Balance...

Something I am seeking and not finding in abundance of late. School is wearing on me. I am tired. My brain is tired. The freelance work is not what I would like and I have decided to put a hold on it for a bit. I really want to focus on creative works and my poetry.

The way I see it - I have 18 months or so, before I am done with my MBA and able to realistically think about full-time employment again - either contract work or being a company gal again, so I ought to use my time to finish school, enjoy the little people and write my great American novel.

While I might look to intern or something in an area that interests me, I am done chasing my tail and making no money. I can make no money- while writing my novel and that feeds my soul - the former just bleeds off brain cells and makes me cranky.

Not to mention L is having her tonsils removed this summer and between that and her handful of camps - it is unlikely I can tackle any projects of substance anyway...

I can compute...

I will be the first to admit, I know enough about the internet to surf and WE all know I have managed to keep the Edge looking pretty darn spiffy. Yep me and google/blogger are tight!

But may I just say... I just configured my Outlook - all by myself - with no one holding my hand and no one directly coaching me. Me and the Help tab did it all alone. And I did a bit of trouble shooting - Go Me! And I am pleased to say... it works... (Now my web guy did give me fairly clear instructions - but still, I was one plugging it in and making it work...)

I have switched web hosts - and no I have no idea what that really means - I guess it means I used to be sitting in booth A (well not me - my page in cyberspace... www.imageswritten.biz) and now I am sitting in Booth C!

So - in the space of a few days - I have stretched a bit of my Web presence muscle and I am learning things! Not that I will remember it for the next time, but hey I am patting myself on the back all the same!

Maybe I will seriously look into that HTML class of FLASH or whatever. I could be a cool cyberpunk chick in no time flat.

I used to have no idea what to do and now I am learning to be my own helpdesk. It is all about doing more with less these days!

I think I love Norton...

We all know my lap top melted down before Christmas and I was lucky enough to get a new one from Santa Claus. I love my new laptop. We had to get to know each other and the keyboard is different from the Dell, so my typing was off a tad for a while, but I am smooth sailing now.

The HP came loaded with some great software and I bought some great software also.

Norton was preloaded and frankly I really like it... way better than the freaky Spysweeper stuff that the Dell came with! So I renewed. I followed the links and I paid my money and then hit a huge road block.

I was struggling to get it to download. After a frustrating 6 tries, I finally opted for LIVE CHAT! WOW! Not only was the person helpful, he was able to log onto my machine and was able to unload the old version of the product and then download the good stuff. Showed me how to trouble shoot the auto updates and Windows VISTA firewall and was so pleasant!

It felt kinda funny having someone log onto my machine - but frankly I was out of options and the old stuff had expired - given that I had given myself a few days to figure it all out and well that did not work out so well.

But I think it was a great example of super customer service. He was helpful and thoughtful and through...

I not only like the features of the Norton 360 - I very much thought the customer service was good. I also thought their help menus are well written - I just am not that computer savvy to make it happen!

Go Norton!

Latest Gig!

Here is my latest gig...

I am the Business and Career Editor. I will be posting ideas and other blogs weekly. Have an idea or something you want to hear about - drop me a line... The site will launch formally in a few days!

Yeah!

So like Elaine...

I have picked up a great free lance gig - writing descriptions about office chairs. It is challenging in that all 300 or so need to be unique and upbeat and of a similar style! Also I should not - in the Thesaurus there are only so many words for elegant, modern, comfortable, ect! So it is a challenge. I love it. This is the kind of freelance work I want. Challenging and focused. My editing and MS Word skills are expanding - all good!

I also have become acquainted with the website Elance (www.elance.com) which I love. The escrow feature in particular! Means I have assurance that I will get paid or at least some formal recourse, given my luck with the defunct magazine earlier this year!

So when I tell people about this assignment, most wrinkle their noses and say, "So like Elaine and the Urban Sombrero thing at Peterman."

Um Yeah - Exactly like that! Just call me Elaine! The Elaine of office chairs!

For those of you thinking this project is silly and potentially mind numbing - let me just say I know a few things about Urethane now - go look it up - fascinating really!

Going...

I have had a great summer, a challenging summer, a complicated summer, a busy summer. Any of those statements is true - the reality is I have had a great challenging complicated busy summer.

True on many levels. As a mom of 2 busy kiddos - busy and great.

As a business owner - challenging and complicated.

As an artist - busy and great and challenging.

As a woman - all of the above and then some.

Sometimes I get lost in the process of my life. I am surrounded by needy (I do not mean this negatively) folks. L and E need me. My mother has and is undergoing 2 great life changes - moving (done - check - yipee) and she is coping with the fact that here time on this earth has a reasonably finite end. Cancer is curable - hers is not.

I am coping with that also. As her daughter....

I also tend to put everyone else first. I have gotten lost. What do I want exactly? Where am I going. What are my goals. I want my business to do well, but that is a slow process. I have been very focused on setting it up - creating a frame work, building some creditability and now the 4th quarter I am starting to pursue projects once again.

I have thrown my hat into the ring to step out of my previous professional role and try something new - leveraging many of the skills I had from my previous position(s) in a new and different way. It would be a contract position and I like the idea of a short term position - a great way to test something out and add something to my resume.

I also like the idea of versatility. I like the idea of economic flexibility. I crave options.

I have also taken a HUGE step and am going to finish my MBA. I can do it in less than a year. A series of 10 6 week classes - taken one at time and online. Perfect for me. No babysitting required.

There has been a series of events which have pushed me to break out of my holding pattern and finally take back the helm of my own ship. I am the Capitian and the Mistress of my Destiny and it is up to me to LIVE my life.

My best friend said it best...

"And I quote....from YOUR BLOG: "Life is really short. I mean really short. When great moments come along - Live them, because once they pass you by - they are gone forever."

Why only live the great moments....aren't all moments meant to be lived to their fullest?! I'm just saying, take your own advice and make all the moments worth living however you need to do so. "

It was the kick in the pants I really needed. I had been sulky and struggling and feeling cornered a bit and overwhelmed too I guess. And yet it is an easy choice - live life or pretend to live life. Develop a plan and execute it or not...

While I think I will be one busy girl over the next 12 months... I feel very positive about it. It is what I need to do get to the NEXT chapter in my life.

The Learning Adventure

Well today was my second court date in small claims court. Normally Tuesday is a great day becasue both little people are in school. Since the court randomly picks the date, I am at their mercy. TODAY however L was home from school due to the power outage and I tentatively called around to see if she could stay with any number of friends and well everyone was busy. Fate was kind and E did have school or I think I might have seriously bailed....

So my 6 year old got her first civics lesson. (Well that is not exactly true - I always take her to vote with me...) We took a "Learning Adventure" to the Court House - which is kinda like a field trip - but WAY Cooler! (Did I mention that I was reasonable good at my former JOB - which was heavily weighted in the consultive sales area of customer retention....) Anyway, we dressed up - cuz I think that is what you do when you go to somewhere important. She had her trusty knapsack loaded with books and off we went. We parked in the Brewery distract so we could walk over the Freeway - I mean really what action packed "Learning Adventure" is complete without a walk on a bridge over the freeway?

We went thru the metal detectors, hit the bathroom - becasue with a 6 year old that is always a crucial stop. Then played elevator hopscotch to get to the court room and then waited... and waited and waited some more.... we met a nice woman, who was the company rep from an airline who was being sued. She was lovely - her employer - well they keep charging you more and more for checked luggage...

Then we went into the courtroom which L claimed was colder than Whole Foods and well it was. We worked on her sticker book and waited and waited. Then the magistrate came in. (Yes he showed this time!) Called the case prior to me, then dismissed it becasue the court clerk had not processed the mail correctly. It was too bad, cuz it sounded interesting....

Then called me. Since I was the only one who showed, he asked me a few questions - I showed off a bit illustrating that I HAD done my homework, he smiled and said, "well since you showed up - You Young Lady get the prize." I took that to mean I was dismissed - as he wrote in his file folder and called the Airline Case, which if I had not had L with me and a parking meter running low, would have stayed for. It sounded crazy and well airline stuff is always interesting. The only industry where you pay big bucks to be treated like a criminal and then mistreated and your belongings lost. (That is another post entirely.)

Then L and I played elevator hopscotch again and then hit the potty one more time and then went to the car. Her reward for being a good helper and an outstanding citizen? A trip to a great restaurant! We parked in the Short North and then walked and skipped our way to restaurant. We celebrated with a nice meal and an awesome Strawberry Yogurt smoothie for her!

I am willing to bet that I will never see a dime of the nearly $1000 owed to me, but it was a great day and like I explained to her, asking someone to do work for you and then failing to pay the agreed upon amount is just like stealing and stealing is not ok.

I at least will have the court judgment to justify the loss on my taxes and well it was the right thing to do. I am going to work on tracking this woman down now - but it will be a back burner item - I need to focus on finding new clients who actually pay!

One must work...

very hard sometimes to get what is due them... I had my court date in smalls claims court. I did elect to sue my former client who skipped out and did not pay me. She failed to show up and well so did the magistrate. I guess he had bigger fish to fry - but I get my default judgment! Well half of it. The clerk of courts did not process the mail correctly so I will have to go back to get my judgment against the editor personally. Yipee. Either way I am not sure I have enough info about her or her banking to actually collect - but I will have the judgment - so it gives me some options.

Some random observations:

* getting the judgment does not actually get me anything. It gets me a piece of paper that I can take to the 3rd floor clerks office to get yet more paper - that I have to fill out and pay to have served or mailed or looked at. Then maybe I will get someone's attention. What I get is more work and still no pay!

* I was way way over dressed for my court appearance. I thought it was something serious - so I dressed in a nice summer black pants suit, a lovely tuxedo red blouse. - and for those interested in my shoes - I wore black platform sandals - they did not exactly match the outfit and I have some better shoes for the outfit - but they make me feel fierce and well I wanted put my best foot forward - not that it mattered! No one but me really showed up for today's little party. Next time maybe I will go for the gangsta chic that seemed to be the dress code of the day today. Maybe low hanging jean shorts and boxer brief peak a boos! Or wait - the white tub top minus a bra and a skirt so short as to show off the young ladies who-haw!

There was a time when one dressed up for events such as this! It is a matter of respect and well self respect I would humbly submit!

* When I arrived in the waiting area - there were at three dozen people there. Then at 12:45 pm - a woman called out that any one there to get their driving privileges reinstated - to follow her - everyone but me got up and followed her. May I say never in my life have I longed for more public transit options. Seriously 3 dozen people... some of whom I can see why driving might not be such a good idea.

At a minimum it highlights the need for more drivers ed and more frequent refresher courses I think. H has to do flight training every 6 months and there is way less traffic in the air than on our streets and freeways.

* I will go to court again and see this thru becasue it is the right thing to do. She owes me money for work I did and I cannot believe that the court screwed it up - by not following their own protocols - but I will carry on - I might get lucky and get my money before my kids go to college.

I need to try and do some more investigation to find out more about her... I am just not sure how. The phone number I have is dead. The email is dead and well her business filings with the State leave a bit to be desired.

Somethings are meant to be...

I had been writing for a start up magazine here in Columbus. It was one of those vehicles for business owners to buy advertising and get a bit written about them and their business. Not hard journalism to be sure - but nice for them. I took every single profile very seriously. I gave it my all and I tried very hard to not have a formula - each profile was as unique as the person I interviewed. I was also writing some articles - mainly fluffy stuff - but it was great practice and I gave it my all also.

For three months this has been fairly consuming. I mean it is about all I got done, outside of the mommy tasks and some fun here and there. I will also say that it taught me how to make myself write - even when I just did not feel it. I learned to write faster. I would be lying if in May I did not think to myself that perhaps it was taking its toll. I have not been focused on poetry nor my novel - which is where my true writing passion lies. In all fairness I like doing both - the articles and profiles but I also like the fiction and poetry. I had lost my balance.

I also had not been getting paid. The magazine owes me for work I did in late February, March, April and May. I had not worried about the lack of payment until late April. My contract had said I would be paid the 25th of the following month. Seemed reasonable. That is how it worked in January. When the next check did not arrive - I inquired and well got the it must have been lost in the mail - which with my mail lady I was totally willing to buy. So the editor proposed combine the next two - that was fine with me. Having worked at ML - I knew it takes a few days to process the stop payment and all that jazz.

As I wrote the articles and profiles for May I got a bit more wary. Still no check and well it took longer to get my emails answered and by the last week of the month when we were generally the most busy - I had nary a phone call. Odd.

But I decided perhaps the editor had finally gotten her act together and it was just running smoother. I enjoyed the week or so of quiet and refocused my writing efforts on my blogs and my fiction and my poetry and I read some - a novel thing for a budding novel writer.

Then one of my profiles called - wanting to know why he had not gotten his copy of the proof nor the magazine. Umm, no idea. I offered to call. Then another called me. Then another and another.

Then I tried calling and emailing and got nothing. Weird. But in the pit of my stomach I knew. I knew that this was not good. In all fairness I knew it in May and just tried to be hopeful. It was good work and exciting and it was great for my portfolio and it would have paid decently - especially given that I have little experience. But as the days ticked by and still no word and no answer it was obvious what had happened. Well there are tow possibilities really.

One is the entire things was a scam, a fraud. It is possible I suppose that the editor went to all the trouble of starting a website and magazine and setting up a company to just pocket advertisers money. What is more likely is this was legit - but it was a bigger task than she expected and instead of facing the music and being a stand up person and telling the advertiser that it was not working out as planned and telling her freelancers (the graphic designer, the web master and me) that well she could not pay us - she instead split. Took down the website and fled. The other possibility is it was a bit of both.

In any event I am angry, mostly for her lying to the small businesses she sold space to. For not being a stand up person and behaving in an ethical manner. The fact is I would have - had she said she could not pay me - more than likely said she could have some of the work for free or worked out a payment plan. I am a reasonable person and this was in my opinion a career enhancing move. It was the experience I needed to make a leap professionally. That said - the nice Susan ship has sailed and I am hopping mad. I have contacted the police department, told the advertisers I have spoken with I would be happy to help in whatever way I can - with whatever action they choose to pursue and I fired off a collections letter this week(mailed certified) and next week - I am going to head down to small claims court. (or the week after - depends on whether my certified is singed for or not.)

I was feeling a bit down. Like maybe I should have researched her business more before I took her as a client. But the fact is I used the web and checked the BBB and other sites and frankly it looked legit. I mean one of my first gigs was for a business in India. I wrote some canned business letters in US ENGLISH. They paid me via paypal. Not like I knew much about them. I may have to rethink that practice or not - it is the electronic age and a global market place. No business - even for us lowly copy writers is without risk.

So now I have plenty of time to focus on my full length novel, which I guess is how this summer was meant to be.