Not going to have cable until Thursday earliest, and running on fumes datawise for hotspottery, so we're at a Starbucks trying desperately to get some internetting done. Unfortunately, the wi-fi here is

roughly

like

being

at the DMV

operated

by

sloths.

Siiiiiigh.

-The Gneech at 9600 baud.

So a few days ago I posted to my LJ:

So I suppose it makes a certain amount of sense that weekend morning shifts started coming at me relentlessly. If the Universe wanted me to say adios to the job, that's probably the most effective way to do it. On the other hand, I kinda feel like I was nudged into taking the job by the Universe in the first place, so... What gives, Universe? Did you want me to take the job or not? :P

Last night, while on one of my breaks, I was ruminating on this topic, and the answer came back to me, “To show you the lessons you've been learning in action.” And I thought about this a bit. I thought about G____ not being able to handle basic tasks, much less challenges, and her passive-aggressive approach to everything. I thought about A____'s oblivious “show up, add another task to the pile, and then disappear without helping” behavior and how it builds resentment and actually prevents things from getting done. I thought about B____'s laid back “You do this, I'll do this, and it'll all get done” approach, and D____'s “I will carry the whole store on my back and get beat up in the process, and just quietly wish I were doing something else” mindset, and of course I thought of all the customers for whom having just the right drink made the right way was a touchstone that helped them cope in a world that was too much for them.

I thought about the pettiness of hustling, like the guy who keeps trying to order “a refill” without a cup, because it's fifty cents instead of $1.50. You've clearly got a job, dude, why are you embarrassing yourself and me over a dollar? I thought about the people who come in and buy 5 shots of espresso on top of a venti frappuccino, paying $7+ bucks without batting an eye for a drink that's going to eventually kill them.

And finally I thought about how chill I was when I started the job, how stressed out I got as the holiday season picked up and we were suddenly busy, and what a depressing grind it was working weekend mornings, where you came in and the store was burning down, and it was just going to be like that all day, and compared that to this past Sunday, when I asked the Universe to arrange things so that I had an enjoyable shift that left me feeling better at the end of it than I did at the beginning... and the Universe delivered. I was still tired, of course, but I was tired and happy, instead of tired and miserable.

So maybe the answer is that yes, the Universe did want me to take the job, kinda like an exam in the whole “awakening” course it's been putting me through, and now having passed the test (I assume?), the job has fulfilled its function and I can put it behind me.

-The Gneech

So. I committed to stay at Starbucks at least through the holidays; I have reached that threshold and I'm having difficulty deciding what to do next. The Starbucks job, although physically punishing, had some cool and fun moments at first, but those have seemed to wander off, leaving me with just work I have to endure, for money which isn't great, but it about five times what I make by Patreon alone.

So here are my options:

1. Keep going as I am now. This is the least attractive option, as I'm seeing a recurring pattern of "Saturday and Sunday morning" shifts (the worst possible) and finding myself grinding my teeth about it. Working afternoon/evening shifts is less fun that being at home, but still allows me to get things done in the morning. Working morning shifts just kills my whole day. Having a schedule that's all over the map also makes it very difficult to plan for things like, say, heart doctor appointments. :P


2. Take a hatchet to my schedule. Currently my only restriction is "no Saturday nights" because I blocked that off for gaming (although gaming has been light-to-nil for way too long regardless). I'm thinking of changing it to "No Saturday, Sunday, or Monday, period." This would kill the weekend morning shifts, give me at least one solid weekday always off for doctors etc., and make it relatively easy to schedule for cons (as they tend to be Thursday-Monday affairs, I'd have off three of those days normally anyhow).


3. Just plain quit. The nuclear option, so to speak. This would return me to being a full time writer/artist, giving me more time to shop that novel around and start the next one, as well as keeping Suburban Jungle up and running. The downside is that in the short term at least it would be a precipitous drop in our income until lythandra find her new job. She's got 2/3 of her new IT/security certifications and is talking about looking for a minimum salary of $100k, so, y'know, that'll be good when it comes! But it's not here yet. Do I bet the rest of our savings on that and go back to trying to get my own career into paying mode, or do I stick with the (coffee) grind until it's a done deal?

Blugh. It's a tough choice. I'm going to ponder it today, and meditate on it some tonight, but in the meantime, I'd like the universe (and LiveJournal ;) ) to give me some guidance on the topic.

Thanks! :)

-The Gneech

So today I overheard one of my fellow baristas singing what I thought was Depeche Mode's The World In My Eyes, but I couldn't quite make it out.

When I asked what he was singing, he sang a little louder, revealing that he was in fact no so much singing as patter-chanting... uh... this.



I told him that he had made me want a Depeche Mode cover of "Magical Trevor," because that would be awesome. He agreed.

-The Gneech

The early parts of the dream are lost to wakefulness. The first part I can remember involves me driving the Forester out of a parking lot surrounded by trees and onto the Reston Parkway, headed towards Fair Lakes. In the passenger seat is a woman that I don't know in reality, but whom dream reality identifies as one of my co-workers from Starbucks. By way of showing her how the bluetooth phone setup works, I call hantamouse and jamesbarrett.

While we're chatting with them, as I'm nearing where Vale Road and the water tower would be in reality, I spot a small blimp, burning furiously, coming in for an emergency landing in a park (that isn't actually there). After the appropriate "Holy crap!" I hang up on Lee and Jamie, pull into a park across the street (roughly where the entrance to Penderwood is in reality), and call 911 via said bluetooth connection.

911 rings. And rings. And rings. I'm just about to give up on it, tell my Starbucks co-worker to tell them what's happening if and when they pick up, and run to the blimp to try to help, when 911 answers.

Them: "What is your location?"

Me: "I'm on Reston Parkway between Fair Oaks and the Navy school. There's an airship on fire!"

Them: "Our computer shows that you are not on Reston Parkway, but actually parked near it." [1]

Me: "Well yeah, I'm not actually on Reston Parkway. But there's an airship on fire here. Send a fire engine!"

Them: "Please state your location as being near Reston Parkway, or move to Reston Parkway."

Me: "..."

On the grounds that people are probably dying while this nonsense is going on I get out of the car and rush to the blimp, only to find that it's not burning any more. It turns out it wasn't really a blimp so much as a blimp-shaped hot air balloon, and the entire thing was roughly the size of a Winnebago. Its passengers were a vacationing family of two parents, a teenage daughter, and a near- or early-teen son, who have carried the gondola into a gazebo [2] and are in the process of moving what's left of the envelope into the same.

All of them look rattled, but aside from the son having black smears around his eyes like makeup in some cheesy old movie, none of them seem injured or worse for wear. I ask if everyone is all right, and the son says, "Well we're not doing that again!" but that's about all the reaction I get.

I cross back over to my car to tell the 911 dispatch that everybody from the "burning airship" is okay, assuming that my Starbucks co-worker is still arguing with them about where the car is. However, co-worker is nowhere to be found and 911 has put me on hold. Just then I receive an incoming call: some person who keeps trying to wheedle me into being an editor for some project I'm totally not interested in is calling me. I tell them that I'm dealing with an emergency, to which they respond that they just called to tell me that there is a new chapter on Dropbox. My only answer is, "Yay?"

That's when the cats meowing for their breakfast woke me up. Sounds like it was only going to go downhill from there anyway.

-The Gneech [3]

[1] It doesn't strike my dream-brain as the slightest bit unusual that they'd have a computer that shows where my car is. My first thought is that when I called 911, my car GPS or phone GPS transmitted the location in case I was unable to communicate, which struck me as a very useful and prudent feature, even if it is part of a hideous police state of intrusive and endless surveillance. Which we do actually live in, in real life. My dream brain does want to know, however, "If you know where I am, why are you wasting my time asking me?"

[2] "Gondola into a gazebo" is fun to write.

[3] Analysis? I don't have much. Crashing and burning airships figure largely into my book manuscript, and of course I have been the guy on the other end of the line telling people there's a new draft up, so I might be projecting my own insecurities there. Starbucks co-worker has a lot of possible meanings, but is probably a reflection on the job itself rather than any person at it. 911 and attendant bureaucracy was probably inspired by real world current events more than anything else.

So yesterday the store was playing their "seasonal soundtrack," which started with "Dead Man's Party" by Oingo Boingo (woot!) and continued with "Ghostbusters" by Ray Parker, Jr. (awww, yeah!). So yeah, that was me, dancing behind the counter yesterday.

Today, I write! *tappity tappity tappity*

-The Gneech

Three Good Things for Today

1. Received weekly tips. Not exactly a ton of money, but welcome nonetheless.


2. Pomodoro Pizzaaaaaa. <3


3. Got a bit of writing done, adding another 90 words to the scene in question.

Three Goals for Tomorrow

1. MOAR writing!


2. Go through the past life regression video.


3. Deal with some financial junk.

Starbucks Moment

There have been a few Starbucks moments that I wanted to remember, and my goal is to start adding them to these reports. The first one didn't happen today, but was actually a few days ago. We had a customer come in who, as near as I could tell, was mute and possibly deaf. She began the interaction by signing, and I had to tell her with deep regret that I didn't know ASL.

She was undeterred, however, began cheerfully looking around for some way to communicate. I printed out a slip of paper from the receipt printer and handed her my Sharpie, and she wrote in big, clear letters, "TALL MOCHA." If she was deaf, I was amazed at her ability to read my lips, as she didn't miss anything; however, it may have been that she was perfectly able to hear but simply unable to speak.

In any case, she had a happy warm smile and seemed like a pretty awesome person. It was cool to meet her. :)

The second item was that today was the last day of one of the gals at the store, and she was in a very silly mood as a result. For a good hour she kept pulling on the apron strings of everyone on the team, half-untying them, and then making a big show about what an accident it was. Her attempts to dissemble were not very effective. ;P I had only worked a few shifts with her, and even as I write this I keep blanking on her name and have to look it up (Selama), but she seemed like a fun person and I wish her well.

And now... off to bed. :) Gnite world, and have an awesome tomorrow.

-The Gneech

PS: I left my glasses upstairs and wrote this entry wearing lythandra's. The bifocals mess with my head.