One Of The Stupidest Questions To Ask Right Now...

I'm dreading the Holiday get togethers even more than usual this year. It was hard enough explaining what my job is/"was" in previous years and I have a feeling it will be even more horrific this year trying to explain why I'm not working as much.

Plus, there's even the more dreaded question: So what have you been doing this whole time if you're not working?

I mean, I can't exactly tell them that I've been watching a lot of TV and baking cookies. And you know what? That's a stupid question to ask anyway. I mean, unemployed people all pretty much do the same things. Look for work and wait for an opportunity. We watch TV, make dinner and vacuum the rug while we worry about our financial future. Sometimes a load of laundry or two is thrown into the mix.

I know that the question is asked innocently enough, but damn, it's annoying.

I've Heard This Story So Many Times I Feel Like I'm In "Groundhog's Day".

I'm tired of all this SAG/AMPTP strike talk. It's because of these "talks" that I'm not working and I have friends leaving the business.

They've been "talking" for about six months now, and every time they "talk", neither side budges. Now they're having new "talks" and guess what? They're all saying the same damn thing!

For Pete's sake SAG, your industry is at a standstill and most everyone is out of work. There are five other unions (and tentatively a sixth) who more or less took the same deal. This is the one industry that's historically been "recession proof", but now it's losing money. What makes you think threatening to strike is a good idea? It's a three year contract for crying out loud, and if you had taken the offer to begin with, it'd already be 20% over and you'd be reaping the benefits of the better terms instead of still working off the old, expired contract. Either put the damn strike out to a vote, or take the AMPTP's offer. Stop being childish.

Should I Stay Or Should I Go?

I got a call late last night from a guy who who's hired me before in the past. He was checking my availability for a job... in Las Vegas.

No idea on the budget, rate, crew, gear, dates or anything else. The only thing that's for sure is Vegas.

Sounds a bit shady, but in a bright, glitzy, neon lights kinda way.

People Who Do The Hiring Are Either Stupid, Lazy, Or Both.

This is the second time in a row now where I submit my resume to a production, and get a generic reply that's OBVIOUSLY been copy and pasted onto who knows how many other applicants.

Yeah, it's hard/annoying to have to type the same basic info for each e-mail you receive. I get it. I really do. But hey, you managed to take the time out and throw in my name for that "personal" touch, how hard is it to slip in the JOB TITLE that you all seem to think I'm "perfectly suited" for??

And they all want to meet with me too, which is the funny thing. Like I'm really gonna jump at the chance to meet some nincompoops to interview for a position I don't even know.

Oh, and have I mentioned that they all want me to do these mystery jobs for free?

Ugh... I Think I'm Getting Too Old For This...

Work was pretty fun today, despite waking up late and only having five minutes to get out the door. It ended up being a "half" day today, but I still feel like I went a full 12 hours of real work.

My plan for the rest of the night: watch TV and eat ice cream. Yum.

(Oh, and we stayed indoors for the better part of day, but the air didn't seem that bad anyway.)

Sucky Air, Sucky Weekend.

I'm going a bit stir crazy right now. I haven't left my apartment all weekend except to go get the mail yesterday. Because of the poor air quality from the fires, everyone has been advised to stay indoors.

I've got a shoot to go to tomorrow though, and it's out in Santa Monica where the air is supposedly even worse. Hopefully it won't be so bad.

This Is The Most Interesting Thing That's Happened To Me In A While.

I had a dream last night where I was a camera operator on this weird documentary and we'd shoot the whole thing using little point and shoot digital cameras. I was damn good at it too.

Already Thinking About Thanksgiving...

My mom called me today.

"So you'll be home on Tuesday, right? Because I just made a dentist appointment for you for the 26th."

Yeah, that was how the convo started. Mom's not big on pretext.
Meanwhile, I was caught off guard and didn't even know what to say. Probably because I hadn't even thought about when I'd be making the trek back home and was trying to figure out if she had gotten the date from something I've said or if she just made it up.

Anyway, after the conversation ended and I hung up the phone, I started thinking and counting back the months. I haven't been home since last January for New Years, making this the longest I've been away for. I usually at least pop in for a visit once or twice a year but I guess this year's been harder because of the lack of work.

It used to be that I'll have a month or two booked up and I'd drive up and spend some time with the folks before things got super busy. But now that I no longer have the luxury of knowing when I'll get my next paycheck, I'm pretty much stuck staying in town since most of my money these days have been from random last minute gigs, which can be kind of a bummer.

And now, for the first time that I can remember, I'm actually looking forward to going home. I mean really looking forward to it. And that is what I'll be thankful for this Thanksgiving.

Today Was A Good Day.

The freelance life is crazy. One minute you're going months without work, and the next you're on a few sweet back to back jobs that end up paying a bit more than was agreed upon.

You also end up suddenly overworked, crawling into bed before eleven, and wanting to do nothing but sleep for days. And when it's all over, you're back at square one, wondering where the next paycheck is coming from.

Ahh... This is the life.

Rewrites.

Amendment to previous list of goals:

I'll clean one "problem" area of my apartment a day, unless I'm working. There's simply no way I can fit both in if I'm going to take either job seriously. Plus, otherwise it means that my new resolutions didn't even make it through two days. =Þ

One Good Thing About Today Was That There Were Cupcakes On Set.

And they were yummy.

Happy Halloween!

People Ask Me For Favors At The Weirdest Times.

Seriously, can't a girl spend a night to herself and get more than half a chapter into a self-indulgent chick lit book without getting bombarded with text messages asking her to be in Long Beach tomorrow morning at 6am?

Geeze.

And So It Begins...

It's been a few days since my End Of October Manifesto, and I'm happy to say that I've kept it up... Sort of.

My kitchen table is now usable and so is my desk thanks to some quick de-cluttering, which is a small step, but it's definitely a step in the right direction. As much as I would've liked to tackle bigger "problem areas" of my apartment, I just haven't really had the time or energy over the last couple of days.

But I am proud to report that the work related goal is getting some good attention. I landed a gig for this weekend and gained a new piece of equipment for my arsenal that I've wanted for a really long time but haven't been able to afford. Luckily, I was able to buy one (barely) used for a pretty good price, and I brought it home last night. Yay! And it's awesome timing too since I can test it out at work this weekend and see if it needs any adjustments or something. I can breathe a little easier now. =)

And tonight, since there's nothing really on TV that I feel like watching and my ass is going to be numb if I spend another minute in this computer chair, I'm going to spend the evening reading a book. I haven't done that in what feels like ages. And to start with, I'll be reading Confessions of a Shopaholic. Chick lit, I know, but it should be a fun read. Things are a bit too depressing right now to read anything serious anyway.

Jealous. Kinda. Sorta. Not really.

Life's a funny thing. It's never how you plan it. Despite growing up knowing that the "real world" would be tough, I never expected to be unemployed for this long at this point in my life. And to make this kick in the pants even worse, it's not really because of anything I've done. It's the economy... The pending actor's strike... Basically the mess that is the world. And while I know I'm not alone in my search for work, it still sucks.

Meanwhile, I have friends who seem to be flourishing. Booking back to back strike-proof features. Working non-stop. Shooting out in Bora Bora and staying at the St. Regis all on the company's dime. I'm sorta jealous of each and every one of them (especially the one in Bora Bora) but at the same time, I'm happy for them. And you know what? They deserve it. I know they work hard at what they do and most of them have been in the game too long to not be landing jobs like that.

I'm not gonna lie though. It does kinda suck to watch these guys go out and work on these amazing shoots while I'm sitting at home hoping for an offer, any offer, to pop up. But I guess I can find some comfort in knowing that I'm at least associating myself with some really good people. That's gotta mean something, right?