docrivs

There’s been a slight speedbump that I need to overcome before I can accomplish my goal of walking to work every day for a year. I have been, technically, unemployed since Friday, April 10th. Although I do have some income coming back to me I still do not have that steady source of income coming to me, so the pressure is on to find alternative income streams.

So, in keeping with my mantra, change is good, because change brings opportunity. Losing a job is good, right? :O

Well, maybe losing a job is not good, in and of itself, but I am going to view this as an opportunity to get my ass in gear and start working on actually getting paid to write and actually getting paid to play music. Although, it takes too long to wait for enough income from either of these ventures, so I will need something in the meantime. I will continue sending out my cover letters and resumes through email, responding to help wanted ads and job postings on bulletin boards. However, I am going to interpret this little speedbump, as a spiritual leader might, as a ‘sign’ that it is time I step up.

So, I have rearranged my goals a little bit to give me a visual image of what I need to do first and foremost. Right now, it’s time to focus on building a career a freelance writer and performing artist.

I’ve been practicing my cover songs, and I think I could play for a good three hours solid, which means that I could play 3, or maybe even 4, 45-minute sets with no problem. I could throw in a few originals. Unfortunately, in this town, in this day and age, artists who do not base their performances on tunes that are familiar to the crowd do not get paid well, at all. Even larger acts that buzz through town ride high on the power of their one hit single that is blasted over the alternative radio station 50 times a day. I don’t even have a one hit single that is being blasted over the alternative radio station 50 times a day, so I’m a step behind.

The TV is a distraction, anyway, but I keep hearing these commercials about bankruptcy, and it seems like I am hearing them many more times a day than I did. It’s been a while since I’ve actually watched TV more than a couple of times a month, but I think that there is more to it. I think there’s some significance to the commercials in this economy, right after tax day. It makes me curious how many people will end up declaring bankruptcy in between April 2009 and September 2009.

Anyway, about walking…

I still walk pretty much everywhere these days. I don’t even own a car, and the transit system here is not great. So, I still plan on walking everywhere. I walk to the grocery store, the bank, the convenience store, the restaurant and bar districts, and the library. It would be interesting for me to know how many miles a week I walk, but I would have to guess that it is about 15 or 20 miles a week, and that is without walking to work every day. So, I need to walk more—for exercise.

I’ve got to devise a plan to go for a walk at a certain time of day—to make it a routine. So, that’s going to be one of my top 10 goals.

Tomorrow, is another Monday, so I will be making good use of Outlook and Word, Gmail, Craig’s List, Dice, Monster… all that. Maybe a lead will come my way.

i just haven’t had the desire to really do this. the idea is interesting to me, and i’ve actually followed other people online who do this. it’s very cool – portable art that people find. i just haven’t done anything with it, and i don’t mind saying that i think i can live without accomplishing this task. it’s not a goal. it’s an idea.

it’s been about 10 weeks since i found a new job within walking distance of my home, and i have never regretted having to walk to work. it’s just a short walk – about 10 minutes – but if i get up early enough it is a relaxing time to shuffle down main street towards the office. after work, i love not having to fight traffic. i’ve felt much more free than i have for a long time. now… grocery shopping is a different story. walking home with 5 or 6 bags of groceries really sucks. i did that last week, instead of taking a cab home, and it was a bad idea. the plastic bags stretched almost to the point of coming apart, and they were much too heavy for walking. my backpack can only hold so much, and i am not going to be dragging a wagon down the street or sneaking off with a grocery cart. i’m thinking about an electric scooter or maybe a very fuel-efficient or even hybrid personal vehicle. i’m still walking to work, though.