Hagioscope

Sunday, June 03, 2007

six feet under

So I’ve just begun watching Six Feet Under. It’s everything Grey’s Anatomy is not: honest, shocking, gritty, moving. The sex is dirty, the language is foul, and the smoking doesn’t look quite as contrived. The series doesn’t look contrived — which is how you know it isn’t a primetime network show. I’m just a handful of episodes into the first season, but I’m really enjoying it.

Shifting gears:
Here’s something about me that annoys me. Let’s say somebody asks me to do something, a thing I know I'll enjoy, but initially I don't want to do it because . . . basically because it was not my own idea. Why can’t I just skip straight to the part where I expect to have fun? It annoys me that every request to step outside my cave feels like an imposition, even welcome invitations. Sometimes I’d like to be just a little bit less introverted.

Well, I’m not so intro when it comes for asking for my money. I’ve had to prod several clients about invoices lately. In the past, I would have let it ride for like 8 weeks. But now? I’m all “Show me the money!” after about 15 days. In the nicest, most professional-sounding way, of course.

Shifting again:
Anyway. Despite the introversion handicap, I managed to pick up yet another new client this past week, so I’ve spent the majority of the weekend working on their project. The editing they wanted done wasn’t all that major, but reformatting the document was a challenge, especially since Microsoft Word thinks it’s smarter than me and is always doing clever little things like reformatting my page footers every time I auto-update the TOC. GRR! But the rest of the project seems fine, and if the client likes it, there will be more.

Also, apparently I applied for some sort of research assistantship at the U (where I already work in course development), and tonight — at 6:36 on a Sunday evening, to be exact — I got a message about coming in for an interview. Dude, I don’t even remember what this job is, let alone why I applied for it! Guess I’d better go look that one up and call them back.

Really, I shouldn’t have applied. I’ve got more than enough to do right now. I probably shouldn’t even have taken on the latest new client. Well, I quoted them my highest hourly rate, the one that makes people say, “No, seriously. How much?” and they said they’d pay it, so I’ll deal. But I’ve made a new rule: No new clients who pay any less than that highest rate. I’m in a position to start saying “no” now. Gotta try that.

One last time:
My climbing roses are storming my front gate in a riot of hot pink and bouncing brambles. They desperately need trimming, but I can’t bear to cut them while they’re blooming. Maybe in the fall.

The new lilac bush I planted a couple weeks ago, however, is looking droopy despite the rain we’ve been getting. Hmm. I poured a whole watering can’s worth of water over it earlier tonight, and the ground soaked it all up. So I guess either the rain hasn’t been as plentiful as it has seemed, or that poor lilac just needs a lot more water than I thought.

All right, enough. Time to squeeze in just one more ep of Six Feet Under before bed.

Labels:

0 Comments:

Post a Comment

<< Home