Jack's Guide (the Renaissance Person's Guide to Survival in a Shaky Economy)

Alabama- Rednecks and Natural Beauty

All true- except for the rednecks part.  Mobile home jokes notwithstanding, I am in all truth enjoying my Alabama getaway.  Yesterday afternoon when I arrived it was witheringly hot and humid (I am, after all, staying right on a lake), but I woke this morning to a cloudy haze obscuring the sun, and cool breezes off the water.  I sat on the screened-in porch and enjoyed my morning coffee and fruit like I have not done in quite some time.  I am sorely tempted to put off departing this place until the last possible minute, which would be two days hence; Wednesday evening I have obligations back in the city.  As I compose now in air-conditioned comfort, I look out over a short expanse of nicely landscaped shoreline to the inlet where is situated the extent of the property owned by my cousin’s in-laws.  The location is verdant and lush, and I hear nought in the evening but  tree-frogs and crickets.  The room I sleep in is actually dark after sundown, with no ambient reflected city lights making it possible to read my paperback at night without benefit of artificial illumination. And despite venturing out for  groceries and in search of a consistent wireless signal, I have yet to encounter the first red neck.  

That descriptive moniker, I am told, has a number of possible sources.  The one that I always assumed accurate, was that the sunburned necks of cotton-pickers was the reason for the label hung on those earthy folk.  The other, less-known (at least by me) source may be the red Alabama clay one sees everywhere, perhaps evidenced on the dirty necks of the poor little white kids that used to be associated with the Yellow Hammer State.  

I have yet to figure out where that colorful state nickname came from-  I see lots of yellowroot twigs for sale in the convenience stores and produce markets, and wonder if there is any connection to be made there.  The yellowroot, by the way, is purported to have been the fore-runner to the toothbrush, and thus the state of Alabama lays claim to having invented that device.  Of course, had it been anywhere else, we’d likely be calling it the “teethbrush”.  (You knew it was coming, didn’t you?  Sorry, Linda and Chuck-  I couldn’t resist.  I hope this in no way diminishes the gracious welcome y’all have afforded me.)  

I am busy photographing, measuring, and otherwise documenting the existing structure that the Rubios bought some thirty years ago, in hopes of devising a suitably functional, creative, and economical  solution to my charge.  They are wanting to add a wing containing a master bedroom, bath, closet and laundry room.  Most of my work here will be documentation, although I have already begun drawing up the existing footprint and some rough elevations, which will enable me to accurately communicate the design ideas that I will develop once back in Atlanta.  But as I hinted at earlier, don’t look for me there until you see me coming.

Note: This post was actually written yesterday, but due to the aforementioned issues with wireless connection (the lack thereof, to be specific) I was unable to post it until today.

 

New Digs, etc.

 I picked rather a mouthful of a name when I decided to call this blog Jack's Guide (the Renaissance Person's Guide to Survival in a Shaky Economy).  That moniker says something about the State of Things, in general, but also is quite accurate as applies to my personal situation.   A whole mess of us (the collective us referring to "First World" human beings) find ourselves resource-challenged here lately, and the wiser among us have found that sitting around feeling sorry for ourselves just doesn't get it; not in this new order.   Anyway, I do admit to straying significantly from that specific topic, but I'll get over any concerns about those serendiptous departures, and hope you will, too.  However, today's post (only the second of the New Year, due to the following explanation) nails its nominal raison d'etre on the head.

As a fortunate (questionably so, admittedly) member of this country's landed gentry (aka "property owners"), I own a building near downtown Atlanta, and have for some twelve years now.  I'd created two separate living quarters, and had been living in the larger of the two spaces, and operating there as a wayfinding consultant, up until about a week ago.  My last tenant in the smaller space left at the end of October, and after I started cleaning up the place when he left, I hatched a plan to adjust to my new reality.  That reality being that I had not worked for nearly a full year, and was coming close to spending all my savings.  I knew that I needed to recover that lost rental income post haste, and set to work on the smaller living space, which comprised the front half of the building footprint, a one-story area of about 1100 square feet.  I decided to make it nice enough that I'd be happy living there.  Clever fellow that I am, I realized part way through the process of cleaning and upgrading, that it might be a wise move for me on all fronts to do just that; I'd relocate to the smaller space, with its lower utilities, etc., and lease out the larger two-story space, at twice the size, for considerably more rent- perhaps enough to cover my mortgage.  

The process was an easy one to conceive of, but somewhat more time-consuming in the execution.  The former occupant was there for six years, and was a wonderful tenant- never complaining, and there like clockwork on the first of the month with rent in hand.  But he was a bachelor, and not a very good housekeeper, and lived with a big boxer (a dog, not a pugilist).  He also was a creative sort, and dabbled in fiberglass resin casting, concrete casting, and various paint media, dribbling, as he dabbled, the various media all over the concrete floor.  Consequently, it has now been two months (and change) since he left, and I am finally to the point where I have moved in all of the  necessities and am now ensconced in the new digs.  Keep in mind, I am moving to a space a little over half the size of my previous crib, and am looking at a plethora of stuff I have yet to move or otherwise dispose of.  I have stacks of books, piles of artwork and clothing, and a whole mess of kitchen utensils and a food stock that will last me well past armageddon- all yet to be moved, disposed of, or consumed.  High-quality problems, to be sure, and food for much blog activity.

So there's my current mission- to successfully downsize, adjust and continue to survive and find work in the current challenging economic environment.  So far, so good.  I got my office furniture and equipment in place just in time to begin a new project, an architectural re-design of a historic trolley barn, currently in use as a special events venue.

I do have before and after photos of the new space, and will post some at a later date. (Actually, it's mostly "before" shots, at this point- still way too unpacked to take "afters".) Hopefully, there will be some new ideas for you to peruse regarding efficient use of space, storage, and clever decorating ideas, for the esthetically-challenged.  In the meantime, I hope this will inspire some to investigate your own hidden options for solving whatever dilemma this financial spiral has inflicted upon your own self.  Above all else, one must have hope and believe that one does have perfectly acceptable options, and that they may not be immediately obvious.

 

Rainy Sunday abstracts on Architectural Consulting, Blogs & websites, Creative Writing

Lots of times when I sit down to write, I have no idea what's coming out (or going down, or being put over- take your pick), and consequently wait until after my fit of graphorrea is done, to compose the title.  This happens to be one of those days.  So here I sit with my thesaurus (you didn't think I come up with all these fancy words on my own, did you?), my cup of coffee, my bowl of fruit, and an empty noggin.  Truth is, my focus is pretty scattered, with lots of different directions to choose from, so here goes.

Now a little more than a month into this new venture, I have expended some energy considering the broadness of scope of the blog; am I being too general, too non-specific, too full of shit?  Nah...... I seem to be picking up readers as I go, so someone out there must be getting some measure of amusement from my ramblings.  I said from the start that this particular blog would be essentially a compendium of everything about creativity and productivity.  And having so far managed to make a living by being somewhat effective at both those things, I do feel qualified to write in general about them, without claiming expert status therein.  One thing I am learning in my golden years is the value of the internet in researching stuff.  I don't have to be an expert- chances are, someone else has done all the hard work;  all I have to do is be diligent in my use of search engines, blogs, websites, and networking, and post the results where I think they can do someone else some good.  I have to necessarily assume that my readers are likewise Jacks and Jills of all trades, and will have some interest in the tidbits I uncover.  In addition to the actual benefits to them of acquiring this heretofore  hidden wealth of resources (am I overstating here?), I feel myself entitled to a warm and fuzzy feeling for having produced something useful, entertaining, and new.  (Note: "Devil's Advocate" warning- I just got my hands on a copy of The Cult of the Amateur, by Andrew Keen, who addresses therein the dangers of the aforementioned reliance on research by others, and of believing everything one reads..... will review later.)

So, I hope that if you are reading this, you will make use of and find some utility in the links and sidebar posts.  As I am covering a lot of territory here, it may take some time to fill up all the categories and cover all my bases.  In the meantime, I am thoroughly enjoying myself.  I could do this for a living..... if it paid better.

I had some thoughts about Architectural Consulting, one of my sidebar categories.  For those non-bloggers out there, if you click on the categories in my left-hand sidebar, it brings up all the postings I have made that relate to the category.  This, I believe, is the first posting I have put into that category.  I have mentioned previously, I believe, that my educational background and work experience qualify me for the category of architectural consultant, while not being a registered architect.  As such, I have respect for those who have gone through the licensing procedure, at the same time realizing that many of them are sitting around scratching their heads (as well as various other parts of their anatomies), debating with themselves the wisdom of having gone to all that trouble.   If you are in the market for and have the budget for the services of an architect, there are deals to be had, and a lot of architects could use the work right now.  If you are a do-it-yourselfer and find yourself on a more limited budget, there's a lot you can do on your own.  There are lots of websites and blogs about the process(es) involved in building/construction projects, and there are folks (like myself) who have a wealth of like experience to share (or to provide in exchange for cold hard cash) .  For now, I am going to spend a few hours researching sites on the subject to post, so you, dear reader, don't have to go to the trouble. 

New Site for Do-It-Yourselfers

I happened on an opportunity to participate in a new thing (new to me, anyway).  I was looking on Craigslist for part-time opportunities for employment, and came across a posting for beta-testers for a new website, called Networx.com.  The intent is that this site will provide insight from fixer-up types to folks with similar plans.  As a side benefit, one will be able to find resource information, like contractors of various types, suppliers that will sell to the general public, and so on.  In the interest of full disclosure, I'll reveal that I was paid- first to post various projects I had recently completed, with photos, materials, methods, and issues I came up against.  There was then a requirement to provide input regarding the process of posting, signing up, and following through.  When an individual goes to the site, they have access to a whole slew of different projects of all kinds, and to the posters (who may or may not opt to field further questions about their specific projects).

Currently, the input is restricted to posters in the Atlanta area; the site is based here and until they get all the bugs worked out, the restriction will remain.  So far, my experience in navigating the site has been good, but the ultimate success will really depend on folks continuing to provide input.  

Until the end of October, the site is continuing to pay beta testers for posting projects.   It's pretty easy and quick work, and you get paid very promptly, and so will I.... (yes, I'm in it ,at least in part, for the money).  So if you decide to check into it, please, please, use my name when they ask how you heard about it.   I still need to pay the mortgage!   You will be doing me a big favor, and will be participating in the creation of what I believe has huge potential for helping out creative home do-it-yourselfers.  If you don't mention my name (Steve Ellison, that is), I don't get credit.  If I can help in any way, you can call me at 404.525.3797.

I am finding tons of creative stuff having to do with letterforms, sign making, and other forms of visual communications.  The alphabet below was created by waving burning sticks in the dark, before a camera with an open shutter.   I found this on a site called "Share Some Candy", the link to which is now included in my sidebar.

Enjoy!

What this is all about- I think.......

This blog's not by or about a guy named Jack- my name is Steve (Ellison, if you're asking), and I have decided to go by the display name of Stevie B, a long-time moniker of mine, which was hung on me by a bald-headed chicken-plucking guitarist I used to play music with.  (If you're out there, Mike, you know who you are).  The label was intended to be shorthand for Stevie Bottoms, assigned to me by virtue of my responsibility in the band of holding down the bottom register- (read as playing the bass guitar).   More about that later.

I decided to start this blog after having experienced eight months of self-unemployment- (not literally, but damn close to it), and on realizing that the more I spread myself around, the better are my chances of connecting with viable and productive (i.e., paying) work.  Making no pretenses to the contrary, I do not claim to be anything remotely like blog-savvy;  I'm not sure I've ever perused one- but having read Blogging For Dummies, I nevertheless am embarking on this strange new endeavor.  So if I seem totally ignorant of how to proceed, it is likely because I am.

Having made that disclaimer, let me digress briefly regarding the general direction of this effort.  The name Jack was chosen in honor of the legendary one (he of all trades and master of none), the original Renaissance Man.  I was once described as one of these by a to-be supervisor in an architectural firm with which I was endeavoring to become employed, and I thought that was pretty cool.  (I came to find out later that most architects not only feel themselves to be Jacks of all (or at least, multitudes of) trades, but masters of many, as well, so the description bestowed upon me by the interviewer was intended merely to indicate that I might be suitably ego-absorbed for the job.) - Okay, I think I have now digressed from my digression, so back now to the title......

Over the years, I have come to pride myself on having firmly embedded my fingers in a host of pies-  it's been entertaining, if not optimally financially rewarding.  As I find myself commiserating with lots of folks who are wondering how to make ends meet in such a challenging economic environment, I feel that one key to survival, perhaps the most critical one for someone harboring more than a few areas of potentially productive activity, is to endeavor to put ALL those diverse talents to work.  The second critical key, I believe, is to remain flexible, and open to new ideas, however alien they may be.

And so, when you come back, you can expect to find (eventually, that is- this may take some time) a potpourri of resources, ideas, suggestions, commentary, experience, strength and hope regarding (for the most part) various creative ways of making a living.  I am hopeful that some sympathetic few of you will take pity on me as a newbie to this venue and give me some guidance thereto.  In return, I promise to do my best to turn this into a dialog that will benefit as many of us know-it-all, do-it-alls, as possible.

Stevie B