Early December Musings

Forgive me Father, for it has been more than a month since my last conf…blog entry detailing my life. So, the good news first. Contrary to rumors that you might have heard, I have, in fact, found a job. I am working as a contractor through Apex with GP. But most importantly, it is a Project Manager job, which means that there is an excellent chance that my days of being forced from contract to contract as human flotsam as a Technical Writer might be over. We shall see. The current position is supposed to be contract to hire, but no one seems entirely sure yet what this role will be. The good news though is that there is a lot of work, at least for a while, so spontaneous endings are less likely.

Having said that, with two layoffs in the same year, the extremely strong position I started in is almost entirely gone, which means that I’m probably taking Mom and Skip up on their offer to share living space with them for a while. It is slightly frustrating, to need to do that at 40 years of age, but they are being very accommodating and turning two rooms into what is essentially a mini apartment. Plus, since we’re in a depression, I should be grateful I just had a job, much less that I could find one quickly. The fact that it is in a field I enjoy and see great potential in, so much the better.

Still, changes need to take place. I am seriously pursuing two alternative lines of income so that I will always have money coming in regardless of my core employment situation. One is voice over work. I’ve taken lessons, bought equipment and recently acquired a manual. My goal is to start soliciting work by the end of January once I’ve finished the final elements of training. (I could look right now, but my equipment isn’t quite up to speed, and there are insider ‘tricks’ that I can learn so I’m not spinning my wheels thank you very much.) The second, ironically, is as a technical writer. Technically (pun intended), however, what I’m actually doing is emergency documentation of any kind, its just that the technical writing should consistently pay the best. The key here however, is that it is a moonlighting job that I control and will not depend on. It’s a business, not a career, and that makes a huge difference.

I have some other projects I’ll be starting next year on again, off again to make money, but these are what one might call “R&D” rather than the level of magnitude I’m working on with the above. One of the best perks of the new job is that I can start exercising again, but while I might be going back to Atlanta Kick, the Karate is going to be secondary to the Cross Fit. I’m hoping to start tomorrow. More details on that as it comes.

I also have some very interesting plans in general for next year, and I’m basing almost all of them around contingencies that do not depend on income. The writing is going well, and I’ve finished 5 of the 7 projects I have for the ‘wrap up’ of the Red Anvil Productions podcast. I’m doing another Podcast, but it will be Tossing Grenades at Windmills and primarily focus on promoting my novels, starting with my first which isn’t really (I think) Publication worthy but still worth doing something with, and the podcast seems the perfect venue for that. I haven’t given up on film, even if I am opening up on a new chapter of it. Still, life is interesting, and I’ve reforged bonds with old friends and made several new friends. This has been a difficult year, but not as hard as the last. The next is shaping up to be one of the best yet, and while I will be advancing my professional career, I also intend to do my best to make my 40th year one big party, since quite frankly I think I deserve one, and what else is there to life when you’re a bachelor with no immediate prospect of marriage or children? Having said that, who knows what the future will hold. I know all kinds of highly interesting roads are open before me, and I intend to explore them all.

Good luck and God Speed.