Game Over

Ski Valley is done (or at least my small part of it). I got to work yesterday after a ten-minute snow & ice scraping of my car, and the trailer was gone. Jaime was working on Unit 60 (the last of the cooperative owners), and Jim didn't even make it down because he was onto the next job. I read the latest issue of Wired magazine while I did my work for the day, and later Jim met me in K-Mart plaza to give me my final pay ($100).

Other notes from the day:

• Ben & Jerry's Schweddy Balls ice cream is very good!
• My cat rocks.
• There is nothing like Ragu with angel hair pasta & ground beef. Mmmm...
• I took down my a/c from the window. The apartment is noticeably warmer already.
• We are supposed to get nearly a foot of snow today! I thought it was only supposed to be a dusting.

The Ocean (Finally)

After a short day at work at Ski Valley I headed down to Colt State Park in Bristol, RI. Since I haven't been to the beach yet in 2011 I decided I'd make the 30 mile drive south from work, finish my book ("After the Party") and walk around for awhile in the sea air.

 

 

 

Car Trouble

My tire finally gave out after months of shuddering and wobbling. I noticed it was flat at the job site, and so I drove it on the near-flat to fill my gas tank, put on the spare (donut) tire, and after a harrowing (yet thankfully uneventful) drive home, arranged for a new tire tomorrow afternoon when I get back down to Rhode Island (and there goes this week's entire $120).

BAH!!

I plan on replacing the passenger side tire the following week as well, so the car is balanced. *sigh*

Is it Really Time Off...

...if nothing happens in between?

I was lucky enough to be extended an invitation to do the rest of Phase III. The deal isn't quite as good (phone and gas are included in the base pay, instead of the way things were done the previous two times, each of the aforementioned being additional to the amount in the past), and it also requires 'clean-up' of Phase II, in which nothing had been done in the intervening 5 weeks since my contract was over, despite having left detailed notes.

So: I am very grateful to have the work (I even postponed my other job to do this), but it's not like the prime deals I enjoyed the first and second times around this particular block. The Big Bonus: working outdoors in a place I have grown to love during the best season of the year in New England!

New Old Gig

I have a new gig in Rhode Island for the month of August. It's a new task at the site of my springtime gig, and it is laden with bonuses. I'll be able to live like a human again, above subsistence level. Good coffee, needed items and a few new books await!

Road Isle

I worked in the Smithfield, RI Staples today. It was a great drive to work (if a bit long, at an hour and 20 minutes), and the day went by nicely.

I had lunch (an oatmeal raisin cookie and a large coffee) at the nearby Barnes & Noble and read my book for an hour. A very attractive girl saw me through the window on her way inside, and when she got to the cafe she plopped herself (and her laptop) at the one table in my direct line of sight (there were over 20 tables behind me), and proceeded to subtly try to get me to ignore my book and pay attention to her, but I wasn't having it. I don't live in the area, I have no disposable income to spend on an out-of-town date, and I was all hot & sweaty from 4 hours of moving dusty shelves. So it was a fun (and ego-boosting) diversion, but I still read fifty pages of my book (haha).

The drive home was lonnnnng. Rush-hour traffic combined with far too many self-involved drivers who yakked on their phones, changed lanes without signalling, and tossed cigarette butts out their windows instead of using their car ashtrays. And once I got to the Worcester area, the highway is extremely poorly signed, and I had to take too many detours to get to Rt 290 and in the proper direction! An extra half-hour longer to get home. But it was still a nice day.

Mission Accomplished

 My time working in Rhode Island officially ended yesterday.

I completed my freelance filming project, and no longer have to make the (mostly enjoyable) drive down to Cumberland. I met a lot of nice people, had to deal with a few cranky ones, and got a lot of reading and drawing done. I appreciate the opportunity wholeheartedly, and am glad I was able to spend the two months on such an unusual project. It was fantastic to have responsibilities beyond my own day to day existence. And what a nice area to drive around and (I would imagine) to live in...

Rainy Monday

I had three appointments in Rhode Island today, over the span of 9 am through 1 pm. So I packed my car with all kinds of 'down time' stuff, and despite the rain, had a very enjoyable work day.

I loaded the car's cd player with: Angel & Airwaves "I-Empire", Cocteau Twins "Milk & Kisses", Lush "Topolino", Mojave 3 "Out of Tune", Mute Math "Mute Math", and R.E.M. "Accelerate", and commuted in heavy bass, surround sound heaven. In between my appointments I read part of "Hornblower and The Hotspur" and drew a sketch of a pirate sleeping in his belowdeck hammock berth. Lunch was an apple, another cup of coffee, and a bunch of almonds. I walked around the place for a bit, and took a couple of photos. And at 2 pm (after a 'finalization' meeting with Jim - the 26th will be my final day) I headed back into the rain for my hour commute home. Nice.

Thursday - Spring into Action

I spend the bulk of this productive day in my car.

I got up at 6:30 and had a ham-on-Syrian-bread sandwich and fresh broccoli for breakfast, then drove (50 miles) down to Ski Valley in Cumberland, RI for three appointments. In between I read a big chunk of "Mr. Midshipman Hornblower", and took a couple of pictures of the view with my camera.

The wind was ridiculous all day, and each leg of my journey was fraught with dangerous car-shifting gusts.

Next it was off to Andover (75 miles), to return my training materials for the lame job I turned down. First, however, I went to the local Bertucci's for lunch to use a $15 gift card my aunt gave me awhile back. I had some of their amazing bread and olive oil, and then for the main course I enjoyed a decent plate of seafood torta. I also had a tall glass of Peroni (an Italian beer), which was surprisingly good. I finished the book while I ate. It was an enjoyable interlude in a long day of driving. Then it was off to Joule to turn in the binder and ring of cards. My direct deposit hadn't gone in, and it turns out that it's the same as retail, a one-week delay. Tracy told me she would mail my check, so I thanked her, expressed my continued desire for their assistance, and headed home (41 miles).

I spent the rest of the day reading, online looking for work, and watching the Thursday night line-up on NBC. After that horrible 100th episode of "30 Rock", I really want that hour of my life back. What a sucky show (except for Tina Fey and Alec Baldwin). Also, Will Ferrell has completely sucked the life out of the last few episodes of "The Office". What a horrible miscast! At any rate, I ended my day at midnight, reading until I fell asleep.

All Around

I got to work at nine today (a gloriously sunny, if a bit windy, day) and walked to and from a pair of early appointments. There were so many small animals around, it was nuts. Squirrels, robins, chickadees and ducks were everywhere I looked, and a wild rabbit hung around my car for a bit! After seeing an amazing miniature train set-up in one of the basements it was off to find the local SpeeDee to get an oil change and new wiper blades. I found a coupon online this morning and got five dollars off, so the entire thing came to $56 and change. Sweet!

I read a big chunk of Poe's "The Narrative of Arthur Gordon Pym of Nantucket" off and on all day (including during my oil change). I ate lunch at McDonald's (bad boy! But damn, the McNuggets and fries both just came out of the fryer - drooool). On the way back I got some homemade fudge at Phantom Farms in Cumberland. Their coffee kicks butt too, and I had a fresh cream horn (not the greatest, but good) with it. The staff was super-friendly, and the fudge turned out to be really decent. My afternoon appointments (which ran from 1 pm to 5:30) all went smoothly, and I got to read a lot. I ran across another very cool basement, which was transformed in Jack Daniels Central - real casks, a great uniquely-shaped hardwood bar, and everything under the sun with the JD logo. I got to see some really amazing and creative homes today, and it was so nice out I had a stupid grin plastered on my face a lot of the time as I walked around the compound.

After a fantastic stress-free drive home (there's nothing like missing rush hour) I stopped at Hannaford to foodshop. Happiness is a relatively-full refrigerator! And when I got home, my new Levi's 501 buttonflies were waiting on my front step. A great ending to an awesome work day.

Rhode Island

Beginning today (I was there from 9:30 - 1:30) I will be commuting daily to Rhode Island for the next ten business days (or so). 100 miles a day round-trip, with a nice fat payday at the conclusion.

1. Wed 23rd - 1½
2. Thu 24th - 5½
3. Fri 25th - 3