Tag Archives: growing up

Uncategorized

The Unfortunate Quest to be Anything Other than Average

4 Comments

Blaming Attention Deficit Disorder is easy, but the fact of the matter is that I have a serious problem with my inability to complete projects. Of course, I’m working hard to combat this problem and I’ve been doing a good job of it at my current contract gig.

But, even though I think I’m working hard, I still feel like my employer views me negatively. Maybe that’s my problem — as I always convince myself that people dislike me until proven otherwise. There are a few other projects on my plate that I’m behind on, or that are basically gone for good because, well, I took on more than I can chew. I don’t really know enough about interactive design yet to build multimedia sites, yet I tried once and it didn’t work. I’d like to take some classes in these things so it won’t take me hours browsing through tutorials to make a relatively simple site that has more than just graphics and text, but unfortunately, I don’t have time or the money to do that right now.

With my writing work… I feel like such a fake. I don’t think I’m a good writer. I think I’m a much better designer, without the technical skills to profit from my somewhat decent talent in that area. Meanwhile, writing is easy… to fake. Anyone can pretend to be a writer. But what matters is the content.

Maybe I just lost my love for writing. Once I wanted to be a journalist. But now all I do is dream about a day when I can design for a living. I feel like I get color and line and composition. What I don’t get is the composition of paragraphs or sentences.

I’m just tired of being a F&#& up. How did I get so far this fast and yet at every turn I run straight into a wall of my own creation? I’m over and done with it. I want to be successful, but my motivation levels… my non-temporary motivation levels… dwindle faster than George Bush’s ratings since going to war with Iraq.

Am I the only person who practices somewhat subconscious self sabotage? I’m so afraid of proving to myself that I’m actually a failure that all I can do is fail before I have the chance to do it unintentionally.

I need to stop feeling like I need to do something GREAT in order to succeed. I know it’s the little things that are meaningful, yet I don’t believe it. I want to be famous, or brilliant, or… anything other than average.

Uncategorized

When I was a little girl, I used to walk a few feet in the snow…

2 Comments

Winter in California is bizarre for a gal like me that grew up on the east coast. Sure, we get our annoying rainy season, but snow and painfully cold whether isn’t involved in the concept of winter here. I kind of like that, as I’m definitely not a “cold” person, and it helps save on heating bills (though I have an ‘all utilities paid’ deal with my rent anyway) but sometimes I miss snow.

Scratch that. I just miss my memories of what snow means. Days off from school. Spending time with family. Watching bad tv all day (as a freelancer I tend to do that now… i mean, at least as background noise). Relaxing.

The only thing equivalent to a “snow day” out here would be a day when a giant earthquake destroys everything… or if a forest fire comes frighteningly close to my neighborhood. That’s not much of a snow day.

Most of all, I miss being a child. Like any other 24 year old, I’m now facing the fact that the future is all about being an adult. A young adult for a while, then an old adult, then a very old adult and then… well, that’s life.

How should I value my life? Should I see it in terms of how much money I make, and how much I can buy? I don’t expect to be rich, but as a freelancer I see how I can build up a steady income and at some point, if I have enough happy clients, I can possibly make six figures a year. That feels almost greedy… although if I have kids at some point I’m sure any money would help.

I feel dirty wanting money. I like working for just the amount I need to survive with a little extra to stow away for savings in case something terrible happens. Then again, I love eating at nice restaurants, traveling and buying overpriced clothing. It’s tough to both want to not be greedy and want to live a mildly lavish lifestyle.

More than anything, though, I want to feel like I’ve earned my money. That I deserve what I’ve earned. That’s why I like the idea of freelancing. Beyond actually having to do a good job, I constantly have to market myself and prove my worth. And if i’m not worthy of a project then I have to rethink my strategy for long-term survival. Maybe that’s a little scary, but I enjoy the ongoing challenge. It keeps me on my toes.

What’s with all of this ‘future’ and ‘past’ thinking? Well, it’s the holiday season, and while I’m not religious, the time around Hannukah and New Years always throws me into a state of extreme reflection. I think a lot about where I’ve been selfish in the past year and how I can change my next year to be a better person. I rarely make as much progress as I’d like, but at least through growing up I’ve stopped being so terribly narcissistic. I’ve accepted that for the most part people do not care about me, whether that’s caring about me being wonderful or a trainwreck. As a kid I was desperate for attention. Not anymore. Well, sometimes, if I’m having a random hyper moment and perhaps a few shots of Vodka. But…

Now… my whole view on life has changed. My basic morals haven’t. I still believe in freedom, I still believe in being a good person regardless of a belief in some divinity. That will always be a part of me. But now I don’t mind being invisible (usually). I’m not sure how I feel about that.