Wonderland

[shes2smart]

Just For Grins

 

I enabled the "Parental Controls" on my Warcrack account. They have a feature that will email a weekly report detailing the time spent logged into the game....theoretically to the parent of an underage player.

 

So I set it up to send a weekly report to me. I got the first report today. Basically, I spent one full day out of 7 logged into the game this past week. Now, I do have the bad habit of logging in and then walking away on my days off, but I don't think that'd account for more than 1 or 2 hours of that time, max. I don't know if I should be going "huh...just ONE day...that's not too bad, really" or "Holy crap! ONE WHOLE DAY? I have a problem."

 

This week is shaping up to be a good week for VO stuff. Got hired for a project I auditioned for on v123, so new client. The four-figure-talent-fee client came back and asked for another 3 minute piece. I also had another repeat client come back with a second project, and quoted on a 4th item. So, we're looking at $500-600 billable and a quote for a little over $100.

 

And it's only Tuesday.

 

So, despite spending a full 24 hours on Warcrack over the course of a week, I still manage to show up at the office gig, do my direct mail marketing, audition for stuff and get hired for VO stuff....so maybe it's not all that bad, really. I guess there are worse things I could be doing.

[shes2smart]

Whee!

 

This week I have:

 

Voiced a tutorial for safe food handling practices, voiced a commercial for a small cable network, voiced portions of lessons for science and history teachers for my on-going educational gig, voiced 2 short scripts for the four-figure-gig client, voiced a tutorial on crisis management for a counseling firm, voiced a spot for an insurance agent, and went to a VO gig for a new project from the math textbook people from last year....on top of working the full time office gig.

 

And I still have a unit to voice for the health teacher at the educational gig...but that doesn't need to be finished for a couple days.

 

I made more doing VO work this week than working full time....and with a lot less aggravation.

 

Still trying to figure out how to deal with the "supervisory" role that was dumped on me this week. I dunno. Way I figure it, I am getting paid less than the 2 people that (sorta) had this position before me, so why should I take on the more managerial responsibilities? I didn't want the title or the responsibilities, and in turn, accept that means a lower wage.....so please don't try to throw the responsibilities on me after the fact. I am not being compensated for the managerial position, and that's fine. But you are asking me to take on that role and that's not fine. Even if the compensation was adjusted to account for that role, I would not want the responsibilities.

 

I will say this, though: Having this much voice work to do has kept me off the Warcrack this week....and I can't say as I miss it much. It would appear to me to be something that I do when I have free time, and just as easily not do when I don't have free time. The week I got the log in/log out/time played report for was a slow week for voice work. I bet the report for this week is different.

 

I think I'm starting to need a day away from everyone and completely unplugged. I feel like I've been surrounded by and bombarded with a lot whining, complaining, moaning, groaning and general kvetching about stuff that's either not important or fixable (and they're just lazy).

 

Driving home the other night, I was planning out what I needed to do before I would be able to crash for the evening. What VO projects needed to be worked on, what could wait, what had to be done by what time.... And I had this sort of "aha!" moment, where I was able to kind of step back and be an outside observer to my own life and see that I am really doing this. Something that started off as little more than imagining myself getting scripts emailed to me then getting checks in the mail is happening...and happening more and more frequently.

 

I remember a day some 12 to 18 months ago, where I went to voice a spot at the radio station, then got a call from the math text book people wanting to know when I could come in and record some script changes. And I just went over there when I was done at the radio station since their studio isn't too far from there. Driving home from that, I remember talking out loud in my car saying, "thank you and more of this please."

 

It's all happened and continues to happen.

 

And the more these things happen, the less tolerance and patience I have for kvetches and kvetching. We all have the power to change our attitude which is the first step to changing our situation. That you choose not to use your power is not my problem. But kindly step out of my way because I am choosing to use mine.

[shes2smart]

Done And Done

 

I came at it sideways, like a crab....but by the time the weekend was over and the new week started, I had created & ordered my postcards for bulk mailer #3, printed the address labels for the drop & bought half the stamps (all I had $$ for right now...that and who really wants to drop $140 at the post office in one fell swoop?), so once the cards get here, they'll just need to be address label-stickered & stamped & they'll be ready to drop in the mail...August 2. I also figured up and paid 2nd quarter estimated city taxes, and finished up and turned in all the VO projects I was booked for last week.

 

Already have another $200 project in the pipeline for this week. A new client who is a referral from a client I've done 2 projects for in the last month. Both of these companies produce tutorials and elearning presentations for different government agencies, so the pay is good.....and likely to be on-going. Woot!

 

We also did groceries yesterday and have almost completely transitioned to "stock up when it's cheapest" buying rather than "buy what we need at any price." I started making this transition when I read the Mary Hunt book earlier this year ( link removed )like...February/March-ish (?). She had written that if you followed her instructions, within 6 months you'd have a fully-stocked pantry without spending anymore than you normally do on groceries...and she was right.

 

Aside from milk & fresh produce, we are probably at the point where we could actually skip the occaisional every-other-week grocery trip and not even notice. The people who used to own this house left an old refrigerator in the basement when they moved out. Nothing wrong with it, it's just old (and a very dated appliance color) and they didn't want the hassle of moving it. It has come in very handy in this transition in food-purchasing.....as have the built-in shelves that are also in the basement.

 

I could have, say, 6 or so unexpected guests drop in and be able to fix dinner for all of us without running to the store or calling for pizza. I won't buy tuna when it's more than .98 a can (for the solid white albacore kind)...but when it's .98 a can, I'll buy 8 or 10 cans. Same rationale behind when (and where) I buy other staple items like tomato sauce, tomato paste, pasta, rice, canned soup, and all the other things that were showing up in our cart on a regular basis.

 

So, after we did groceries yesterday, I realized that most of the bags were headed for storage downstairs. The exceptions were the fresh produce, the milk, some cheese, and a couple of items we were just out of. So, that's when it hit me that the transition from "buying what we need no matter what price" to "buy it cheap and stock up" has pretty much occurred.

 

Much to my surprise, my husband has actually fully embraced this the change in the food shopping and tracks his own items -- stuff that he likes and eats far more frequently than I do....things like frozen pizzas and canned ravioli (eww) and chips and peanut buter. Yesterday, he figured out between store specials and coupons, he could get 32 oz bottles of Gatorade (ewww) for .50 each. So he got his own cart and one entire shelf of the downstairs fridge is nothing but Gatorade (eww). While the specific food choices aren't ideal, the fact that he's buying it at the lowest possible price and stocking up at the low price is good enough.

 

So, really, I see this change in approach to things like food shopping and overall money management as another necessary step toward being able to do just freelance VO and not have to have a job....and make that happen sooner rather than later.

 

Initially, it looked like it was just a career/work transition. Turns out it's really a whole-life overhaul.

[shes2smart]

You're Kidding, Right?

 

Oh, how I have wanted to say this to several people in the last few days.

 

The bottom-feeders have started to come out on the one-low-price site again. I have noticed that something they have in common is that most of the time they are wanting VO work for some sort of mlm/network marketing business. What is it with these people?

 

I guess it shouldn't surprise me. I mean, they've already gotten themselves suckered in to the scheme to the point that they're looking to have a video or audio commercial made or have a robo-call thing recorded. They want to sound like a somewhat legitimate business/business opportunity....but they don't want to pay for a pro VO person. So they try to sneak in on the offers I have on the one-low-price-site.

 

I'm getting really good at saying no in what I believe to be a tactful and diplomatic way. You wanna pay me what I'd charge in the real world for a 3 or 5 or 7 minute read, we can talk. But I'm not doing something with that much completed audio through the one low-price site. Had one mlm guy act as if he was willing to pay the real world fee. But when it came time to actually do the transaction, he vanished. The good thing is I had a "something's not right" inkling, so I never recorded the script. I figure if someone doesn't get back to you about proper pronunciation of words/names in their script they're not really serious about having the piece recorded....and if they're not serious about that, how serious are they going to be about paying me? Honey, those girls walking the street corners downtown ain't giving it away for free, and neither am I.

 

Come to think of it, the person who wrote me the words, "what do you mean, you need a script?" was also an mlm marketing person. At the same time, I've done at least one mlm script where the client was reasonable to work with. So, I can't really say they're "all" horrible.....just most of them.

 

Maybe it's time to put that whole category of clients on my, "thanks, but no thanks" list. Much like VOs for weight loss programs/products and other things I'd rather just not do....

[shes2smart]

I'm Multi-National

 

Ok, so I've mentioned this before...but it's been a while...and I just invaded (well, my voice did anyway) another part of the world.

 

So, since we started this little trip I have voiced projects for clients in:

 

Thailand

Argentina

Spain

Portugal

England

Austrailia

Austria

and now, some location in the Middle East that I'm not quite sure of.

 

I am terminally, horribly uni-lingual. But there's apparently a market for my no-regional-accent-American-English.

 

Heh. My voice is more well-traveled than my body at this point.

[shes2smart]

Numbers

 

From the weekly log-in time report I signed up for when I activated "Parental Contrls" on my Warcrack account:

 

7/4/10-7/10/10 - logged in 1487 minutes

7/11/10-7/17/10 - logged in 1073 minutes

7/18/10-7/24-10 - logged in 817 minutes

 

Funny thing is...out of those three weeks, the one where I was least busy with VO work is the week I was only in game for 817 minutes.

 

File that under "things that don't make sense."

[shes2smart]

A Round-Up Of Randomness

 

The office gig is getting in the way again this week.

 

That's good. It means there's VO work coming in. Even some decent-paying VO work.

 

It's bad because...well...I have no time for anything but working. I know it's all a test, though - "How much do you want it?" I've been presented with this test before. Sometimes I've passed, sometimes I've failed. It's just the Universe's way of seeing if you're serious.

 

I figure if past patterns are any indication of the future, this phase will be...oh...18 to 24 months. It started 2.5 months ago, so I'm a little more than 10% into it. It will certainly be a more financially lucrative phase than the one I recently transitioned out of, that's for sure.

 

I also know, if past patterns are any indication of the future, that it will go by more quickly than I think it will. So, I have to remember to find the good in it, and appreciate and focus on that.

 

This month: I have been paid (not "billed" but actual cash-in-hand paid) over $2000 for voicework. This is the first month I've cracked $2k. A year ago, I was struggling to crack $2k for an entire quarter.

 

Two years ago the credit card/medical bill balance was around $6k. After they applied my payment this month, I'm at a squeak-over-$2k (like, $2,080-some). I am debating throwing another $100 at them before the month ends just to get under $2k. We are looking at having that completely paid off before the holidays. Maybe "well before the holidays," depending on what freelance I can line up. I will not be carrying that albatross into 2011.

 

Albatross!

 

I have another round of green beans waiting to be picked in my garden. My bell peppers are looking good, too.

 

The tomatoes. Hmmm. I think they're a lost cause. So far one plant has put out one tomato (ONE???) and the other -- the Super Plant that got felled early and rebounded by growing new roots near the broken section -- has come up with 3 tomatoes. They are small and green. They are not growing or ripening (far as I can tell). Maybe I got spoiled growing Roma tomatoes last year. This is a different variety, and I don't like them so far. Even the plants themselves haven't grown as well as the other varieties of tomatoes I've grown the last 4 years.

 

Some friends of our just bought a house. They have a peach tree, several apple trees, a pear tree and grapevines. They brought over a bucket of peaches the other day, so I made a pie this morning. Tiny peaches...the tree has basically been left to its own devices and not especially cared for, so it's gone kind of wild-ish, I guess. So the fruit is tiny..like maybe 3-4 bites per peach, but oh my God, the smell and taste on these peaches. Amazing. They aren't as big and pretty as the peaches at the grocery store, but the taste & aroma & texture of them borders on obscenely good.

 

The apples aren't ripe yet, but I gather we'll be getting a bunch of those when the time comes. They aren't really "cooks," so I will be baking apple desserts for all 4 of us when apple season arrives. I was informed of this when they came over for dinner and brought the peaches with them.

 

Fruit trees are cool....as long as they're someone else's. I have seen the kind of mess they make when the fruit ripens and falls off. I wouldn't want one in my yard, but I'll gladly take some of the fruit off your hands if you have trees in your yard. Because I know it's probably got more flavor to it than what I can buy at the store...and because I know you're sick of seeing/smelling/eating it because you've already had your fill.

 

Other than that, there's not a lot going on here. Just a lot of work...followed by more work...and some decent money for the first time in about 2 years.

 

I'm good with that.

[shes2smart]

Taking My Own Advice

 

Because what I'd have to say would fall on deaf ears and cause unnecessary drama about stuff that, frankly, doesn't matter.

 

So, I'm going to take what I'd say to you and tell it to myself instead.

 

Pot is not meeting kettle today, dammit. I will not introduce them.

[shes2smart]

You Say You Want A Revolution.....

[shes2smart]

I'm Sorry...

 

...the last 24 hours have been one annoyance after another for you. I can relate. The last 24 MONTHS have been one annoyance after another for me.

[shes2smart]

Do Not Want

 

Today is going to be a long one. With some level of BS.

 

It was already going to be annoying because there's an early morning meeting I have to go to (....so I drive accross town just to get up in front of about 30 people who don't give a crap and talk about what my department did last month for less than a minute...). But, then, at the end of last week, one of the owners says "we" need to have a little come-to-Jesus meeting with one of my part timers. So we're doing that after I drive back accross town after the meeting.

 

Ugh.

 

Why can't people just do their damn jobs? Why do they feel compelled to spend more time and energy trying to get around, get out of and avoid what they're being paid to do? Gawd. I don't know how much simpler we can make this but, still, some people just. don't. get. it.

 

I am not your babysitter. I do not want to hover over your shoulder making sure you do what you're supposed to do your job in the proper way. You are a grown adult and you need to take responsibility for yourself. But you won't. And now you have managed to piss off one of the owners with your incompetence. And I have to go to this meeting where the owner is going to tell you that you need to tow the line or you'll be asked to leave.

 

You were already not winning points with me before. This is not helping. You may have been able to get by thus far by ass-kissing whoever was in charge, but that doesn't work with me. It just irritates me. And it doesn't seem like you've figured that out.

 

And I woke up around 4 this morning with a threatening-to-be-cranky gallbladder. Sitting up seems to have helped, but I am so drowsy and dozing off in my chair. Maybe I can go lie down for an hour before I have to be up for real......

[shes2smart]

Well, That's Just Great

 

Early morning meeting - done. Drive accross town to other location for come-to-Jesus meeting - person that meeting is for has decided to call in sick today. The event is postponed until later in the week.

 

Great.

 

Really not liking the job right now. Really. Not. Liking. It.

 

Last week, I was trying to tell myself it was not the job, it was just what was going on last week. But I'm starting to think it's the job. That could be a problem.

[shes2smart]

Expand Your Horizons!

 

Challenge yourself to go beyond your boundaries!

 

Try different things!

 

Y'know what? There are things about me that remain static. They don't change no matter how much I 'challenge myself' or 'push beyond my boundaries' or 'try different things.'

 

1. I don't like dealing with people. I can do it for short periods of time, but I have a very low limit for this.

 

2. I don't like being in charge. I don't respond well to pressure and will, in fact, respond in some sideways manner that will ensure you end up leaving me the hell alone.

 

3. I don't like dealing with drama.

 

4. What I am good at is being back up/second in command. And I don't care how many courses or books you throw at me about "developing leadership skills" and "developing management skills" the fact of the matter is even if that stuff worked, I STILL WOULDN'T LIKE IT.

 

This phase cannot go on for 18-24 months. It needs to be considerably shorter than that, else I will either kill someone, or quit or get myself fired.

[shes2smart]

So....It's Not Just Me...

 

Talking to the marketing & website person yesterday and mentioned some of my recent frustration. Like, oh, they're switching us to new database software and while we've had conference calls out the yang in the last week...where they tell us about all the stuff we can do with their product...it dawned on me over the weekend that they NEVER GOT AROUND TO TELLING US HOW TO ACTUALLY DO ANYTHING.

 

Brilliant. Just brilliant. We have this system that can do all this stuff and no idea how to use it.

 

I want to take one of these corporate automatrons and say, "Look, we already bought the system....could you stop selling it to us now and tell us how to use the damn thing already?"

 

They have some training scheduled for us (at times which mean a couple 10 hour days for me this week....AGAIN) which is supposed to take care of this problem.

 

I'm a touch skeptical (and frustrated) because it's already been kind of a fire, ready, aim task schedule, but am attempting to go along gamely. Even so, my most often repeated phrase since yesterday morning has been, "No, I/we haven't been shown HOW to do that." I figure if I keep repeating it, someone might get the idea that we need to be taught how to use the damn thing.

 

Anyway, I mentioned this to the marketing & website person and got to hear about their "fire. ready. aim." stuff with the website. They have worked there a lot longer than I have. Apparently, this is that organization's way of getting people to embrace change -- to go ahead with stuff and kinda force people to get up to speed as quickly as possible.

 

Alright, then. It's not just me. But it's still incredibly frustrating.

[shes2smart]

"You Know What You Are Doing"

 

...or things you didn't know you needed until you got them.

 

Was just farting around on facebook. I don't actually do much on there myself but I'll check and see what people I know have posted. Happened to see a former supervisor online. I worked for the guy twice...at Dysfunction Junction....then, after the Great Work-Related Crash of 2003, he got me outta there and brought me to where I currently live.

 

I hadn't talked to him in a while so I was catching him up on my Adventures In Building A VO Business. And he said some things about my level of talent and ability that gave me a boost that I wasn't even fully aware that I needed. I figure it was another one of those little love notes the Universe sends us to let us know we're going the right way.

 

Oddly enough the people I kind of view as my parental substitutes are all people I know/knew through radio. It kinda makes sense, though. Growing up, I really latched onto the people I heard on the radio. Probably spent more "quality time" with them than my actual parents....

 

Ah, topics I haven't thought about in a very, very long time, and they're coming up for review tonight. Because it's late, and the office gig has given me a very long and very frustrating time in the last week, and I should be sleeping (and sleepy) right now, but I'm not....

 

Yeah, this phase...this working-2-kinda-full-time-jobs-and-being-in-charge-of-crap-at-work phase cannot last for 24 months. I will burn out if it does. This transition - the transition from *having* to work full time to not *having* to work full time - needs to be speedier. Seriously, I wouldn't mind going back to part time (well, except for that whole "pay" thing...). The full time gig is starting to tip over into too much responsibility for my liking, and I don't know how to stop it or get it to back up.

 

I just know that my frustration with it is part of the reason I'm still sitting here, awake, at 2am. Granted, I don't really have to be anywhere til later in the day (and there's a script I need to cut before I leave, too)...but still, I should be sleeping now.

 

Maybe I'll at least go try to do that. I'm sorry but the office gig is not worth having another stay-up-for-43-hours-straight-then-go-crazy-and-crash-hard incident over. It just isn't.

[shes2smart]

My Love-Hate Relationship

 

So, my offers have been active again on the one-low-price-site for about a month now.

 

And the stupidity is annoying me again.

 

So, I went through my books with the intent to figure out "how much am I making through there anyway."

 

The low-priced jobs themselves have resulted in $486. The side deals I've cut with people on there (which are still low-priced, but more reasonable) have resulted in $485...and there is one on-going project I am negotiating with someone who found me on the one-low-price-site. This is likely to end up as a slow but steady income stream...say, $50-100 month consistent.

 

This is what I've been able to make through the one low price site since mid-March...even with taking 3-4 weeks off.

 

Hrmph. Much as some of these bottom-feeders annoy me, for the time being, I think I have to keep it as an income source. The value is not so much in the one-low-price-jobs...but the exposure to get the other side projects.

 

Still, though...the bottom-feeders are annoying.

[shes2smart]

A Trend?

 

7/4/10-7/10/10 - logged in 1487 minutes

7/11/10-7/17/10 - logged in 1073 minutes

7/18/10-7/24/10 - logged in 817 minutes

7/25/10-7/31/10 - logged in 733 minutes

8/1/10-8/7/10 - logged in 605 minutes

 

Awareness, as they say, is the first step.

 

Then again, it could just be the stupid amount of hours the office gig is demanding. (Even got clearance from the owner himself to work overtime if I "needed the hours to get the things done we need to get done.").. combined with the VO work (which I find myself doing both before leaving for the office gig and after returning from the office gig).

 

Yeah. This pace can't continue for 24 months. This phase has to be shorter than previous ones.

 

Well, something will change....it always does.

[shes2smart]

I Want

 

I want part-time hours with full time pay.

I want full time pay with part-time responsibility.

I want to stay at home.

I want people to stop being idiots.

I want some time off.

I want to never have to deal with a flare-up of depression again.

I want to not be bothered.

I want a normal life.

I want to not hear about your petty little problems.

I want you to realize the crap you think is important now won't matter in 5 years or less.

I want you to speak in plain English and say what you mean.

I want you to realize that getting your way all the time does have a cost.

I want you to realize your script is poorly written.

I want you to figure out you ARE getting a discount already.

I want you to stop expecting me to know what to do.

I want you to figure out things for yourself.

I want a one-way ticket to a mostly deserted island.

I want the food and eating issues to come to final and complete resolution, already.

I want to not care.

I want people to be as perceptive as my cat.

He says I need kitteh lap time NAO.

He is probably right.

[shes2smart]

Finite Amount Of Time

 

There's not enough.

 

And work (both the office gig and the VO business) is sucking up so much, there's not time for much else.

 

My brain is starting to go funny. I can feel it. I've felt it before. I need to pull it back before it starts drifting into "you need medication to get the chemical balance right again" territory. Or, hey, a brain aneuryism would pretty much make all of it a non-issue, too. Is it bad that I've had that thought as a recurring theme for the past 3-4 days?

 

Probably. But what can I change?

 

Kinda need to keep the office gig...not having it (or going back to 25 hours a week) would create financial problems.

 

Kinda need to keep up with the VO stuff....if I ever want to be in a position where I can get rid of the office gig.

 

I can't make it all fit, and I can't make the finances work unless I do both. And I can't do it by myself, but more and more, it seems like I will have to.

[shes2smart]

Thanks For Your Concern

 

"Yeah...I'm really struggling here."

 

"I know....oh, hey, I'm getting a text."

[shes2smart]

Down From The Attic

 

 

 

So this song was out at pretty much the mid-point of my college radio career. It popped up today on the satellite radio channel they have on at work . And it triggered a stream of mental snapshots for me for 2 minutes and 57 seconds. Like:

 

That electric blue wool sweater I had & loved. Damn thing fit amazingly well and looked really good on me. Was never really a "sweater" person before or since, but that one was....incredible.

 

A particular night mid-winter, early 84, out with the "Awesome Foursome"....me and 3 guys from the radio station who started hanging around together...at some bar/restaurant...and they brought us some chips & salsa (a new and unique appetizer dish back then). The salsa was in a little cup nestled in a bowl of ice...very, very cold. You'd dip a chip in it, pop it in your mouth and it was all cold and crunchy and salty and tomatoey....chew it up, swallow it....and then....then the burn would start in your mouth and work its way down your throat to your stomach. By far one of the oddest eating sensations I've had before or since.

 

I was probably wearing the electric blue sweater while eating chips & salsa with the rest of the Awesome Foursome.

 

Then there was the party we had that same winter. The Awesome Foursome (plus 2) were in attendance. Two of the AF dressed up in their fishing hats and made a fish fry for the rest of us. Somewhere, I still have a picture from that night. We all piled up on the couch and one of the parents of the AF took a picture of us. What I never noticed about that picture until much, much later is that I was at the center of it. I look back and see I was the center, and I never knew it at the time.

 

I wasn't wearing the electric blue sweater the night of the fish fry. I was wearing some Hawaiian type shirt with parrots on it. I liked it a lot, too.

 

That summer the Awesome Foursome went to the county fair....and didn't drag my sorry ass back home until 3am. It was the first time I'd ever stayed out that late and there was big trouble waiting when I got home...but I didn't care. The really weird thing about the Awesome Foursome was that my mother had no problem with these 3 guys coming to pick me up and go out....I didn't even get a nasty look or snarky comment.

 

I couldn't figure that out. I still can't.

 

But I'm pretty sure I wasn't wearing the electric blue sweater at the fair.

[shes2smart]

I Just...

 

Submitted an audition for a very large project that could end up with a total talent fee of close to $20k. (300,000 words at .06 a word, about 30 hours of instructional/educational material).

 

Given the ratings/feedback I've gotten at the site where I auditioned, I've got as good a shot as anybody....and a better shot than most.

 

I got a 4 figure gig. A 5 figure gig isn't out of the question.

[shes2smart]

We Will Not Mourn What We Have Not Lost.....

 

 

 

Nearly 30 years since I first heard his voice...and I am still in love with it.

[shes2smart]

The $20k Project

 

100 auditions submitted. 32 Rated. I made the first cut, so I'm still in the running.

 

Don't know if they'll post any more updates beyond that. Given what I've seen before on other projects, I wouldn't expect them to. I was actually surprised they even posted what they did. Usually it's a case of, "If you don't hear from us, that means we've hired someone else. If you do hear from us, you got the gig."

 

But, hey, top 1/3 = past the first cut, so I got a step closer to it than 60-some other people. It's just a matter of time before I land a 5-figure gig. Maybe this one, maybe not. But it's just a matter of time.

[shes2smart]

Bargain Basement Site

 

Amount made from projects on the site that are within site guidelines: $642

 

Amount made from projects for people who found me on the site but had larger projects than my offer covered, so they contacted me directly and made a side deal: $1045

 

Gawd.

 

I think I'm stuck with the low-cost gig client malarky.