Happy Halloween!

Hope you'll all be celebrating in style!

The Scramble

I've stepped up my job search this week and have one lead for a semi-regular job. Need more than that, though. I owe $600 to Columbia, and if I don't get that paid before we start the Spring semester, I can kiss my Master's degree goodbye.

Really hoping to land a second job or some new clients before the holidays. New clients would be easiest to schedule and probably the most profitable, but advertising hasn't turned up any new ones in a couple of months. I do pretty well by word of mouth, but those have been few and far between lately, too. I've applied for retail holiday work at Macy's (as a bartender), tons of writing and editing gigs, and a few others I'd rather not mention (no online cams, if you were wondering). If I get hired and have to work through Thanksgiving and Christmas, so be it. It sucks because I usually visit my parents around those times, but I'm at a point where I must work more NOW. I still have some stones to unturn and I'm unturning them.

How Do "They" Know These Things???

There's a hilarious quiz over on The Rejectionist's blog. In the comments section, an editor referred to a spam query about an abused woman composer.

But I didn't send it. I swear.

This gives me the same feeling I got when my gmail account advertised that I could make "lovely tinfoil hats" from used aluminum foil. I mean, how did it know?

More Coffee, Please

Today I got up early, ready to take on whatever replies that came in from all the applications, resumes, and cover letters I sent out on Friday.

And you know what? There was nothing. Nada. In fact, my recent culling of newsletter e-mails has made me realize just how little e-mail from actual people I get.

Then I remembered. It's Sunday.

"And now I'm going to play you a beautiful ballad . . . "

So we did the concert with Terence Blanchard Friday night. It was phenomenal. Can't wait to share the piece with you guys.

Terence was also great to work with all week. He's got a great sense of humor, and he's really kind. I feel really lucky to have met him.

Go Toward the LIght!

There's a light at the end of the tunnel. I'm not saying that after this week I'll be home free, but I'll at least have more time to concentrate on school work.

I'm still looking for a second job. If anyone knows of any offsite editing or proofreading jobs (part-time), send them my way. Yes, I know "offsite" and "part-time" can be oxymorons for that kind of work. : )

Uptempo '80s Tunes with Law-Related Themes

Okay, for this play I'm doing, an updated version of Twelve Angry Men, we need uptempo, fun tunes from the '80s with law themes. Yes, you read that sentence correctly.

The only one I've been able to come up with so far is "Billie Jean." Any ideas?

Creepy Limerick

I've posted a few entries to Stuart Neville's Twitfic contest for a copy of Ghosts of Belfast. Really need to learn to edit what I post, because an entry I made turned into a pretty creepy limerick:

He jilted her at the alter, so she hung herself from a rafter. Till death do us part my ass, she said, and haunted him thereafter.

It's a little too long for the rules he set, damn it. And too bad, because I think he'd really dig it since he's Irish. Irish, limerick . . . yes, bit of a stereotype. First thing I've written in months, though.

Great! and OMG!

Terence Blanchard is coming to school next week to record our jazz pieces. Excited and nervous.