EBA Presents: The Drunkard's Border Town Dilemma

I just finished designing the Promotional Materials for East Bay Arts High School's production of "The Drunkard's Border Town Dilemmas". It's a melodrama set on the Texas / Mexico border in 1850. I'm really excited to see the show. Break a leg guys!

I Desperately Need an Accountability Partner

This isn't so much an informative blog post as it is a plea for help. My life once again mirrors the not so nice elements of this post: endless TV, living off my tax-refund; the whole nine yards. I need a work-partner of sorts. I have rediscovered that when there is noone I am directly accountable to, I don't work.

You may be wondering how this whole accountability partner system works. Well it's really quite simple. Throughout the day the partners check in with each other at set times to discuss their respective work tasks and their progress towards completing them. These check-ins can occur in person, over the phone, via SMS, or instant messaging. The important thing is that both people are actively trying to use the system - if it's clear that one partner isn't working on their tasks or isn't motivated to check-in, it all falls apart.

Do you need an accountability partner in your life? If so, please contact me ASAP.

I’m working for Thai royalty!

I've got a new boss and he's a Prince among men, mostly because his name is Prince. I've also got a new employee, and his name is Mr. Gomolvilas… Mr. Prince Gomolvilas that is. I'm sure that those of you that care enough to do so are currently scratching your heads about this. Well, dear reader, it's really quite simple: the internet is a time sucking devil and the only way to vanquish it is to team up with another webophile and keep each other on task.

As I've previously discussed, the internet is the [insert name of natural phenomenon that involves lots of suction] of productivity sucks. What starts as a seemingly innocent click on an email link can turn into 11 hours of missing time, not unlike a W.C. Fields style gin-induced blackout. Prince and I have decided to put a stop to all that silliness – we check in with each other at set times throughout the day to discuss our work tasks and our progress towards completing them.

While it's still early days yet, the increase in my productivity level is astounding. In the past three workdays, I've accomplished more than I have in the past two weeks. But perhaps more importantly, I'm awake, showered, and dressed by 10 am and I'm done with work and free to see friends by 6:30pm. For those of you that work at home, definitely consider the buddy system (perhaps even three people – a tripod is the first self-standing base).

The Ugly Truth of Working at Home

Last night I attended my friend Lolly's last class at the Acme Comedy School. The $5 ticket price was more than compensated for by my eating my body weight in red-frosted cupcakes. After the show I was talking with an actor who had worked at home but after three months took a 9-5. When I asked him why he chose to lock up his schedule, he explained that he was lonely and unproductive when he worked from home. I can definitely relate to that.

This is the schedule I lived for the better part of last month:

9:00am Wake-Up & Hit Snooze
… Snooze Repeatedly
9:30am Rationalize that I need the sleep and turn off alarm.
12:00pm Wake up naturally and decide that I should go back to sleep anyway.
1:00pm Wake up and check email and read Blogs.
2:00pm Eat breakfast – cereal & milk.
2:30pm Begin watching episodes of 30 Rock/Dexter/Heroes
2:40pm Eat a second bowl of cereal and continue watching TV.
4:30pm Feel horribly disgusting about watching so much TV and take a shower.
5:00pm Try to do work but get distracted by some part of the Internet.
7:00pm Take myself out to Thai food in the neighborhood (rationalization: if I go outside, I can come back renewed and refreshed).
8:15pm Make a To Do list of tasks that need to be accomplished.
8:45pm Rationalize one more television episode.
9:15pm Berate myself for watching TV but watch yet another episode.
9:45pm Make myself another bowl of cereal.
10:00pm Become so overwhelmed with guilt and self-loathing that I start doing items on my To Do list.
12:00am Get a minor headache from being up late. Take a grandmother strength Motrin and drink a cup of Earl Gray Tea.
12:20am Get back to work.
2:30am Delirium sets in – but work must continue.
4:00am Work is done. Time to blog or surf the web.
5:00am Wonder why I'm still awake.
5:30am Get in bed and go to sleep.

Thankfully, my schedule is much improved of late. My family bought me a laptop so I drive to The Library right after my groundlings class and work there until about 7pm. Then I usually hang out with a friend or see a show until 11, and then I get home and work from 11:30 'til 2am.

I now work in Customer Support.

Sorting out my financial woes has many times surpassed acting as my primary focus in LA. While money is something that impacts everyone, I'm excited for the day that it will be less of a concern.

Although I've yet to sign on the dotted line, it looks like I've got a new job lined up. I'll be doing customer support for VetPrep.com – an online veterinary test preparation service. This job will be salaried and should cover my rent and utilities – relieving the stress of wondering when the next check from freelance work will roll in. The work consists of answering customer emails, making phone calls, and sending out promotional materials. In fact it's not terribly different from what I do as an actor: respond to breakdowns, make phone calls, and send out promotional materials.

My technical background is a real boon for me. Geeks have a leg up on most actors with day-jobs. There aren't many non-technical jobs that pay as well or offer nearly as much flexibility in terms of: place of work, time of work, and amount of work.

Super Productive Day

For almost the first time since moving down here, I feel like I've had a truly productive day.

• I awoke to a clean apartment, because I'd stayed up until 2 organizing and cleaning the night before (sorry to disappoint, but this is not evidence of a budding coke habit).
• I attended a voice workshop from 10:00-4:45.
• Drove to an audition - realized I was there on the wrong day (D'oh!) - and got a text about another audition in just enough time to drive from Hollywood to the location in Santa Monica.
• Kicked butt on the audition in Santa Monica.
• On my way out, I saw sides for another project and crashed the audition. I met the producers and read for two parts.
• Got home and essentially finished my first project for Maxon since moving down here.
  

Not too impressive by everyone's standards - but it's something I needed to celebrate.
Oh yeah, I teach people how to make pictures like what you see above for a living.

I'm Funky But Not Like James Brown

James Brown is the Godfather of Funk. I'm just in a funk - there's a big difference. A mild depression is starting to set in and I'm hoping I can beat it with sleep and exercise.

Mostly I'm upset by the amount of time I spend in my apartment - which is unfortunate because I work from home and theoretically that's a good thing. The problem is, I'm wildly unproductive in this space. In this past week I've put in 10hrs of 3D work at best.

My social calendar is decently full - but because I don't work around other people I can get pretty lonely. I still feel like I'm making good headway with the acting which is reassuring. I'm keeping my priorities in some semblance of order.

Goals for tomorrow:
Buy enough groceries for 1.5 days before I fly to SF.
Finish the first LA-based 3D project for Maxon.
Go to the gym.

Temping = Dead Like Me

After a discussion with my sister yesterday, I came to the conclusion that I was actually going to have to make some sacrifices to make this dream happen. *Gasp!* I know, right? Tamara (my sister) told me that I needed to get a job, any job, ASAP. Although she did agree with me that a full-time position would defeat the purpose of my coming down here. Which means I have to adjust my financial expectations.

As far as jobs go, Prince referred me to a temping agency located in Pasadena. I've got an interview with them on Monday morning. Looks like I'll be dusting off my suit collection and wearing matching socks for the first time in a while.

One of my favorite TV shows was set in a temping agency. The main protagonist, a recently dead girl, works there but has to cut out at odd hours to reap people. As in take their souls into the next life. I suppose that's not entirely dissimilar from my leaving work to participate in what is often called a "soul-sucking industry".

Broke... Broke... Broke...

This could get very painful very quickly. It looks like I need to get a "real" job. The contract work for the software company is too inconsistent for my tastes (it's been 3 weeks and none of my projects have been green lighted) - I need a salaried gig that ensures I'm going to make rent and pay my essential bills (utilities, car, food). Once I've got that, everything else is gravy.

For a second I thought I had another job doing tech support for a monthly stipend, but it seems like that isn't going to happen any time soon. I'm scared. But I'm sure that I can get work of some kind.

Priorities are shifting away from the acting for a little bit and the emphasis is now on making a living.

Ideas:

• Substitute Teaching
• Extra Work
• Community College Teacher
• Temp
• Whatever I can find on Craig's List*

* = not including "full release".

Oh, and I've got about 30 minutes left on my cell phone plan before calls cost me about $0.50/min.