fringefan

I've just learned that someone got hold of the contacts list for my yahoo.com account and sent out some spam to (probably) everyone on it. (The one I saw had "Re: 2" as its subject line.) I recommend you not open any e-mail from me that you're not expecting, and especially, not click on any links in such e-mail!

Sorry to trouble you. Have a nice weekend.
<-----2012-3-30-----MSG----->

We're unharmed, praise whatever deity or deities you choose, but there is now a large (8 to 10 feet) tree limb blocking the driveway and front walk. There's a wire wrapped around it, but I don't know what wire it is—we still have power, phone, Internet and satellite TV. The limb appears to have narrowly missed Daisy the minivan, which was parked in the driveway per usual.

I can reach the street by walking on the front lawn (which is mostly weeds anyway), but I won't be driving anywhere until the city clears the limb away (I reported it around 9:00 Sunday morning). The thing is definitely too heavy for one middle-aged guy to move.

We have a branch clipper (I don't know if there's a proper name for it; it's got six-inch blades and three-foot handles for maximum leverage), and I was able to hack off enough branches this afternoon to get my bicycle out to the street. That's probably how I'll aim to get to work tomorrow morning, especially if subways aren't fully back up to speed yet.

<-----2011-8-28-----MSG----->

My doctor and I seem to be parting company—longish story; I'll try to write it up for my September zine. Meanwhile, I need to establish a relationship with another PCP, as the health insurers now call them (I believe it stands for "primary care provider"). I'd prefer to stay local, which means the vast bulk of people who see this won't be able to help, but if anyone knows of a physician in the southern half of Brooklyn worth trusting my future health to, I'd appreciate hearing about it. Thanks!
<-----2011-8-19-----MSG----->

That's odd; apparently LJ never put up my last post, from a month ago, but saved it as a draft. I guess I'll never be much of a social network user if none of them percolate as advertised.

I've been getting more work over the past couple of months, but it's still intermittent--after twelve consecutive business days of work, I've now had seven consecutive business days idle. Still an improvement over the nothing in March and April. And the agencies tell me the clients have been sending positive feedback about me, which can only help.

The latest Beyond the Fringefan is now up at the N.Y. Cadre Web pages <nycadre.org/btf>, for viewing at your leisure. Stay cool, to the best of your ability...

<-----2011-7-22-----MSG----->

Last Thursday I got my first day of freelance work since January, through an agency called Creative Circle: 5 3/4 hours proofing a pitch to a potential client in a downtown office belonging to a small subsidiary of a large advertising corporation. The person I reported to praised my work both to my face and, as I found out the next day, to my contact at Creative Circle, so I'm hoping this will bring in more work, and soon; nonetheless, there have been no calls in the intervening two business days, so I guess I go back to editing how-to essays online at $4 a pop for Demand Media while I wait.

Meanwhile, I've finished html-izing the latest Beyond the Fringefan, so feel free to view it at the N.Y. Cadre Web pages <nycadre.org/btf>. Happy Memorial Day weekend, and may you not get caught in the traffic.

<-----2011-5-23-----MSG----->

...and it isn't even Passover yet! Not for an hour or two, anyway.

I've gotten a bit of work-from-home through Demand Media, which has so far paid me less in total than working half a day at my accustomed rates, but then I haven't been putting in concentrated time on it. Otherwise, it's mostly been waiting for the phone to ring, with the occasional interruption for medical and dental appointments. Oh, well, it will happen when it will happen. Have a happy spring holiday of your choice, and drop by the N.Y. Cadre Web pages <nycadre.org/btf> when you get a chance and read the latest Beyond the Fringefan.

<-----2011-4-18-----MSG----->

...and a full two days before end of month! (Four, actually, but I got distracted and took a couple of days to get around to posting this.)

Not much to add. Still not king employed, but filing applications and registering with places like oDesk and DemandMedia. Learning how to use the versions of Windows and Word and Excel on my new laptop. Taking care of medical and automotive business. Wondering when we'll see actual spring weather. Watchful waiting, as they say. More details can be found in the latest Beyond the Fringefan, viewable at the N.Y. Cadre Web pages <nycadre.org/btf>.

<-----2011-3-29-----MSG----->

Just under the wire, once again. I can't say I've been overwhelmingly busy, since I haven't had paid employment in over a month now, but there were seven or eight doctor and dentist visits for Donna (who will be having four teeth extracted today), a visit or two of my own, and half a dozen visits to a transmission mechanic in Ozone Park (I think the problem has finally, after two months, been fixed). I'm still hoping the job market (or at least the demand for freelance proofreaders/copyeditors) will warm up with the weather. Anyway, the latest edition of Beyond the Fringefan has been added to the three-year archive at the N.Y. Cadre Web pages <nycadre.org/btf>.

<-----2011-2-28-----MSG----->

I was informed Monday afternoon that the advertising agency where I'd been proofreading and copyediting for nearly five years will no longer be requiring my services. I'm feeling somewhat stunned.

Reasons were not discussed in huge detail. They didn't have to be, since I've been a temp/freelancer all this time. I'd made one significant mistake last summer that cost the agency some money, which could have been sufficient cause in itself. I have reason to believe that my boss at the agency went to bat for me but eventually had to yield to pressure from higher up.

For the first time in five years I don't know where, or even if, I'll be working tomorrow or in a week or two. Money is not an immediate problem, so I don't have that source of anxiety; but I can see myself succumbing to inertia all too quickly if I hang around the house too long.

Having changed careers eight years ago after my job with the bank moved to Tampa (and I wonder if I'd still have it now if I'd moved then), I don't care to do so again. Fortunately, my contact at the temp/freelance agency that is formally my employer believes she and her associates can find me something in the same or a similar ballpark pretty quickly. I'll be visiting them Wednesday to discuss options and next steps.

<-----2011-1-25-----MSG----->

You can find the latest edition of Beyond the Fringefan, along with the previous thirty-five or so, at the N.Y. Cadre Web pages <nycadre.org/btf>. You can find me dipping a toe into LiveJournal and Facebook once a month or so to post an announcement like this one, and once in a while leaving a comment to someone at random just to show I was there. Such an exciting life I lead...

<-----2011-1-20-----MSG----->