In Other News

Nothing yet on the job front, but an interesting connection was made this week. So I work for this interior design company now, or rather, I temp with them, and currently, I’m organizing their massive book library. Friday, I was cataloguing their catalogs ;) and at around the same time, I was looking at job listings at NYFA, an artsy job board. An auction house’s very furniture catalog lay on the table in front of me as I sat looking at a their job listing on the board.

That evening, I emailed the owner/boss of the interior design firm, who knows that I’m looking for full-time work, and asked her what her thoughts were around that particular company with whom she obviously is familiar, and if I could use her name if I did apply to them.

She emailed me back and said of course I could use her name, and that if I were interested in furniture, she could give me a reference to three other auction houses, here and in New York.

…

I wrote her back just now, stating that I’m more interested (and slightly more educated) in the visual art side of these companies (“although furniture would be a welcome entrée”), and that I’m fully open to her suggestions on how to proceed. Because I’m not entirely sure what "a recommendation" meant – is that one for me to give to them, or to give to them of me? Not sure. But… YES.

This would be a great Yes. Sure, it’s admin work – or it might be – but it’s a potentially stable position in a creative field, which would be lucrative enough to enable me to pay my bills, my soon-to-come-due student loan payments, and the acting classes that I now have my sights set on. That sounds like a Yes to me! 

We’ll see. We’ll always see. I still dislike that – I still want to know upon which door to knock, which one has the best chances, but unfortunately that information has been set aside for more divine deities, and I just have to go around knocking on doors.

In fact, about a month ago, I went into the city, and papered this one building of galleries with my resume. Most of them looked at me like, Hey lady, we’re just barely hanging on to our own jobs here. A few were friendly, but mostly, it was the cold shoulder. That said, I did go and embarrassing as it was, hand people my resume with my most winning, you-really-want-to-hire-me smile. No dice, but good experience.

Did you know there’s a degree now in arts administration. That those folks who sit at the computers in galleries all day have a degree for that? It seems to be that that’s something new – that it used to just be an Art History degree and background could get you in, but apparently, there’s more.

And I’m glad for it. There’s a lot that goes into the business of being an artist, and the business of being in the art world. But, it’s just another piece of paper I don’t have.

The more I apply to teaching jobs, the less I want to do it! But, that’s also NOMB – none of my business – and I’ll continue to apply to stuff until I get work. Even after all that chatter I had about not wanting to sit all day, now I’m back to applying to jobs where I’ll sit all day. But, a) my back has gotten used to sedentary (even if my gut has preceded its enthusiasm), and b) well, I guess until I teach again, I really have nothing to say on it one way or another really. Is it something I want to do? I have no idea. I have a ton of preconceived notions about a ton of things, and one by one, those ideas get picked off. So, we’re back to “who knows,” and “we’ll see.”

Next Sunday I’ll have an art modeling gig with my friend/artist. I’m a little trepidatious about the muscular disintegration that is my body at the moment, but, it’ll be what it’ll be. I’ll be with the temp company through this week for sure, and likely through next week.

In other news, I got to dance last night. At my friend’s wedding. It was a marvelous affair – gorgeous, and funny, and touching. And fun. Or at least I had fun. I spun a few little kids around the dance floor, coaxed my begrudging friend to come dance with me, and they had to drag me off the dance floor when it was time to go home.

For the first wedding I’ve ever attended, the food was great. No, just kidding (I mean it was). But, more importantly, it was epic for these two people to get hitched, even though they’ve been together for 7 years. It’s epic that two people make that commitment to each other, and it’s just buoying and heart-flutter-making to be there to witness it. 

Congrats to Freather. May all your years together be [insert uncheesey, totally puck rock sentiment here.] With Love, M.