to appease it enough that I could at least back out of the driveway. Driving to the gas station is accomplished while eating a cold pile of eggs at the same time and really wishing I'd added a little bit of salt.

I pulled into the gas station, stopped the car, which was wheezing on fumes, and popped the gas tank. Now I just needed my atm card which was in my wallet...which was not in my leather bag that I refuse to call a purse, nor was it in the nonexistent pockets of my suit coat, or in the bag that I carry my gym clothes in, nor in the bag of cookies. No wallet. 9:05. I backed the car out of the gas station, intending to go back home, search for the wallet and pray that there was enough gas to get back. Though some fit of insanity, just before I pulled onto the road again I opened the 'junk bin' that sits between my two front seats. The heavens were smiling, likely because everything that had happened thus far was just so funny from the outside looking in, and the wallet was there. I put the car in reverse, again, and lined up with the gas pump...which proves to be the slowest dispenser of petroleum on the face of the planet. Drip, drip, drip..5 gallons, drip, drip, drip...10...stupid 15 gallon tank. Finally...15.013, 32.70. I grabbed the receipt, marked it down in my mileage book and headed for the freeway, screaming all the way and looking for any radio station that wasn't playing something smultzy. Thank you My99.5.

The drive towards SLC isn't as bad as I thought it would be and I almost started to relax. Then I glanced over towards the passenger seat and everything there. One empty paper plate, one gym bag, one bag of cookies, one bag of...wait...where's the bag of lunch? There should be a bag of lunch! And there was no bag of lunch.

Now I've changed my game plan for getting into work. Lacking the bag of lunch I decided to get off the freeway at 129th and cross over at 114th to stop at the WalMart, where I know I can at least get a carton of lemonade and a box of protein bars. It ain't pretty, but it'd serve, though now I'm going to be even later for work and there's a meeting at 10:30 that I have to be on time for. No choice. I pulled off the freeway and behind a large truck...with no tarp over his load, so the trip up the freeway was full of the splatter of tiny little rocks and praying that I wouldn't end up with yet more rock chips in my windshield. I got away from him as fast as possible. For a change of pace in the morning the trip through WalMart was fast and relatively painless, food acquired, black licorice whips to go with the cookies acquired, ran back to the car.

I got in the car and tossed the bag towards the other seat, pausing as I noticed the edge of another bag poking out between the passenger seat and the car door. True to the form of the rest of my day I had just located my missing lunch. At a certain point the laughter began to have an edge of hysteria to it.

Finally…much later than I had ever intended, I rolled into the office and it seemed as though maybe the horror was over. Cookies were eaten by the bucket load, the mandatory meeting turned out to be positive, watched a game of CarWars and made commentary from the peanut gallery. It was an uneasy but welcome sense of the normal.

Around 3 p.m. the emailing roommate and I decided that evening celebrations would consist of a Hawaiian pizza and watch men’s figure skating, which I figured was a good way to end what had been a hectic day. Thus agreed I wandered online to see about getting a telephone number for one of our favorite pizza places. Not only did I find a number, but I also found an online order form, complete with delivery delay. I could order my pizza now and have it delivered at 6:30 when I got home. Too cool.

With much brave trundling I filled out the form, gave over payment and promptly put any other pizza concern out of my mind lest it interrupt the very important work that I had to finish, namely beating my own high score on Mahjongg…it was a slow afternoon and my boss had instructed me to ‘putter’.

At the usual time I left the office, mood high from the fact the day had warmed up and the thought that there would be pizza tonight and nothing that I really had to do beyond eat and watch well muscled men ice skate in tight fitting outfits. There are little mercies in life and I’ve learned to enjoy them when they present themselves.

Climbing back into the car I turned on the cellphone and plugged it in. Instantly several messages popped up. The first were even more feel good than the thought of pizza as they came from a younger brother who wanted to be my Valentine and wanted to know how my day was going. The next messages, however, burst my happy little cloud into raindrops.

~This is XXXX (name removed to protect the idiotic) from XXXX Pizza. It’s 3:24 and we’ve come to deliver your pizza, but no one is home. I’ll take the pizza back to the shop and you can call in and come get it.~

3:24??? I admit the phrase that ran through my head isn’t one that should be repeated in print…or in public…particularly where my mother could hear me. Driving down the freeway at 70 miles per hour, juggling the phone and denial of pizza rage I called XXX Pizza back. The voice that came on the phone was that of uncertainty.

“XXX Pizza, can you hold.”

“Sure.”

Click. The line disconnected. No bad hold music, just…click.

I called back again.

“XXX Pizza, can I help you?”

“Yes.” I explained the problem of pizza ordered on line and delivered at 3:24 instead of 6:30.

Phone nitwit said. “I can see your order, but I don’t have a delayed delivery on it.”

“I have the print out of the email confirmation with me…” Yes, looking at that while I was driving and on the phone, I know…not my most brilliant moment. “It says delayed delivery for 6:30. I need my pizza in an hour.”

“My computer doesn’t say that.”

“I don’t CARE what your computer says. I want my pizza or my money back.”

“We can’t do that.” The twit’s voice was rising as was his annoyance factor. “You didn’t specify delivery. I can take a new order for you if you’d like.”

Now I’m loosing my precious grip on not killing anyone. “Wait. You screwed up my order and sent it too early. I have delivery confirmation here and you aren’t going to do anything but tell me you can take a new order? I want my money back if I can’t have my pizza.”

“There is no delivery delay on this order!” Now the reject from the funny farm yelled at me and I completely mentally lost it and hung up on him.

Then I called back.

“XXX Pizza, can you hold?”

“Sure.”

Click.

Called back again.

“XXX Pizza, can you hold?”

“No.”

“Umm…”

“I refuse to hold if I’m going to be hung up on again!” Now I was righteously indignant.

“I promise you won’t be hung up on.”

Transfer to really really bad hold music. I’m considering homicide at the pizza parlor.

10 minutes pass…. Rush hour traffic continued to build with me in the center of it.

Finally…. “XXX Pizza, can I take your order.”

“Are you the manager at this store?”

“Umm…no?” This was the voice of the timid hanger upper, not the nitwit.

“Get me the manager. NOW!”

“Umm…okay.”

Back to hold music.

“XXX Pizza, this is XXX, how can I help you?”

“Are you the manager?”

“Yes.”

“GOOD.” Explanation ensued again. Manager XXX looked up the account.

“This account says this pizza should be delivered at 6:30 pm.”

“That’s what I’ve been saying.”

“It’s not 6:30 for almost an hour. Why are you calling?”

I’m now practicing my controlling your inner demon exercises in the car. “Because it was delivered at 3:24 when I was obviously not home because I ordered it for 6:30, and I either want my money back or my damn pizza!!!!”

“I’ll tell you what I’ll do. I’ll have them make your order again and redeliver it at 6:30. Free of charge. How does that sound?”

“Perfect. Thanks.” Slowly I pried my fingers out of the molding of the steering wheel.

“I’ll take care of it. Thanks for calling, XXX Pizza.”

Click.

Now I’m focusing on breathing deeply. In with the good air, out with the bad, called the roommate to explain the fiasco of the pizza and half way through the call the other line beeps in with XXX Pizza’s name displayed. More unprintable thoughts. I switched over to the other line and the nitwit is on the phone again.

“This is XXX from XXX Pizza. I understand there was a problem with your order.”

“Yes.”

“I have a medium Hawaiian and a cinnamon dessert listed here. We’ll remake it for you.”

“That’s what I requested.” I felt my bloodpressure starting to rise again.

“Okay. It should be ready in about twenty minutes. How did you want to pay for that?”

“WHAT?”

“Umm…”

“I have already paid for this and your manager said the new one would be free of charge!” I’m sure my hair was graying by the moment.

“Oh…well…yeah there’s a note here about that. And I saw the 6:30 thing pop up but I thought that was a mistake. I’ll send someone over with your pizza.”

“Right.”

“Bye.”

At this point I started screaming in the car. Nothing elegant, just screaming and banging my head on the steering wheel since traffic was at a standstill anyway.

It was only through the grace of God and guardian angels that I got home in one piece. I was one snarling raging piece that threw jacket and shoes across the room and stomped through the house snarling incoherently, but one piece.

The first thing I did after throwing things was to dive into the chocolate that I wasn’t going to eat and sedate my rage on sugar and fats, while ignoring the piled dishes in my sink. Slowly I began to come down from SAAD rage…

At 6:20 the doorbell rang. A pleasant older gentleman stood there with pizzas for me. I took the pizzas, thanked him and brought them back inside to wait for the roommate. No sooner had I taken the pizzas to the kitchen but the doorbell rang again. I answered it and found ANOTHER XXX Pizza employee standing there with both dessert and dinner pizzas for me. He looked sheepish and offered the boxes.

“Sorry for all the mix ups. About the time we got the redone order done your other order popped up on the computer for the right time and we made it again before we realized that we’d already remade this order which shouldn’t have been made at three in the first place. Just take these, on the house, and enjoy.”

“Umm…okay. Have a nice night.”

“Yeah.”

So I walked up the stairs with two more pizzas. When the roommate came home I took her one dinner pizza and one dessert pizza. We both just laughed and I retreated to my room with my own order, turned on the TV to watch men skate and ate three slices. Who says you can’t have your pizza and eat it too?

02/06/06

2006-02-06T10:08:00.000-07:00

Got forwarded this thought and wanted to keep it where others might see it and enjoy.

1. There are at least two people in this world that you would die for.
2. At least 15 people in this world love you in some way.
3. The only reason anyone would ever hate you is because they want to
be just like you.
4. A smile from you can bring happiness to anyone, even if they don't like you.
5. Every night, SOMEONE thinks about you before they go to sleep.
6. You mean the world to someone.
7. You are special and unique.
8. Someone that you don't even know exists, loves you.
9. When you make the biggest mistake ever, something good comes from it.
10. When you think the world has turned its back on you take another look.
11. Always remember the compliments you received. Forget about the rude remarks.

In other news:

Been a good few days.  Tiring, but good.  I have a lovely bacterial infection.  My doctor looked me over and patted me on the head and thought I should sleep more.  I agree...but need more time in the day to manage as much.  Aw well.

Writing stuff:

Slow going on contract work right now.  The sick makes it hard to focus.  Le bleh.

01/31/06

2006-02-01T09:44:00.000-07:00

I'm not dead. Just in case anyone was wondering. I do still exist out here in cyberspace even if my last update is...well...not so updated. This week I got and started a new job, broke up for keeps with the boy and came down with the giant high cold from you know where. Cause Mucous is just sooooo appealing. Bleh. And, of course, due to the starting the new job part of the statement I can't get away with not going to work for a day or two to keep my misery in bed, so I have medicine head or a headache, much juice on my desk and a life time...or at least afternoon...supply of cough drops. And not nearly enough tissue in the world. :P I suspect I'll survive.

Writing update:

One of the keyword article places is keeping me hopping. It's great. Still wish it paid more, but I'm starting to see my stuff go up on websites that people actually visit, so that's nice.

Contract work for Peoplewise. Slooow. Took them forever to get me set up on their test environment and so now I'm so busy that I've not much time for them. Maybe tonight I can put in an hour or three.

Books:

Prince Charming: Coming along. I really need to dedicate more undistracted time to this. I still think it has the best first publish options of what I'm working on.

Classes:

I've been bad...haven't even really looked at these since Saturday. MUST put them into the rotation in a firmer way. If they're not finished by March it pushes graduation off again which I just can't do.

No rest for the...erm...me.

01/20/06

2006-01-20T23:58:00.000-07:00

Sooo...short updates cause it's late at night, but I don't want to go 4 days without update.

Xango interviews have gone well. They want to run a background check, so I'm hopeful that means good things. I've decided to accept the work if offered. Right now steady pay and benefits are important, and the last couple of weeks have allowed me to get my foot in the door with some freelance work that I can continue while working full time and go from there.

Other updates... Finished 4 more keyword articles today and more editing for PeopleWise. I'm moving fast enough on the editing that they've had to add other projects to my docket, which pleases me. I've also had really good feedback from the keyword place. All good.

Prince Charming is finally starting to pick up, though I accidentally lost about three pages of work last night. Note to self do not tell the computer to shut down and close the laptop without making SURE you've saved.

Still need to bug George about his ideas for doing small press publishing...might be some good stuff there.

Anyway...there it be. More tomorrow.

01/17/06

2006-01-18T00:32:00.000-07:00

Whew...what a day...running from dawn until well after dark, but very productive all said and done.

Finished 3 chapters for an ebook on dogs, taught a class on gluten free cooking, wrote the handout for the gluten free cooking class, grocery shopped with two nieces - more of a challenge than one might think - got rid of the satellite dish on my back porch. Thank you John!!!!

Doesn't sound like as much when it's written in one paragraph, but it was a run - believe you me.

Got a rejection notice back from an agent on Sorcerer's Child. I'm beginning to think the better market for it might be self publishing. Then again I didn't read Matt's query letter, so I'm not sure what all we said. As well I need to do a clean read on the whole piece and decide if it's really as good as we think it is.

I'm behind badly on Prince Charming...so the plan for tomorrow is Prince Charming and brushing up my QA specifics in the morning, interview in the afternoon. Editing for Peoplesoft in the evening. Full day again, but full day isn't necessarily a bad thing.

And yes...interview is tomorrow. I'm still not sure what to think of it. I got an email today from one of my contract positions that was very complimentary. Such things make it really easy to just want to stay on this road and see where it goes...which then comes into conflict with the road sign that says...insurance and steady pay here. ARGH...decisions, decisions...

Right now I'm going to decide to go to bed. Coming on 1 am and the alarm goes off at 7:30.

01/16/06

2006-01-16T15:22:00.000-07:00

Okay, I got distracted there for a couple days. Like 4 days. But they were four very good days. Mostly spent doggysitting for a friend, which was actually rather fun. Sweet puppy that made a good food blanket and took me on a two mile drag which I'm sure is good for me too, though she was a tiiiired dawg by the time we got back. She immediately drank a lot of water, which ended up with her needing a visit outside at 4 am, and then went to sleep. For me it was nice to linger at someone else's house where no one expected me to do the dishes or the laundry and my food storage wasn't staring at me and saying "Fiiiixx the shelf down stairs..." Which I hear from the basement now and am bravely ignoring.

Friday I finished 2 more keyword articles, and 4 hours of editing for Peoplewise. Yay me. Then I got another article on Saturday, which I turned in by Sunday. More yay.

Today was spent packaging starch for my mum's company this morning. Na bad work, truth be told...then I got a call for a second interview at Xango. I'm torn about this, truth be told, since I am enjoying the work that I'm doing now. It's just not yet paying what I would like it to to support my living habit. Sooo...time to start weighing the options and to see if getting organized enough I think I can handle continuing all the writing and work full time too. I think I can manage if it comes to that. I may develop a twitch...buuuut...hard to say.

Today's projects:

Prince Charming - Must make better headway on this.

3 more keyword projects - Has to be done by Midnight tomorrow night.

2-3 hours editing for People Wise

House organization...le sigh. The never ending task.

One of these days I may even make a To Do list...but let's not get overly optimistic.

01/12/06

2006-01-12T21:09:00.000-07:00

Busy day today, but good stuff.

Met with peoplewise this morning and got my first hour of work with them in. YAY.

Interviewed with Xango this afternoon and things seemed to go well...hopefully there is a future there. Doesn't give me as much time as full freelance, but it's the old problem of financial stability vs flexibility. I think every writer runs into this at some point or another, and I haven't given up, but I'm trying to serve both the need for paying the bills and serving the creative muse. Sometimes it's a hard balance.

Anyway...house and doggie sitting tonight so off to pay attention to that and finish up a few more keyword articles.

Poof

01/11/06

2006-01-11T16:12:00.000-07:00

First blood!!! :) Long term part time writing contract achieved. I start tomorrow and can work from home the majority of the time, which makes me happy and continues to help me achieve my other goals. This is all a source of happiness and joy. Tomorrow will be my first day on the clock and I also have a 2 pm interview for Xango, so may be much goodness all the way around.

Chatted a bit with George last night and he has some great ideas on doing self publishing or putting together a small publishing company, both ideas make me happy.

And on top of happy I am hungry. Must to eat.

time passes

I'm back, mostly because I'm ready to scream. What kind of gooberheaded moron posts an ad to show what a spiffy Freelance writer they are and uses incorrect spellings and grammer IN the ad?

Tip number one gentle reader: When looking for freelance writing jobs always post with your grammatical skills turned ON.

Just incase anyone was wondering.

Sheesh.

01/10/06

2006-01-10T10:18:00.000-07:00

It never rains but it pours...though today that's a good thing. I've heard back from a keyword article company that liked what I did for them and wanted to start lining up more work, which was good. Heard back from SOS Technical and they have a client for part time long term work that wants an interview, and got murmurings from RampantCoyote (That's his blog over there to the side.) that the company he works for is still looking over my resume, which would be full time work. All of these are exciting possibilities as far as I'm concerned. In a way it's nice to be freelance, since I choose my hours and all, but the uncertainty of constant income and a house payment staring me in the face is a bit more of a challenge. Regardless of what comes about I don't intend to leave the freelance market any time soon, and I still have book ideas that I'd love to see to publishing. Getting employed more consistently just means I can drop some of the low return projects and focus on the better ones. There is no bad in this.

Todays list:

Interview with SOS client

More work on Prince Charming

Review Whispers

Review the new thing with Susie

Editing for SC

Homework - which should likely be at the top of the list, truth be told. I need to finish these classes

Little bit of house work - trying to keep up with this so the natural entropy of a house doesn't overwhelm me when I'm not looking

Article and short story query letters

Much to do, as always. And now...off to do it.

1/9/06

2006-01-09T13:02:00.000-07:00

The weekend is over...and minimal damage done. Okay, not any real damage. :) Took a bit of a breather from some of my writing stuff to work on the house and there was much joy, rapture and...erm...dust. By today I'm back at it. My first keyword articles went in and the ideas for new articles for GGL and Highmoon are nearly completed. Then I have to go back and dig through some old papers to find examples of interview work. This is underlining the need for a proper portfolio, which I've thought about before, but apparently it really needs to go higher on my list, and most of it needs digitizing. Just cause there isn't enough to do, ya know? More later...lunch now.

01/06/06

2006-01-06T11:23:00.000-07:00

I moved out of my parents' house at the age of 17, taking with me pretty much everything that was, obstensibly, mine. For the last 13 years all of this stuff has followed me around from apartment to apartment and expanding with each stop. My first move required the use of a maroon Ford Explorer, everything fit in the trunk and back seat with room for a roommate up front. The last move that brought me into my house and out of apartment living required three pick up truck loads, one Saturn, and one mini van. I'm never getting out of here without a Uhaul. The funny thing is that in all of those moves I've had a couple of 'stuff boxes'. These are the boxes were all the little bits and pieces that I don't know for sure where they go end up. Since moving into this house three years ago the stuff boxes have just sat in my second room, a little shrine to the moving dieties. Well...last night...I dumped them out over the floor and started sorting. I'm not sure if it's a liberating feeling or one of certain doom. After thirteen years of wandering I will be entirely unpacked someplace. What a bizarre thought.

Anyway...I only mention that because the house and organization are today's focus. There is still writing to be done, naturally, but Mom is coming over and we're going to measure windows for curtains and actually get a log of what is in my food storage and hopefully move my bed into the spare room, which is why the 'stuff boxes' had to meet their ends. Hopefully having everything around me organized will help in keeping my brain organized, at least sorta.

Accomplishments and goals for today:

Got a reject letter this morning for one of the jobs I applied for. Qualified, but too slow, the position was filled.

Got a request to write a column for a humor site. Unpaid, but a way to get something out there on someone else's advertising dime. I'll see if I can't come up with something this weekend.

Completed novel outline with Susie last night. Good bit of work required, but effective.

Must go to the physical location of Utah jobs and beat someone over the head with my unemployment application. I think I'll print out the application and glue it to a bat.

Turned in the editing test for Soul Dog publishing. Hopefully that will lead to good things.

Started ideas for the Highmoon module I've been asked to write. This pays in royalties, which is a good exercise for my own stuff.

Got diddly done on Prince Charming. That really needs to go higher on the priority list.

Must finish the last details for tomorrow's mage game - see I still know what's important!

Going to the temple before the great house organizing project begins.

Makings of a good day.

Updates later.

01/05/06

2006-01-05T12:10:00.000-07:00

I am not a morning person. This is a well known fact among my friends, family and associates. Among my siblings it's a good reason to send grandchildren in to wake me at all hours of the morning on Christmas since I just might eat anyone over the age of 8. I suspect much of not being a morning person is directly related to being too much of a night owl, but last night was even a bit much to me. Note to self, when trying to get on a working from home schedule one must not stay up talking about the Magnificent 7 until 4:30 in the morning. This is fun at the time, but foolish when the alarm goes off at 8 and you must get up, which leads into today's thought about working from home which is something about routine. Contrary to popular belief one does not work nearly as well while still in pajamas and reclined in the bed with the laptop. There's something about the routine, not to mention the smell, of being showered, clothed and working at a proper workstation that really helps the focus. I've set rules for myself about being distracted by the TV, which boils down to the fact it's not allowed to be turned on until 5 pm CSI, unless I'm watching something for writing research that requires the TV instead of the computer. I have similar rules about eating and cooking. I'm finding that I do better when I treat my eating habits at home much like I do at the job. I've started making food in the evenings and breaking it into individual serving containers in the fridge, so when I'm working a food break is about the same microwave 5-10 minutes at home as it was on the job. I've also stocked up on protein bars and drinks, fresh fruit and veggies and 100 calorie snack packs, since I know I tend to be a muncher when I'm at the computer, and I don't want freelance working to equate to outgrowing my chair. I don't want to be a schedule lunatic...that removes some of the pro about trying to work from the home office...but I do recognize that some schedule keeps one from getting distracted by reruns of Buffy and not getting anything done. It also gives one the grounds to tell the loving family that 'No, you can't visit all the time' and 'No, not being in the office does not mean I can always babysit, even if my nieces and nephews are adorable.'
I'm sure my schedule will start to take better shape as things go on. Currently I'm just exploring the need for having one and how to use that to my advantage to get the work done and still have time for a life, since that's the reason for working in the first dumb place.

Things of note to do today:

Contact unemployment - did this, but their website is broken, tables crapping out in the database, and their phone line has a 90 minute wait. Can't imagine WHY this is. I figure I'll give them the rest of today to fix the website and tomorrow I'll go bang on their doors and grumble at them face to face. Unemployment isn't great income, but it's a way to tide over the bills while doing other things. - update: dbase never did come up, will have to take a drive me thinks.

Editing test for Soul Dog Publishing - This contract stands to give me work for a while. They have three RPG books that need editing before they go to publication, and more on the way. Interesting little company. I have until tomorrow to return the editing test to them. I intend to have it done today, will update here once I've turned it in.

Module work for Highmoon Games - Fun possibility here. They pay a royalty for authors published in their module books, most of which are based on particular historical periods. Work right now is for the Trojan war. They need full adventure ideas, which, if approved, turns into write ups for the module book and printing. Nifty.

Yesterday I joined the Freelance Writing Organization, www.fwointl.com, and they have a huge market listing as well as some valuable research material. I need to start going through this today for more contacts.

As well need to peruse the jobbank list at www.freelancewriting.com. This has been a good place for bits and pieces work in the last year.

JV from the Shadowguild list gave me a neat link to research too, and George a contact for medical writing. Following up on both of these.

Busy enough yet?

Other projects that need attention: Waiting for Prince Charming - I'd like to have the first two chapters completed by Sunday.

Sorcerer's Child - Working on re-editing this. Matt is contacting an agent in his area that said they might be able to help us with placing this book with a publisher. That would be nice.

Whispers needs to be reread and completed.

This new thing with Susie needs more definition.

And in between all of this I want to rearrange a few rooms in the house so I have a better workspace in here. No sweat. Right?

All in all good things lining up.

Forward I go.

Starting and comments

2006-01-04T12:59:00.000-07:00

As of January 1st the company I was working for went the way of the dodo, or perhaps more that of Snaggletooth. "Exit...stage left even..." I really wish I could say that I was shocked, surprised, stunned or that this was the first time I'd had a company drop out from under me and out of existance all at once. I can't. Truth be told it's the seventh major company I've worked for in the last 13 years, and the fifth that went out of business during my stay. In the words of Han Solo, "It's not my fault!!!" So who's fault is it? This is one of those questions that I tend to ponder in the late hours between insomnia and watching more Iron Chef on Foodnetwork than I'm ever going to admit to. Truth be told, it's not so much anyone's fault as a reflection of a changing industry and business model.

Anyone that has grandparents, or who ever watched any TV series produced in the fifties, has heard of the old business standard that was expected of the majority of employees. Finish your education to whatever degree you selected, or could afford, and then get on at a job and stay there until retirement. The hope was to rise in the ranks of your selected profession gathering pension, vacation and company knowledge as you went. There were always some few innovators that would break out of this mold and do something totally different, but as many of those folks fell flat as rose on a shining star. Being a 'company man' was a way to find security in a world that had been shaken by two World Wars and one major depression, and security and stability were king. This model still exists in the business world of today, but it is becoming a rarer breed as the types of jobs that run American industry have changed, the consumer demand of not only the US but the world at large has increased and specialized, the education required to fill todays job has increased, and what many new workers expect from a company is entirely different from their fifties counterparts. I'm not an economical analyst by any stretch of the imagination, but it's plain to see the writing on the wall. At one time if you had more than one or two occupation slots on your resume it was a mark against being hired as it didn't show longevity. At this point, particularily in any technical industry, someone that has been at a company 3-5 years is an old hand, and being laid off, shuffled around or flat fired due to business dissolution every couple of years is growing more and more common.

So all of this sets a background for where I am now. I've been writing for...sheesh...forever really, pretty much for as long as I could hold something that could be written with and apply it to a non moving surface as my poor mother can likely attest to. I'm sure there are walls out there that still have applications of crayon under concealing paint, and my stock of random articles and files is hip deep and growing. Writing of one sort or another has always played into my methods of employment, whether as a major skill or a minor one and the call for writers, particularily online, is very robust. So I'm going to make a go of it...see if I can write my way into self employment, and I intend to use this blog space as a sounding board as I do. I intend to be as honest as possible about my efforts and the pros and cons of each. It may not be a feasible mode of employment, but even learning that is worth the experiment of giving it a try. :)

Therefore...step one: Organize my surroundings so I can work effectively. Step two: Research the writing industry and narrow my focus to what I can do, what I want to do, and where the money is. Step three: Go get it. Step four: Ice cream...

Though I may start with step four first. ;)