I’ve been away for a few days having… a break! Which is why things have been quiet here this week. More soon.
The Rowdy Boys Incident
’Pong and I are standing on the balcony at Sydney nightclub Arq, looking down at the continuing awards ceremony. Nearby someone asks whether the women currently on stage are “the lesbian singers” he’s seen before.
“What’s a lesbian singer?” I ponder aloud in a stage whisper. “Is that like a horse whisperer?”
’Pong glares, unimpressed. His energy levels are low, he’s not in the mood. My friend Nate, not exactly what you’d call the shy retiring type, has encouraged my heckling of the drag queens hosting the event, and ’Pong and Nate’s boyfriend Chris have both been uncomfortable.
Then another loud stage whisper emerges from a leather-clad bear standing on the other side. “No,” he says, “That would be a fish whisperer.”
The bear’s boyfriend’s eyes catch ’Pong and Chris, “Oh no, here we go again,” they seem to say. Strangers bond, wishing they could disown their partners.
Later, ’Pong takes me aside to explain that he’s exhausted, that he’s having trouble focussing on what he needs to do tonight. He’s trying to make a good impression on important people, and my rowdy mood isn’t appreciated.
And just as he finishes that speech, Nate bounces up my side, eyes wide with child-like excitement, proudly brandishing a bunch of green tickets. “Look! More free drink vouchers!”
I need a hand…
I don’t have time to learn and understand everything. Who does? Me and my business need various skills to make things happen more quickly — now. So if you know anyone who can help, put them in touch.
I need a telephone geek to get my Nokia N80 and 3G network stuff working more efficiently. A workflow from the phone through to WordPress and Flickr would be nice.
I need another telephone geek to re-organise my business phones. Telcos are useless — they just want to sell products. Maybe someone who knows Asterisk is the answer?
I need a web developer who can work in XHTML/CSS code (no Flash or Dreamweaver muppets!) with excellent attention to detail and, ideally, a knowledge of WordPress and proper object-oriented PHP. We don’t do complex work, but we do want quality. I’ll be advertising this soon.
I’m still looking for a good technical support human who’s actually human. This is a full-time job.
A junior systems administrator wouldn’t go astray. This would suit a student who’s familiar with Linux, has run a website or two and needs a few hours paid work a week.
A techno producer who can work in a minimalist German style for a crassly commercial music project.
A graphic artist/designer who can do finished artwork for print as well as basic web stuff. We sometimes end up doing a full corporate image for clients. We need someone for the grunt-work, like doing ten newspaper adverts to a pre-existing style, or preparing fifty product shots for a website.
Why so visual?
Why have so many of my recent posts been about visual arts and popular culture? How does this fit in with my planned “creative days off” next week? “Once Saturn moves to stronger orbit on and after 19 April, your getaway plans will fall into place,” says one horoscope. “Keep searching for the right solution. Saturn will stay in strong orbit until 19 December, so you have time.” Today is 19 April. I feel good, for some reason.
Frantic Pre- and Post-Easter!
It’s been hectic around here! Plenty of ideas flowing, just no time to write them down. Maybe I’ll get time tonight.
Three Thursday Thoughts
- Working from 0630 to 0200 is insane. Starting work again at 0730 is worse. But sometimes good clients deserve attention in a crisis.
- Other clients will always be annoying. They’re disorganised, want everything at the last minute, quibble about the cost and then take longer to pay than anyone else.
- Wynns Coonawarra Estate Shiraz 2005 is a very fine thing for dealing with 1 and 2 above. And they have one of the most elegant wine labels in the country.
Thank the gods, it’s a long weekend.