Serendipity rules...

Last week, I wrote about luck and getting what you need when you need it. No, I don't have any news on the job hunt front, but I have been looking for a roommate since my last one moved out in March without a lot of luck (unless you count the responses to my Craigslist posting from a "nudist" - and I'm totally OK with that lifestyle, but this dude was creepy with a capital "C," the 25-year-old Mormon college student who brought me some LDS pamphlets when we met, the 22-year-old sketchy "I might be going to college but I don't have a job and I want my boyfriend to stay over every weekend," and so on).

I had just about given up, but decided to post my ad for a roommate one more time. I got an email that night from a woman my age who wanted to talk immediately. We spoke on the phone and it turns out she's my age, a writer, Persian (from Iran) and has published six books in her country, and she came by the very next day to see my place. I've never met anyone from Iran, and I shamefully admit I don't know a lot about the history of the country (and tend to lump it in with other Middle Eastern countries). But we clicked, she's fascinating, thinks I am as well, was impressed that I have a copy of The Rubaiyat by Omar Khayyám, and she moved in yesterday. Her name is Fareshteh and I think it's going to be a great roommate situation. Besides expanding my own cultural horizons, she feels like it will benefit her to live with an American, especially an American writer. Her English is better than she'll admit, my Farsi is not at all, but we already communicate quite well. I've learned a lot about her country - one of the surprises is that I was under the mistaken assumption that women are not encouraged to be educated. Fareshteh has a Master's Degree in Urban Planning. Unfortunately, she has to do college all over again in the U.S., but she's also working on an English translation of one of her books, will be starting college next month, and my cat - who is also Persian - likes her better than me.

You get what you need when you need it - and then some. The Farsi word for "thank you" is (phonetically) "merci." Merci.

"That's only 12 job, lazy woman!"

I'm probably dating myself here, but if you remember the early 90s you might have seen Keenen Ivory Wayans' sketch comedy show "In Living Color." I was in or just out of high school and watched it every week (loved the Fly Girls...Jennifer Lopez was one and Rosie Perez did the choreography). Also, Jim Carrey (back then known as "James Carrey") was hilarious.

For some reason, I was thinking this week - as I juggled some volunteer work with some freelance writing with some career transition counseling clients - about a recurring sketch on the show called "Hey Mon." The sketch was about a West Indian family called The Hedleys. I could explain it to you, but it won't be funny because I can't do an accent properly in writing. It's one of those things you have to see yourself:



Earlier in the week, I ran into a neighbor while walking Lou and she asked me what I've been working on. I tried to give her a brief rundown but stopped around the five-minute mark when I saw her eyes start to drift. I should have just said "I work from home and I have many jobs, woman" (in a West Indian accent). But I try hard not to be one of the neighborhood crazy ladies (the ones I will cross the street to avoid if I see them sitting on their porch...I promise to tell you the one about the lady who thinks my dog is a fox).

OK, so here's the summary of my current jobs:

Freelance writer. Have written a few pieces for Charleston Mag, one for Breathe Magazine, one for Lowcountry Dog (you can see the issue online and my piece is on page 5), one for an issue of Charleston Home that isn't out yet, and I'm working on a few more for various pubs that are due next month.

Media Buyer. I'm working for an amazing interactive ad agency, Broad Street Interactive. It specializes in "hyperlocal," geographic- and demographic-targeted online ad placement. I've helped build huge ad networks for various clients, many of them nonprofits and lobby organizations. Coolest one so far: We have a network of media outlets for online advertising broken down by Congressional Districts across the U.S. Check out the web site for more of what we do.

Career Transition Consultant. I've taken on several clients as a career counselor for Willows-Marsh Employee Lifecycle Consulting. The woman who is the managing partner is amazing and I love working with her.

Author/Speaker. I'm still doing discussions, signings, and readings for my book, Skirt Rules for the Workplace. Many are private for specific companies or organizations, but I list the public events on my book web site.

Volunteer. I volunteer for the Center for Women once or twice a month for its career counseling program and am currently doing volunteer marketing work for the new Planned Parenthood Health Center in Charleston (grand opening and ribbon-cutting ceremony June 12 at 4pm!).

OK, I know that's only five job, mon. But I didn't include Freelance Publicist, Social Media Consultant, Ad Copywriter, or any of the other freelance gigs I've been working on here and there. And that should bring me up to 12 job, mon. Which proves my theory that I'm a workaholic by nature - even at home, on my own schedule, on my own time, even with three Netflix movies, the TV, and the couch calling my name.

And let me add that VisualCV.com is the coolest online invention since Twitter. You can see ALL of my jobs here.

Hittin' the road, Jack...

Nicotine gum: check.

Xanax for flight: check.

Favorite pen for book signing: check.

I'm hitting the road this afternoon for readings and book signings in Columbia (Thursday) and Knoxville (Saturday). You can keep up with me and my mini-book tour (more Charleston events are lined up this month!) here.

Five for Friday...

Listening to: "Only You & I" by Tim from Misspelled Marquee. I found it through IndieFeed's podcast last year and it's been part of my iTunes top 25 most played ever since. Also, The Whigs "Technology," James Figurine "Apologies," and The Black Angels "Black Grease."

Eating: A hard boiled egg (but I wish it was an egg & cheese bagel with ketchup) and a microwave organic veggie lasagna my art director gave me because I forgot my real lunch today.

Reading: A really awful book my sister gave me called How to Sleep With a Movie Star. It's mind-numbing brain candy, but Katie thought I'd like it for some reason. I'm worried that she thinks my job is like the one the main character in the book has at a Cosmo-esque women's magazine. It is not. And I do not care about movie stars or sleeping with them.

Wearing: Boys jeans (don't ask), my newly repurposed belt with the skull/bottle opener buckle, and a black Banana Republic tee.

Thinking about: My next book proposal. Apparently I don't have enough to do, so I'm ready to start another manuscript!

New! Sensational! Blogstuffs!

Tinkering with the template again. I made a new graphic for the masthead, changed the background, and updated my links, getting rid of a few stagnant blogs and adding a few new ones.

I also added two new link categories: Micro Writes, links to writing sites I love; and Micro Inspiration, creative and/or art-related sites.

*Am I procrastinating again? YES.
*Would Chuck Norris waste time updating his blog if he had a book due? NO.
*Do I need a kick in the pants? NO. I haven't progressed to the level of procrastination during which I clean the bathtub. I'll let you know if I get there.