Product Placement

Product Placement
Originally uploaded by AdiaMichelle

I'm learning through this daily photo project of mine that not every photo is going to be a masterpiece. Not every photo can be a masterpiece. In fact, most of them are going to be disasters at best and boring at worst. The people who seem like they're cranking out masterpiece after masterpiece spend a lot of time laying big, fat, turdy duds. They just don't show the good stuff until it's ready.

I've chosen to show the good and bad. All too often all we see is the good. In today's media, everyone glitters, with every hair intact and not a pimple in sight. Even "wardrobe malfunctions" are calculated for maximum press coverage. No one wants to show the messy side. No one wants to show that they're human.

Because we never see human beings in the media, we come to expect that every public face will be a perfect one. The truth is, those people have an army of stylists to shellack their hair in place, and a dermatologist standing by with a big, fat needle full of cortisone to attack any and all pimples. Being perfect takes a lot of work.

So here I am. I'm showing the work. Maybe it's not as much fun for you, the viewer, but it is educational. Watch and learn, and maybe celebrate with me when I manage to stumble onto a masterpiece.

No photo today

Yesterday's post was deleted due to whining.  Whining: mine.  And sometimes, I get tired of the whining, so I just delete.  Delete, delete, delete.

I write three stream-of-consciousness pages every morning.  I try to write three stream-of-consciousness pages every morning.  Some morning I fail because I don't wake up early enough and I have to be somewhere.  But most days I write them.  The intent of these pages is not to share them.  They are for the artist and the artist alone.  However, I will share that for the last, oh, two months, I've probably mentioned my need for a job change almost every day.  Ms. Julia Cameron says that anything you find yourself consistently griping about in your pages means it's time to change whatever that thing is.  And she's right.

So yesterday, I turned in my notice at my part-time job.  I didn't want to talk about it before I actually did it.  Now that I've done it, I can.  I enjoyed working there, for the most part, but I've come to realize that I need full-time employment.  I can tolerate most non-career related positions if my financial needs are being met.  They weren't at this job.  That's the long and short of it.  New York is expensive, and I have bills to pay.

I've also realized in the last few weeks that I am highly employable, and not just at McDonald's.  So, full-time job, here I come!

Say It Ain't So

Say It Ain't So
Originally uploaded by AdiaMichelle

Deleted.

Every Morning

Every Morning
Originally uploaded by AdiaMichelle

I'm a coffee addict. Admitted, confessed, totally come clean. I LOVE to drink coffee. I love the smell, the heat, and the action of it. I suppose it's the same for cigarette addicts: the chemicals are only a small part of the experience of smoking a cigarette. The rest of the activity is just as addictive.

I have a day off today. That means I run around doing all the things I don't do when I have to work later. For instance, today I'll be attending a workshop for actors looking for side work. Maybe they'll give me some ideas.

I also have to attend a diversity training class at my part-time job. *gag* I know it's important, but corporate diversity training classes tend to be...lame. (See: "Diversity Day" episode of The Office.) I believe this one is simply a matter of compliance with federal blah dee blahs. We sign in, watch a video, and leave. "Hooray. I am now extremely knowledgeable about workplace diversity and will never offend anyone ever again. This 30-minute video has given me the tools I need to succeed in my diversification endeavors." 

Went to a free concert in Central Park yesterday. It was good to get out of the house, even if it drizzled on us most of the time. I'm just glad we didn't get the brunt of the storm, because there sure were some yellows and reds on the radar passing just south of the city. We simply enjoyed the benefits: an afternoon high of 77 degrees. Haven't experienced that since June, or maybe even May. And it seems to be lingering today. Rockin.

More Jewelry

More Jewelry
Originally uploaded by AdiaMichelle

I wore these yesterday.

It's still warm outside, although yesterday evening had a little chill in the air. It was glorious. I needed my wrap walking home.

Honestly? I'm looking forward to fall. I love the feeling in the air, I love the clothes, and I love being able to walk five feet from my door without breaking a sweat. Not looking forward to winter, but you can't have one without the other.

In other news: another day, another dollar (down the drain).

Still Wrapped

Still Wrapped
Originally uploaded by AdiaMichelle

This pretty thing was a gift from a dear, selfless friend. I miss her. She's a busy woman with a lot of responsibilities.

The heat has finally backed off a touch. We slept without the a/c last night for the first time in a week.

I need to clean.

Blah blah blah workety schmurkety.

I Love Color

I Love Color
Originally uploaded by AdiaMichelle

I am blessed that I have a job, and am not going into debt or starving and living on the street.
I am blessed that I have a job.
I am blessed that I have a job.
I am blessed that I have a job.
I am blessed that I have a job.
I am blessed that I have a job.
(If I keep typing it, do you think I'll eventually believe it?)
I am blessed that I have a job.
I am blessed that I have a job.
I am blessed that I have a job.
I am blessed that I have a job.
I am blessed that I have a job.
I am blessed that I have a job.
(I don't think it's working.)
I am blessed that I have a job.
I am blessed that I have a job.
I am blessed that I have a job.
I am blessed that I have a job.
(Now it just doesn't even make sense anymore.)

Power Bracelet

Power Bracelet
Originally uploaded by AdiaMichelle

Can you see me in the reflection over there?

I don't really want to go to work. I never really want to go to work, though, so that's not news.

I never minded getting up at the crack of dawn to go to a shoot. 7am call? Sign me up. I love being on set. I don't mind the hurry up and wait. I don't mind the sometimes tense atmosphere. I don't even mind the sometimes funky attitudes of others. I love watching everyone work together to create something kind of magical - even if it's a training film for a pharmaceutical company so filled with medical jargon that I read the teleprompter and have NO idea what I'm saying but know that I can sell it anyway.

I miss going to shoots. I also miss getting paid more than a month's day job wages for just a few hours' work. But even when I'm not getting paid, I love being on set.

Almost a year ago I shot a commercial for Cox Business Services. It was August, and we were shooting in a stripped warehouse. Because it was stripped, there was no air conditioning. Add about 75 bodies and gigantic camera lighting and you have a room temperature approaching 90 degrees. I won't lie: it was miserably hot.

But you know what? I didn't complain once. Even when I felt my consciousness retreating somewhere way in the back of my brain behind an impending faint and all I could do to stay awake was stand very still and fan myself and concentrate on not sweating, I didn't complain. I was so grateful to be exactly where I wanted to be, getting paid to do exactly what I wanted to do, that a little momentary discomfort was nothing.

So, yeah. I don't want to go to work today. I'd rather be melting in a warehouse than sitting at a desk answering phones. But I suppose this is a momentary discomfort to be able to do what I want to do.

Duchess!

Duchess!
Originally uploaded by AdiaMichelle

Still hot.

Put some headshots in the mail.

Ate too much burrito and chips.

Sticky and not wanting to go to work tomorrow.

Woo, summer.

Frosty

Frosty
Originally uploaded by AdiaMichelle

Gosh, it's hot.

Don't wanna move.

Don't wanna leave the house.

Just wanna lay here and catch up on So You Think You Can Dance.

Gluttony

Gluttony
Originally uploaded by AdiaMichelle

Another World

Another World
Originally uploaded by AdiaMichelle

Guess What? Turtle Butt!

Guess What? Turtle Butt!
Originally uploaded by AdiaMichelle

Up with the Sun

Up with the Sun
Originally uploaded by AdiaMichelle

I'm sorry.

I think you're only going to get photos from now on.

There's nothing to say about my career, and I don't feel like sharing anything else.

Sorry.

Don't shop there. It's bad for your heart.

Ikea sucks.  

That is all.

New Friend

New Friend
Originally uploaded by AdiaMichelle

So happy to have some greenery in my house. Is it not nifty?

Eleven letters and headshots and one postcard with my face on it went in the mail on Tuesday! W00t. This is going to be an expensive venture, though. Each envelope comes in at a dollar for postage. Ugh. Maybe I should sell some clothes.

Completely unrelated information: I really want to wear lounge pants and a t-shirt to work today.

It's hot and muggy. Big surprise.

Today was hard, but some good stuff came out of it.

Self-Care

Self-Care
Originally uploaded by AdiaMichelle

I don't even know what to say today.

I have 12 headshots and letters ready to go in the mail today. I'm proud of that.

I'm waiting for the coffee to kick in.

I miss going to dance class. More than I'll admit on a daily basis.

I have to buy a loft bed today.

My apartment was a mess yesterday and I cleaned it up, put my clean clothes away where they belonged, and made neat piles on my desk. I'm proud of that, too.

I have a deep affection for the Brooklyn Public Library.

The Raw Shark Texts was quite boring. And then it got good. Really good. Another winner, in my opinion.

I need a sharp change in the weather. I need a change, period. I feel like I'm covered in silt, like I've drifted into a still pool, out of the main current and into one of those cloudy, weed-littered pools that line a rushing river. I've settled to the bottom and I'm covered with sediment. I need a good, swift kick from an accidental toe to send me back into the current.

Or maybe I just need some vegetables.

Self-Improvement

Self-Improvement
Originally uploaded by AdiaMichelle

I started this book a few days ago. It's a 30-day exercise in confronting the fact that, yes, we're all going to die, so let's not waste time living a life that doesn't reach its full, fully engaged potential. So far it reminds me quite a bit of The Artist's Way, but I like having something to work on. I like working on me.

Hope everyone's Fourth of July was fun! I got a surprise visit from a friend as I was leaving work, so we hung out there for a while instead of looking at fireworks with a bunch of other wet (it rained), sweaty people. And fun was had by all.

Boo Boo

Boo Boo
Originally uploaded by AdiaMichelle

Happy Independence Day Eve! Hope you have fun at your barbecues and pic-a-nics and other assorted goodies. I gotta work.

Letters have been written and printed. Now I just need to print off some resumes and the first five will be off! Baby steps.

Fountain Pen with Moleskine

Fountain Pen with Moleskine
Originally uploaded by AdiaMichelle

Wouldn't it be great if I could write all my cover letters using my fountain pen? It would make it fun instead of tedious.

Ugh. Cover letters suck. They just do. Alrighty. Just 71 more to go.

*whimper*

Monolith

Monolith
Originally uploaded by AdiaMichelle

I'm getting weirder with my photos. I like it.

In other news -

Really, American Apparel? Really? Is this something you want to do? Bring back HYPERCOLOR t-shirts? Ugh.


AND, I saw Savion Glover last night walking down Houston St. with his child and wife/girlfriend/woman friend. Nifty!