Another Rainy Day – Oh Joy!

Don’t get me wrong, I love the rain, but it’s Saturday! I want to see some sunshine.

Another Rainy Day – Call me Twitterfied!

 

This morning I woke up to the rain pouring down outside. Don’t get me wrong, I love the rain, but my knee does not. It’s really early for me to be up and about, well I can’t really say I’m up and about. I’m still in the bed listening to the rain, sipping on the coffee my man brought me before he left for work this morning, and watching Mocha talk to the birds outside the window. All of that along with checking email and getting to work on the remaining 4 blog post I have to complete and the other 5 Q & A’s, & 10 more articles all due by Monday. And then I have another 20 Q & A’s due by the end of October. You would think I was making a pretty good income here, but the pay just isn’t enough to pay all of my bills. It looks like I will have to raise my rates in the near future (a few weeks) and I may end up losing some clients, but I must do what I must do. Yes it would seem I’ve somehow ran out of days as well and now it’s down to the last minute type of writing. So much has been going on lately and time has somehow just passed me by.

When I woke up at 6:10am this morning I had a plan. I was going to get up, grab the laptop and start working on the blog post. I completed on last night while I watched my man play that new game we just got for the Xbox 360. I love playing xbox when there are good games out. Lately, there just hasn’t really been that many. Saints Row is awesome – so much better than any of the GTA’s. We just put a deposit down for Saints Row 2 – it comes out on October 14, 2008. I can’t wait Anyway, back to what I was saying about my plans for today. I completed one of my blog post and started on another one while he was playing Star Wars: The Force Unleashed. I guess I should’ve completed them all, but I got side tracked (or saw something shiny as everyone always says to me), and started cleaning out the refrigerator and watching my DVR’d 2 hour special of Gordon Ramsay‘s Kitchen Nightmares.

I love that show. Watching it makes you not want to eat out at any restaurant any more. I still eat out though. Usually at O’Charley’s. I absolutely love their grilled chicken and their rolls.

 

From December M. Raynes Twitter Page!!!

 Okay, so I’ve been spending quite a bit of time on Twitter. Now at first I looked at this little thing and just couldn’t figure out exactly why anyone would want to use it, but after a few look sees and a few post I’m now addicted! Go figure right, something so simple can take up a whole lot of your time! Well, as it would seem that time has once again slipped away. It is right now 8:26am. Where did the last hour and a half go? Well, enough yip yap on here for now. Time to get things in the workings.

All Rights Reserved! © 2008 December M. Raynes

Not a good day

Today I feel like crap!!! I have that stupid sinus thing that is going around and I’m freezing too death. My head is going to explode, my stomach is upset, and my shattered knee (happened when I was 16 – never had the surgery on it) is killing me cause it’s raining outside. I can’t think or concentrate on anything today. I have so much to do but just can’t get it done. Along with suffering, I’m also searching GetAFreelancer.com for some data entry work. No luck so far. I just want something that is fairly easy to work on and not a huge hassle of researching and looking for detailed and long articles.

I have 10 more articles to get done by the end of the weekend and another 26 to get done by the end of October 31st. Well actually the 30th because Halloween is my day! I don’t work on Halloween – It’s my special holiday! Black cats, Jack-O-Lanterns, and Spooks – what could be better. I’m not big on the candy, but I love the movies – (the old ones are pretty funny) gotta love Vincent Price and all of the costumes the little kids wear. In my neighborhood there aren’t any trick or treaters, but when I lived in the city there were lots of them.

I finally finished my web site, but have yet to purchase the domain name. Right now it’s just running on the sub-domain name they have. I found a new favorite of mine. A1 Steak Sauce Smoky Mesquite style. It is delicious on everything. I’ve been eating it on everything for the last three days. Rolls from O’Charlies, I use it as a salad dressing, put it on sandwiches, and love it on grilled chicken from O’Charlies. 

Alright – Time to search again for some VA work either full time or part time. I just need some work that can pay the bills!!!

All Rights Reserved! © 2008 UpSideDownGrl

My new website

Finally I have my potential website up and running. Now to get the domain name for it. I just want to make sure that it is going to be well worth it and not just another waste of money. December M. Raynes <— My Web Site! Check it out! 

I’m currently working on getting my Virtual Assistanting business up and running. Currently I have two clients and hopefully will be growing many more. I hope to get more into administrative work and less into the writing area.  I have quite a bit of experience in working in the administrative field and would love to be able to do this virtually.

Well, its off to the hospital now. My boyfriends sister is having her baby girl today so I’m out of the office for the rest of the day and possibly all of tomorrow

All Rights Reserved! © 2008 December M. Raynes

Monday – First day of the week!

Today is Monday – you know that dreaded day of the week. One of the longest, nothing goes right, can’t seem to get back in the groove of how things work! Yep, you know what I’m talking about.

For today I think I’m going to work on cleaning out the basement, all the closets, all & I mean ALL of the laundry which I’m almost done with it now. Yay! Give me a pat on the back! So far I have cleaned out the dresser and cleaned out the closet. Now to get rid of all of the old clothes and clothes that do not fit me anymore. Yes, I’ve gained a bit of weight. Over the weekend I went shopping for some clothes and shoes. I’m addicted to shoes but I needed some dressy shoes to wear out. The ones I found are dressy and I can wear them anywhere – well except in the mud or grass. They’re 2 inch heeled boots. I love them and I got a good deal on them. I got them on sale along with a $3.00 discount – I can never pass up a good deal! 

The clothes I bought are dressy office attire as well as going out and having a good time clothes. Since I’ve been looking for an office job or sales job lately, I really needed something else to wear other than jeans, t-shirt, and a pair of sneakers. I’ve applied to quite a few places lately and still no luck. I think it is that I’ve been working for myself for so long that no one really wants to hire me for anything else. I have experience in about everything – Sales, Retail, Writing, Photography, Fast Food, Call Center, Telemarketing, Shift Manger, Office Manager, Restaurant Manager, Secretary, Administrative Assistant, Cashier, Merchandiser, Driver, Animal Attendant & the list goes on and on. The jobs I’ve been applying are for Secretary, Retail Sales, Cashier, & Photography. I have a few small freelance writing gigs, but it’s not enough to make ends meet at the moment. I’ll always work as a freelance writer but only part-time. I really need a part-time or full-time hourly or salary job. I had a great paying hourly freelance writing job at one point, but it was only temporary and the project is now over. I would love to land another hourly job like that, but they seem to be few and far between – at least the ones that pay more than $2.50 an hour. Who really works for $2.50 an hour unless you are a waitress or something. And even waitresses around this area make more than that as their hourly wage plus tips. I got an email yesterday for a job that I was considered for that I applied for on GetAFreelancer.com. As it would turn out it may be a scam. It said in the email to get a screen name so that the conference call can be set up. When I went to the link to get my screen name it took me to a conference call page and it asked for a monthly fee of $39.99 a month. I contacted the employer and he said he did not realize that his page required new potential employees to pay a monthly fee of $39.99 and that it was the only way he knew how to set up a conference call. I emailed him back letting him know that there are free messengers out there that will allow free conference calls as well as VOIP services. I haven’t heard from him since. The job was for a virtual assistant for a real estate company in New York. I’m guessing it was a scam since it is required that employees pay a monthly fee just to be considered and to work for them. 

I would love to do a virtual assistant job. I worked as a virtual assistant in 2005 for a woman who ran a few too many websites and I took care of a few of them for her, scheduling appointments, hiring writers for various areas of the sites, and editing the content. Eventually she sold all of her websites and moved on to other types of work. I’ve searched for Virtual assisting jobs lately and have had no luck with any of them. I’ll keep looking though.

Time seems to be slipping away today. I guess cause I’ve been busy working on cleaning up and doing some fall cleaning. I can’t believe how beautiful it is outside. Fall is finally here!

All Rights Reserved! ©2008 December M. Raynes

Happy Friday Everyone!

HAPPY FRIDAY…

It’s finally Friday. I can’t believe it – where did the week go? I guess I lost a few days due to some personal things I had to work through (relationships – sometimes I really wonder if it’s all worth it then I see his smile and feel his touch and I know it’s worth it all) – which would explain my previous posts or there lack of. Now that things are back to normal I can get back to business. Skype is really driving me nuts. We pay $60 a year (yeah a great deal) but I guess it is true – you get what you pay for, right? Hopefully my phone service will be back online soon. It’s been almost 3 days.

Moving on…

Today I have a plan. I plan to work on my 5 gardening Q & A’s and catch up on some laundry. I have so much stuff to catch up on and it just seems there just aren’t enough hours in the day sometimes. Right now it’s 12pm and my hours in my office are 10pm – 4pm. Many years ago when I worked full time as a writer (always overloaded with work) I would work sometimes 18 hour days and sleep a few hours a night if that. I have decided not to work long days and just work Monday – Friday with EVERY Holiday off as well as special occasions (permitting my projects allow it). I refuse to burn myself out this time. I know – the ones of you who know me and know me well are saying “Yeah right! You’ll be working your arse off and burning the candle at both ends in no time!” Well, I plan to get back on my freelance writing career path and stick with it for another 10 years or more.

Today’s Plan…

1. Complete 5 Gardening Q & A articles
2. Fill out my divorce papers
3. Laundry
4. Make Chili for Dinner (yummy)
5. Return a few emails to clients
6. Relax the rest of the evening!

Well, back to work for me!!!

All Rights Reserved! © 2008 December M. Raynes

Thursday – Just a short post

I can’t believe it, Fall is finally here – yes I probably spoke way too soon on this issue, but I can’t believe how cool it is outside. One day it’s 90 degrees and then I wake up to a freezing room and it’s only 58 degrees outside and the high gets up to about 70. I’m not complaining though. I love this type of weather. 

This is just a short post.

All Rights Reserved! © 2008 December M. Raynes

Brief History of the Jack O’Lantern

 

Halloween is just around the corner and one of the most popular traditions that occur during Halloween is The Jack O’Lantern. Have you ever wondered where that tradition came from. After goggling Halloween Traditions I finally stumbled onto its origin. The Jack O’Lantern came from Ireland. Irish Immigrants who came to America had a tradition of carving out rutabaga’s, potatoes, or turnips making them completely hollow just as we do the pumpkins today. Once they were hollow, they would place hot coals or candles inside and place them by their doorsteps on Halloween. This custom was used to ward off the evil spirits that lurked around on Halloween.

Soon they discovered the pumpkins that were native to their new homeland America and found that the pumpkin was much easier to carve than a small turnip or potato. This soon took hold and now it’s known as the Jack O’Lantern that we all recognize!

Halloween is my favorite holiday of all time. I love the season – Fall of couse! I love the colors, the great history and legends that follow it. It’s one of the most creative, unique, and beautiful holidays. Some do not consider Halloween as a holiday because they believe it represents evil. It represents no such thing. It’s a fun holiday. The one time out of the year where children can dress up as some one else, eat candy, stay up late watching horror movies, and just have some fun!  

I will be writing more about Halloween and the Irish traditions throughout the rest of the month and all the way until October 31st.

All Rights Reserved! © 2008 December M. Raynes

Today is GREAT!!! – Busy Busy Busy

I woke up this morning – a bit late because I just didn’t feel like getting out of bed cause my tooth hurt a bit, but once I did get out of the bed I checked my email and there was an email from someone who wants to purchase a few of my prints. I was so excited and a bit in shock. I couldn’t believe it. I mean I posted my photographs up for sale but never actually thought I would get any inquires for a purchase.

I think today I’m going to work on my website and try to print out some photographs and have them matted and framed and put them up for sale. I just got another contract – wee!!! I’m so happy and it’s pretty good money as well. I can’t wait! Finally the money is coming in – (hope I didn’t speak too soon)!

It’s time to start saving up for my next vehicle. All of mine have been sold or I have gotten rid of them. Now it’s time to start saving up!

I guess it’s time to get down to business! I’ll update more of this entry later.

All Rights Reserved! © 2008 December M. Raynes

Talking is Hard To Do!

Just like the headline says “Talking is hard to do!”. Yesterday my front bottom tooth split. Not sure why, and now I can’t speak clearly. I haven’t made it to the dentist yet – no insurance plan and no cash equal no cure. So, sitting here talking to my new friend on Yahoo and emailing my old friends and catching up on some DVR stuff is all I have to do since there’s no work right now. At least I don’t have a job that involve talking with voice. I couldn’t imagine being a phone rep or something, I’d never be able to get through the day. 

Well, this entry may not be all that long. I just feel like crap today – so there’s really not much to say about anything. I have quite a few emails to answer and I want to work on my website today and add some informative text. But that probably just won’t happen today. 

It’s cold here today. I’m not sure if it’s just because I feel bad today or if it really is cold. It’s only September – it should still be hot outside. Well, I guess I’ll write more in this later.

All Rights Reserved! © 2008 December M. Raynes

Unclutter My Life Day!

UNCLUTTERING MY LIFE
Today may be a Monday, but I call it “Unclutter My Life Day”! I’ve only lived in this house with my boyfriend not even a year yet and you would think I’d been here for the last 10 years. I have so much stuff. I started out with hardly nothing, then suddenly it began building up. The office closet is crammed full of stuff (nothing really of use). The basement is also starting to get cluttered up as well. Since we’re currently doing renovations on the house I thought I’d unclutter it as well.

I’ve already started to unclutter my life somewhat. Last night I gave my boyfriend my 1988 Chevy Camaro that we just bought no more than a month and a half ago. We got it for me and he repaired what needed to be repaired and was waiting for me to put it on the road. With there being no work lately, I couldn’t afford to put it on the road and since I don’t really go anywhere I decided it wasn’t a real high priority. He wanted it on the road so he could drive it, so to make him happy – it’s all his now. The downside to doing that is I no longer have a vehicle of my own. I drive the Jeep which he is in the process of trying to sell – so once that is gone, I will have nothing to drive.

“I have work, how much would you like, and in what time frame?”
I keep searching for writing jobs online, and some of the editors I contact have empty promises of “Yes I have work, how much would you like and in what time frame.” That’s all I hear with no projects sent to me and no other responses from them. Is it true? Am I just a burned out freelance writer of 9 years that no one wants to hire anymore. Do editors only want to pay $3.50 for 500 words now days. What happened to making $40 per 500 words? Where did all those jobs go. I bet they’re still out there and are probably the same jobs that these editors are pawning off for only $3.50 an article and they keep the remaining $36.50 for themselves. I guess that’s why the call it “The Article Mill”.

Learning Photoshop Elements 6.0
Today I also want to learn to use Photoshop Elements 6.0 well. Right now I can crop a pic and add text to it. Other than that, not a damn thing. I’ve searched forums and google for tuturials but still none that are specific enough. I guess I’m going to have to break down and buy the book. 

 Well it’s a plan
Okay, I have decided to try to sell some of my photographs to magazines. Some of these magazines pay much more for photographs than they do for articles. And I have a ton of old photographs and I can take plenty of new ones to send out. Yes photographs are a bit more difficult that conducting the printed word and make it sound just right, but I think I can do this.

All Rights Reserved! © 2008 December M. Raynes

Just Another Day

Well so far today I have searched for jobs online. Not any luck really. Last night I sent out a few inquiries and received on back (with hopes). She said that if I was picked out of a trillion other writers then the job was mine along with about 4 others. That’s fine by me. The pay is pretty decent as well. Today is Sunday, so nothing much to do really other than search high and low for work.

I may put some stuff on ebay for sale. I do have a book to sell. “Make a Real Living as a Freelance Writer”. I just bought the book, read it twice and it really didn’t help me out at all. I’ve read so many that say the same thing, so why not sell it and maybe it’ll help out someone else. I don’t really have much to sell on ebay, but maybe I can find something. I was thinking about some photographs, pictures I take around the area, but still I can’t see why anyone would purchase such a thing on ebay when they could get it from their local Micheal’s Store or A.C. Moore. I guess I really should search for a forum where people are selling their photographs and if they’re actually making an income from it. Hmmm… I’m gonna add that to my to do list today. Along with learning Photoshop Elements 6.0.

You can purchase some of my prints here. <— Link prob. does not work. I will be checking that out. So far the page says “SERVER ERROR” on their website.

All Rights Reserved! © 2008 December M. Raynes

Saturday & It’s Raining!

Well, it’s finally Saturday and it’s raining outside. Seems to be the overflow of Hurricane Hanna, but I don’t mind it. We need the rain. Today, there’s really not much planned, just the norm. I will search the internet high and low for an online writing gig – find a few, apply for them and then move onto my photography portfolio. Yesterday I stayed in my office all day. Today however I think I may sit in my Saturday workstation. I usually sit in the living room, but lately I’ve kinda tried to keep my living room for living and my office for working, not that much work really gets done in there anyway. So maybe out here in the living room today (yeah right) some stuff will get done.

Well, even if nothing gets done today, it’s the weekend. No harm done, right! Today, I may just search photography guidelines for magazines. Every magazine has photographs in it, although many magazines have their own personal photographers, I may be able to sneak in there somehow with a photograph or two.

Okay – Today’s plans:

1. Laundry
2. Update Photography Portfolio
3. Clean out the Fridge
4. Update Netflix
5. Search Craigslist for writing jobs
6. Twitter – enough said
7. Update Facebook

This entry will be continued!

All Rights Reserved! © 2008 December M. Raynes

My Favorite Time of Year!

It looks like Fall is on its way! My favorite time of year. The days get a bit cooler, a nice sweet smelling breeze blows, and the beautiful colors. Oh how could you forget the beautiful oranges, reds, yellows, and browns. As not only a writer but a photographer, great photographs can be created from the fall season. 

I’m a spring child, although I think I was really supposed to be a fall baby. Spring I do not like, let me say it again – I DO NOT LIKE SPRING! I do however LOVE fall. My boyfriend is a fall baby and I guess that’s why we get along so well. I hate snow and anything that has to do with the cold. I’m alright with summer as long as it has a steady breeze blowing and rains here and there a few times a week. Fall however is mine – all mine.

Even the holidays – There’s Halloween – my ultimate favorite and Thanksgiving – the time of being thankful and eating. Turkey, stuffing, gravy, mashed potatoes, yorkshire puddings, pumpkin pie, yams smothered in marshmallows, buttered rolls, and sweet potato pie. Yum! I’m starting to get hungry just thinking about it. Now don’t get me wrong, Christmas is great too – the gifts and basically the same foods you had for Thanksgiving, but with Thanksgiving you also get that great romantic fall weather.

Last night I finally got one of my list articles in order and tracked down the magazine’s email address and sent it off to them. Keep your fingers crossed, I really want to sell this article. It didn’t really take all that long to write, but the editing process was a bit rough. It started out with 16 items on the list, and by the time it was completed, it had only 9 items. 

All Rights Reserved! © 2008 December M. Raynes

A Photo Entry

 

Shadow Cats

All Rights Reserved! © 2008 December M. Raynes