Decision Made

I paid it. Phone, with the same number, and Internet will be back on Thursday morning. Hallelujah.

With the extra money my friend loaned me, I stocked up on groceries, had a nice Mexican seafood dinner for Christmas, paid the balance of the rent, and turned on the phone and Internet. TV? We don't really need it. We can see nearly everything we want on the Internet, and I now know how to stream movies from my laptop to the TV, including DVDs. Heh.

And I still have $100- left over, and I got my first paycheck for the new gig in the mail on Saturday, the second one should be on its way, also. That will be half a month of rent. Woot.

So I'm feeling a bit better about things today. But honestly, if I didn't have a good, good friend who has a little extra money? We would be so fucked, seriously. I don't even want to think about it. I'll start paying him back in February because I found out last night there should be more work starting on Wednesday morning. *exhale*

My husband's unemployment ended yesterday. But at $53- a week, we won't really be missing it that much. He's applied for 26 teacher jobs since the 16th, but school is out until later this week or next week depending on the district.

I'm urging him to apply for anything and everything, even if it's just for a month, to bring in some cash. He's always had his mommy and daddy there to bail him out when he gets in trouble, but now the in-laws are having financial troubles of their own. But that sense of entitlement and enabling he's used to does not incite the proper urgency or importance of getting off his ass and doing something NOW. If he keeps this up....well, I'm almost to the breaking point.

But me? I'm a survivor. I know how to survive. But I can't do it for two people. And I won't.

Come on 2013--I refuse to believe she'll be worse than 2012.

Decisions, Decisions

I can't make up my mind. Do I pay the $220- we owe the cable company to get the Internet and land line phone turned back on, both of which I need for work, OR do I save the money for rent and other bills?

Right now I'm riding my neighbor's unsecure WiFi connection (i.e. stealing) plus the guilt factor ugh, and it's not that reliable. I need reliable for work. I also went over my minutes for the first time, EVER, this month, but mostly because I was making a lot of calls for work. And my husband used it. A lot. So I need an unlimited monthly phone.

I'm owed about $300- from one editing gig and have $200- more on the way from a the new gig, got one check today for $150-, and have over $300- in the bank. I'm inclined to pay it just for the reliability and the whole not-stealing-from-my-neighbor thing.

Gah. I can't decide. I need to think on this some more. Thoughts? Opinions? Advice? Anyone?

If I Were a Business Owner...

I may be a WiFi stealer (and lord, let that be the worst of my sins), but if I were a business owner, I would make sure any contractors, employees, or people who depended on me for a living (janitors, housecleaners, mechanics, etc.), I would make sure that they all received any money due them before Christmas. I would. That would be my focus for one or two days of the business month. Pay all my workers.

My father owned his own business for over 30 years, and when I told him about the issues getting monies owed from this client, he was incredulous. He was a good businessman, and a kindhearted soul, and his employees got a $50- bonus at Christmas, plus a Honey-Baked Ham, for every year they worked for him. One guy was there over 25 years, so he would get $1250-. As someone who grew up desperately poor, he knew that the difference between one payday and the next could be a long, long wait.

Alas, this is not the case for one employer/client I have. I have not received a dime this month, not one thin dime, even though I know one of my clients, whose project finished two weeks ago, made a deposit in November. I've not received it. I'm the only person working on the project. She also paid the balance before Friday as she flew out of town yesterday for Christmas. She's so delighted with my work and help for her, she's taking me to lunch next Friday. Does that sound like an unhappy client? No. Because I care and I go above and beyond what is requested, because people matter to me, and because I understand.

I'm disappointed, but not surprised.

Merry effin' Christmas.

How's the New Gig Going?

It's brutal. I'm not kidding. I've lost those production typist muscles that I had built up for most of my work life, and sitting in front of a computer all day manipulating cells and rows and lines of text, has played havoc with my back and shoulders....but...I had a very satisfied sense of accomplishment that only continued to grow with each day I worked.

Over the last two weeks, ending on Wednesday of this week, I worked about 35 hours in total in addition to juggling two other clients whose needs were not demanding, but the timing was sort of off. And for which I have no idea when I'll be paid. *rolleyes* Whatever.

Working with my college friend has been a dream. We are on the same wavelength and communicate very well. We Skype, IM, and email each other as we work because I'm being trained and have lots of questions, but also because sometimes we just want to be silly with each other. That makes me feel comfortable and it makes it easier for me to learn and do my job.

Not having Internet here at home, and riding on our neighbor's open wifi has been problematic, both in terms of use and ethics--I hated when people would steal my wifi, and I hate to do it to someone else, but our financial situation left me with no choice. But on Tuesday the wifi, which had been spotty all week, went out completely and I ended up at Starbucks for about seven hours. My ass and backs of my legs were numb and hurt all night--I had trouble sleeping, so that just won't work. I work well in my reclining chair with my laptop on my lap, and it turns out my friend also works in a reclining chair. :D Funny.

Anyway, I mention this because I hope to have our Internet connection here at home resolved in the next few days and turned back on, and guilt and apologies to my neighbor. Ugh.

So I made several hundred dollars over those two weeks, I connected with my friend, I have learned a lot about this particular field, and I have learned a lot about Excel, which I both love and hate, and I have gained satisfaction from doing something right. You can't buy that.

Unfortunately, due to the holiday season, work has dried up. I had been hired to handle overflow for my friend, and well, we did it all. And things are just slow this time of the year. But, with any luck, work will pick up after the holidays, and I can go back to making a little extra money, learning, and building those shoulder muscles again.

Peace. Merry Christmas.

Now I Can Tell You: Good News!

I got a new gig. A work-at-home gig. This one will have regular hours, however, and I'll probably work Sunday through Thursday.

A friend of mine from college contacted me about a week ago asking if I needed work and would I be interested in doing x,y,z editing. I said I would. I finally connected with the owner today, we talked about 15 minutes, and she said she would talk to my friend about getting me trained asap. Yay!

The pay is crap, but its 100% more than I'm getting now (right?).

The work is dull. But...

The owner of the business pays EVERY WEEK. Fanfuckingtabulous!!!

I start training on Wednesday, so I hope to get 8 hours Wed and 8 Thurs and maybe another 8 on Friday if I don't screw up. :D

Hallelujah.

I can still do the book editing on the side (since there's so little of it, that even a big book I could do at night, and then wait three months to get paid. *rolleyes*)

So finally, yeah. Good news.

Things have been rough here lately, really rough. Not third-world terms, but still, rough. It's all about perspective.

I have some things and goals I want to do and accomplish once I get a steady income stream going, one might be really dramatic. We'll see.

So there's the good news. And on a Monday, too.

Thank you angels.

Maybe...?

I may have some good news, perhaps as soon as tomorrow. *fingerscrossed* I'll post then. Hee hee.