Martha's "Hull on Wheels" Blog

Don't Panic

So the Willamette Week has an article on the incredible joblessness of Oregon, historically.  How did I miss this information before I moved here?  How was I stupid enough not to realize an artsy creative town would have a creative glut and I wouldn’t be able to get a design job to save my life (literally?)  I miss playing with Creative Suite all day, although I’ve always said I wanted to concentrate on art and not design “when I grow up.”

The sad thing is, I seem to be a talented admin.  I’m basically doing what I did as a designer, minus all the creative stuff.  The task juggling is the same, and the copywriting is less frequent but more extensive.  The other sad thing is that I have regular confirmation of just how underpaid I was at my little grocery store in Vermont.  It was a lifestyle choice, sure… I miss those 4-day workweeks passionately, but...

Well, my mantra since moving to Oregon has come out of Zen and the Art of Happiness by Chris Prentiss.  Everything that happens to me is the best possible thing that can happen to me.  Life is so much better when you can believe that.  But it is hard to have a good attitude when you are exhausted, and I have been staying up waay too late so I can see Ian after he gets home from his closing shift at Joe’s.  Funny thing, him working at Joe’s snack bar.  There is a Joe’s Snack Bar (a REAL snack bar) in my hometown of Jericho, Vermont.  Ah, creemees…

There’s a decided lack of creemees here, but the fresh tortillas probably trump them.  I only allow myself one or two creemees a year, anyway.

I’m starting to pick up steam in my studio.  I’m working on a painting that’s a little too small in the details for acrylics.  That’s what happens when you use whatever canvas you have.  Sometimes the scale is off.  I think it’s time to paint another doll as a mood barometer.  I’m yo-yoing between very happy and rather blue.  I guess that’s fall.  And exhaustion.

It's decision time.  Go to the studio exhausted or try to nap.  I've got some post-work adrenalin, but when that's gone, all bets are off.  I'm reading Bark, a fun story about werewolves.  Okay, I'm listening to it on CD.  Whatever.  I hear all the words in my head the same way, whether my eyes or my ears take them in.

Oh, yeah.  And it's my birthday next Monday (the 19th).  If Douglas Adams says it's the answer to life, the universe, and everything, it should be a magical year.  Bring on the dancing ponies.

A truck full of scraps of paper

So there's a UHaul truck parked out in front of my house.  The stuff in the truck would be junk to 95% of the population.  Funny how things in your life become so important.  The truck is full of my studio.  I am waiting for Ian to help me bring it to my new studio space.  Ian asked to take a long break, after lunch.  Fair enough, as he's uncomplainingly moving all my crap with me, but I'm not faring well waiting.  It is very cloudy and looks and feels much later than it is.  I just want to be done, but here I am, blogging and starting to feel the soreness of my muscles creep in now the the adrenalin has washed away.

It's gonna be a lot harder to start back up now.  Think I'm going to make some tea.  Yaay.  He's ready to go.  Too bad I have lost my amp.  Still gonna make tea.

So much change right now.  A new studio, a new apartment, Ian's starting a new job at the MAC, the cat has ear mites...  It's mostly (not the ear mites) good change, but it's still stressful.  Oh, yes it is.

Okay, time for tea.  Boy, the cat's not psyched right now.  Gotta go move scraps of paper, ugly dolls, empty canvasses, paint up the wazoo and random crap too important to get rid of, like canceled stamps, my childhood view master, moose hair... 

No Rest for the Wicked

Ye gods, but it's been a long time since I checked in.  I managed a tiny squeak after my trip to Vermont, and then... "blog" has landed on pocket-laundered task list after task list.  What has changed?  Well...

I have a day job.  A 40-hour a week plus 2 hours a day commuting day job.  It eats up my time like sour patch kids at a movie.  I'm back in the subbasement of the Multnomah Athletic Club, until such time as I see fit to leave.  I'm administrative assistanting.  It's not as fulfilling as changing the food landscape through drawing and graphic design, but it pays well and I am addicted to food, so there you go.  The folks are very nice and they appreciate me and I get to schedule my own day full of tasks, most of which are organizing things.  I'm doing all the things I never got to do as a graphic artist as I was too busy... make task lists, put things away, update the website...  I really needed my own part-time admin back then.  The view from the subbasement is non existent, I have to wear sweaters or blazers all summer, and it takes me a full third of my lunch break traveling from the subbasement time clock to the place outdoors I'm allowed to eat.  That's the bad part.  The good part is, the days go pretty quickly, what I said about the people, and... oh, yeah.  THEY PAY ME.

I hear the purr of a diesel engine.  Ian is home.  Ta... 

Okay.  We are going to the Alberta Arts' District's "Last Thursday."  It's an art walk/street fair.  As well as all the galleries, folks set up along the road and sell arts and crafts (and their souls) for ridiculously cheap.  It's fun although a tiny bit disheartening.  It's one of the only places to see hippies in Portland.  I miss hippies a little bit.  Speaking of missing hippies, I scraped the sh*t out of my ankle today shaving my legs.  I miss the bohemian lifestyle, but not as much as I like eating.  At least at this point.

I do have some exciting news-- we are moving in a month!  We're moving considerably closer in.  We're moving from 80th in the NE ("out near the airport") to 37th and more or less due east.  Woo hoo!  We'll be 20 blocks or less from anything we could possibly want (except IKEA and cheap gas) and I'll be able to start bike commuting to work!  It's right across the street from one of the nicest parks in Portland, Laurelhurst Park, and it's on the border between the largest cool hipster pocket and a "really nice neighborhood."  The up side and the down side are the same: it's a 1-bedroom.  Which means I will have to get a studio out of the house.  Hell, maybe I'll even meet people.  It's been hard to work in the dining room, in the summer.  I have a lead, but I don't want to jinx it.

Well, we're heading out soon, so I'll tell you about the Angelbot 42 later!

802 and 503

So it has already been a week since I got back from VT.  What a whirlwind tour!  Not nearly enough time to see all the people I wanted, and I wanted to hang out for a week with every one of them.

I had the best time I've had with my parents since I was... I don't know, seven?  We finally get along now that everyone is on their best behavior.  Still, we pretty much ran out of things to talk about after a few hours on the first day and I spent a three more days (or partial days) with them.  They were unhappy they didn't get more time (okay, Mom was) but frankly, there were so many friends and people who owed me money to go see.

I had a lot of fun showing people my portfolio on my lovely little iTouch that Ian got me for my birthday.  It took me a day to figure out how to get pictures on it, no thanks to the actual manual.  Someone on Yahoo answers saved me.  Apple had me download some crummy Mickey Mouse version of Photoshop that didn't seem to link up with iTunes... Arrgh!  Steve Jobs, you're no better than Bill Gates!

I got a lot of positive feedback and am excited to start logging some quality time in the ferret room this summer.  I just ordered some paint and (more importantly) palette sponges online. 

I have almost recovered from the vicious blackfly bite I got on Mt. Mansfield when hiking with my brother.  I do love the Green Mountains.  He let me drive the Jeep, with the top down, and I ate at Joe's Snack Bar.  Twice.  And, I had a creeme in Bristol.  The sprinkles were stale and I should have known better, but boy was it a festive occasion.  I also bought my first pair of big-girl flip flops.  The kind you buy at the shoe store that are actually comfortable.  After a lifetime of klutziness, it is a brave move for me to acquire flip flops.  I think I love them.

It is great to be back, too.  We had the most gloriously Portlandy day.  We went to a bike fair and I got some shark-shaped reflectors for my bike and helmet.  We biked all over the east side of town and had pizza and some coffee house delectables.  I seem to be madly in love with matcha, now that I'm supposed to avoid the high-octane version of the nectar of the bean.  85 degrees, sunny, and no humidity.  Summer arrived today. 

We weeded the garden and Kiki Diablo went head to head with an interloper cat, who just happens to be her doppelganger, except that the other cat has teeth and can actually jump in and out of the fenced yard.  Apparently she has kittens, too, according to Cris, the next-door neighbor, which explains why she's been around so much lately.

We are staying home tonight after a day of roaming, and I am craving popcorn badly.  I will have to go make it in a minute--

I saw 2 movies at the Roseway this week.  I rewatched Up in 3D.  I am so in love with Doug the dog.  Last night we went to see Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen.  Did I have fun?  Yes.  Is is "good?"  I'd have to say no.  I've never seen a movie I felt was more clearly directed at twelve year old boys.  The good news is that a lot more boys will probably go to college, since they will grow up believing that all the girls there looks like horny supermodels.  Oh, and there's no plot.  And ***SPOILER ALERT*** you are treated to a stunning closeup view of John Turturro's ass.  Now don't get me wrong, John Turturro's a delightful character actor, and I'd frankly see his ass than the hot chicks' (if you are allergic to cleavage, this movie will kill you), but I... well, I'm a little speechless at why the Hell that was in there except for shock value.  Oh, and there are a pair of robot twins that are waaay too reminiscent of Jar Jar Binks.  Still, Optimus Prime is one sexy robot. 

My new admin job in the subbasement is going well, and I'm sure you will hear much more about it as time goes by.  Right now, I really need popcorn or something bad's going to happen.

Pictures for you

I have been busy taking photos of my most recent paintings and have a new photo album for you!  (You will have to wait to see 3D robots.)

http://marthahull.typepad.com/photos/left_coast_art/

I am ordering another palette sponge and some new paints.  I can't wait to start spending some quality time in the Ferret Room again!

Everything's Coming up Roses

One day, Portland is doing its lovely spring thing, with flowering bushes and moss everywhere.  Then, some great Rose God flips a switch and the next day you notice a couple roses blooming.  Two days after that, the entire freakin' city is covered with roses.  One thing I have to say in Portland's defense is the the "City of Roses" is not a misnomer.  Just when I thought it couldn't be a more beautiful city (okay, I've gotten good at looking through all the homeless people), the roses bloom.  I never even really liked roses before I came here.  They were pretty much something you saw at the store that no one bought you, with the exception of one precious, highly fragrant antique bush I found on an archaeological site that I brought home and killed.  Portland has converted me.  I am now mad about roses.  The scope of colors, sizes, types of plant they grow on... it is not to be believed.

In other exciting news, my new camera came.  Now I have the tools to get my new artwork up on the web.  All I need is a little "spare time."  It is another busy week.  I am working full-time at the bank, still.  They have transferred me from Unclaimed Property to Bankruptcy.  Don't scowl too hard with jealousy, okay? They are willing to keep me on past this week, when the temp job was supposed to end.  I even told them I have the possibility of another job coming up (I may be back in the world of admin soon, but I am waiting on one background test after another to make sure I am moral enough to use a fax machine.)  I am learning about bankruptcy.  It seems I do not qualify, as poor as I am, despite how much money some of the people filing seem to have.  They have put laws into effect so you can't go on a massive spending spree (anymore) and then claim bankruptcy.  Well, with the world of "background checks" I seem to have found myself in, I suppose a bankruptcy might impede even the lowest temp jobs.  So I keep figuring out a way to pay my bills.  Sigh.  And I play the lottery, yes I do. I get a dollar's worth of pleasure playing "what if."

I am excited about going to Vermont in less than a week.  There are not enough hours in the day to do everything I want to do on my trip.  Gee, that's a common complaint.  My dentist called today and they can fit me in, so now it's beyond capacity.  I am worried that I will get too homesick.  Vermont from April to October is great.  Vermont from June to August/September is Eden.  Despite all the mosquitoes.  Still, the beer and bugs (or lack thereof) are better here.  I'm planning on spending a lot of time with my family.  I actually miss my parents for the first time in my life.  I fear they are going to seem very old.  They're in their mid-70s and it's been 10 months... Not the usual time people choose to leave.  Most are moving back to be nearer their aging parents and brother's young children.  I've never managed to live my life on a timeline that fits with expectations, though.

My mother has a phrase for people like me.  She has never called me, personally, this, that I know of, but she uses it to describe unusual, interesting people.  She calls them "a different person." It is not a compliment.  Being different is one of my mother's biggest criticisms.  And so I try to mentally prepare for solid blocks of many hours with her.  My dad's easy, unless he starts to talk politics, and he spends his days devouring the poison from conservative talking heads, so believe me, that is absolutely no fun.  How they managed to raise such tolerant children...? Well, I think Mom's become more tolerant and finally learned to bite her tongue sometimes.  Dad, however, not so much.  But he, too, knows there are certain people, like his daughter, who do not appreciate talking about certain subjects.  You can't argue with someone who has all the lingo down, even if you know it's wrong.  They still don't believe in global warming, even though George Bush now does.  It's like that.

We saw "Up" last week and I am still head over heels in love with Pixar.  Doug the dog was my favorite -squirrel!- character by a long shot, but it was a nice, thoughtful, dark, zen movie.  And I saw it in 3D at the neighborhood theater.

The kitty is good, and Ian has finally heard from his boss that he's passed the background check and may actually get hired on full time at the windshield warehouse, and perhaps dig his way back out of that evil pay cut.

I got into the ferret room this week and realized that I need to buy more palette sponges.  I am planning on getting a little real art time done every day if this admin job comes through, as I should be home 45 minutes before Ian every day.  I'm in for a world of being really tired, I can see it already.

We are going to watch an instant play movie on NetFlix tonight while the oven self-cleans.  Ian said I could pick it-- a bone he threw me while I was putting away laundry while he played video games. 

I can't believe I'm travelling 3,000 miles in 4 days.  I can't believe the place I've called "home" most of my life is 3,000 miles away.  I don't really have a "home" any more.  It's an interesting state to be in.  I sure do like the roses here, though.

I Was a Teenage Zombie

It becomes so hard to find the time for gratuitous tasks like blogging.  The day job plus commute takes just under 50 hours a week, which really is not much by the standard of most of the working stiffs in this country.  The ones who are lucky enough to be working.  But still, it is hard to find the time to have fun and get out to meet people and clean the house on top of the day job, feeding myself, and working like a squirrel preparing for winter to try to figure out how to make a buck in this beautiful but godforsaken place.

First off, let me apologize to Portland for calling her godforsaken.  I'm feeling like this whole country is godforsaken right now.  Apologies to my Aunt Anna, but godforsaken is more an expression of us being swept out to sea in our little paddle-less canoe than any reflection on a higher power.  Wow, I must be feeling the angst to bring cosmology into this.  Portland is beautiful, so beautiful.  Probably the most beautiful larger city I'll ever see, until I get to Paris or maybe Prague.  The people are nicer than I imagined human beings could be.  There are more artsy people than there are drops of water in the Willamette River.  I have a whole house with a yard for a fraction of what I would have had to pay in good ol' (also godforsaken but more so in the winter) Burlington, Vermont.  And yet, there are no jobs.  None.  We topped 12 percent unemployment and we are nowhere near done yet.  It is hard to keep up the feeling of confidence in my skills when nobody cares one whisker.  One of my few good job leads was given to a person with 15 years design experience, for a $15 an hour job.

I am rejoicing and trying not to be terrified that I have finally rounded the corner on less than a month left at the bank.  I have learned that I am very good with customer service.  I have also learned that I still have that desperate need to avoid conflict whenever possible, which does not go hand in hand with customer service.  Sure, you can do it.  It just kinda eats you up.

Speaking of eats you up, I seldom get to eat dinner before 9 p.m. and sometimes after.  I am hungry but we have to wash an embarrassingly gross mountain range of dishes before we can cook.  I'm going to make homemade pizza.  God, I wished I liked cooking.  But I sure do like eating.

So back to that bit before we got the the "godforsaken" thing.  I am doing my damnedest to try to figure out how to keep myself fed in a land and time with no prospects for rewarding or even continual employment.  I am thinking of getting my Oregon Liquor server's permit.  People still drink when things are dismal.  Coffee and beer are about all we have left, and luckily, I am in the world capitol of good beer and coffee.  However, I'm trying not to kid myself that I have any connections of getting into the bartending field.  They say Portland is about who you know, not what you know, and I know no one.  And then there's that lack of jobs thing... I can't imagine any bartenders are leaving their positions right now.

I refuse to have regrets in life.  Period.  But I do miss CIty Market.  I was spoiled with a not terrible schedule, lots of amazing coworkers, and a job doing something I loved and was good at that I felt like was helping the world.  It paid enough to keep me well fed.  And then there was the staff discount...     Now that I've gotten that out of the way, I can go back to my plotting and scheming.

So you know I am working as madly as I can bear on the robots.  I have lost my camera charger, however, and am contemplating the folly or necessity of buying a better camera, versus a new charger.  This is why you still have seen no pictures of robots.  It is also a bit depressing trying to keep an influx of dolls.  I figured out I need to sell a robot and a half a day, every day, if I sell small ones for my initial price point.  However, none of the dolls I've been finding are that small so I guess I'm making pricey 'bots by necessity.

I also realized that I need to supplement my art with more income.  I don't have any graphic design lined up; this place is overrun with designers.  I am thinking of trying to get some freelance writing jobs, at the suggestion of my classmate and instructor in the How to Write a Business Plan Painlessly class I took.  And I am also taking my classmate, Barbara's, suggestion and am writing for teenagers.

I have started my first novel.  Yes, I never do things the easy way or bite off small chunks.  It's a teen zombie comic romance.  I don't want to play my hand yet, but I am excited about it as a book, and more excited about it down the road as a potential screenplay.  There are not enough quality zombie movies in this world.  My brother and I (when I lived on his coast) had a Christmas tradition of watching a zombie movie near Xmas eve.  It is hard to come up with a new quality movie each year.  That's where I come in.  And if it only stays in written form, well, that's still okay.  I seriously need a title, though.  Most of my picture books start with a title: Death's Daughter and the Basket of Kittens, Petting Zoo, Satan Saves the World... (Okay, Hash came after the story).  I already have the title for novel #2: Immortal Soul, Incorporated.  It's about the recession.  So you see, I need a title, bad.  We went to an undead film festival this Saturday and got so see an advanced screening of The Revenant.  When you find it, see it.  It's so freakin' funny.

I am being told off by a robin who is hopping around our newly planted garden.  I sure do like birds.

I have let myself get a little homesick now that I know the weather in Vermont no longer sucks and that I'm going back for a visit in a month.  Still, we went for the most glorious hike this weekend in Forest Park and I basked in the lack of biting insects.  No blackflies.  No mosquitoes.  It's too good to be true.  I guess that's where the economy comes in. 

Ian in cleaning in the kitchen by himself and I am very overdue for helping and starting to magic the pizza into existence. 

I'll try to write again in a couple of weeks.  It is embarrassing how badly I neglect this blog.  I'll get you some robot pictures soon.  No, really. 

In a parting note since I am having trouble wrapping up, I'll remind you of a piece of advice from the Zombie Survival Handbook: blades don't need reloading.

The All Robot Channel

I have been swamped trying to juggle my day job with my personal life, aka my second job.  The bank temp job has its ebbs and flows.  Last week was some SERIOUS ebbing and I was not sure how much longer I could take it, and this week, it has been flowing nicely.  I don't enjoy the constant threat of confrontation, and that's what happens on the worst days.  And I was tired.

The exciting news: I am busting my butt to get my artmaking up to day job speed.  I've got less than 2 months left at the bank, and I'm applying to all the other regular day jobs I can find but they are scarce.  Very, very, very scarce.  Oregon is #2 in the nation in terms of unemployment rate.  The irony of moving here for the opportunities... ah, wry smile and no further comment.

But! the good news.  I am currently on the All Robot Channel.  I am taking a class called "How to Write a Business Plan Painlessly."  I have decided that making robot dolls will be fulfilling, and will available at much lower price points than 2D art for sale, so I've decided to start making them with a vengeance.  I'll post a couple up here soon.  The hard part is doing all the business work at the expense of doing things like going out on Friday night.  We did go out last night, though, and spent enough money for the week.  Stupid cost of things.  Portland's not even that expensive, but we're not exactly making the big bucks these days.  So my theme song is "Turning Japanese."  I recently read Stubborn Twig, a book about some Japanese immigrants to Oregon.  They made the Protestants, with their work ethic, look like slackers.  I'm trying to use their inspiration to remind myself that sometimes you have to sacrifice to get ahead.  I don't think the song is really about what "turning Japanese" means to me privately, but it's catchy and upbeat.

In other news, Oregon is so beautiful.  Portland doesn't have the sweeping beauty that Vermont has, but it has the smaller, more intimate beauty that comes from walking down the street in mid-April and having everything alive, aflower, and half leafed-out.  And then there's the coast.  It may not be a block away from me like Lake Champlain used to be (try 2 hours), but it might be even more beautiful.  Hey, it's got anemones and seals, anyway.  We also have moss on everything, and fluffy lichen, and waterfalls all over the place and are gearing up for another cloudless summer. 

I think it is time to make macaroni & cheese.  I have found a couple sources for aged cheddar, so I think we will make it after all.

Spring on Wheels

I've been plugging away at the temp job at the bank, calling a million strangers and inhaling my share of office dust from the historically old building.  While outside, spring is raging.

This is the first year OF MY LIFE when the first day of spring didn't seem like a cruel joke.  Daffodils are in full bloom, as are crocus and lots and lots of other flowers I don't know the names of.  The cherry trees are starting to bloom and the forsythia are also starting.  We've had dandelions for over a month now.  Two people commented on the cold rain this morning and I had to laugh.  "It's not snow!" I told them.

The most exciting thing in my life right now besides the world abloom is that I finally resurrected an old failed project from the end of 2007 and finally made it work!  I had gone into production of robot dolls and hit a heartbreaking snag when the heads never dried.  I missed the craft fair deadline, and Vermont locked in on winter.  Despite not having the heart to confront the sticky dolls, I packed them up and moved them to Portland.  This weekend, I visited my large, local hardware store and a man who will from now on be known as St. Kenny found the magical product for me to use as a primer.

AND THE HEADS DRY.

I am so excited I can't stand it.  I have decided to work hard to try to make robot making my full time job.  I signed up for "Write a business plan PAINLESSLY"at my local DIY lounge, and am ready to do the work.  I will need to buy a respirator so I don't kill myself, and there is so much to do to plan.  I'll finish making a couple prototypes soon so you can see them.  I will also be recruiting minions.  I am going to need some help finding enough of the right kind of cheap used dolls to keep my factory going.  I am writing some parameters for the ideal proto-robot doll right now.  If anyone is feeling a burning urge to scrounge garage sales and thrift shops, let me know.  I'll find a way to make it worth your while.

I am almost done my taxes, which has been as epically large as I expected but not as excruciatingly painful.  I think giving myself time and a table has helped a lot. 

Ian and I are going to Drain this weekend to visit Christina and Zach.  We're going to a place called MECCA, which is some sort of cool art reuse center Christina volunteers at.  Little does she know, I'm looking for robot trash.  I have found a project which justifies my need to scrounge through the flotsam of other people's lives.  Necessitates it, actually.  I always wanted to be a professional beachcomber.  This is similar, only dirtier, less romantic, and you get to sleep in.  The stuff I want, I don't think I'm competing with early birds for.  Gee, I hope, or I'm in trouble.

Drain will be fun and it will be good to see people.  I had a glorious weekend 2 weeks ago when my friend Ingrid from art school flew up from LA on a whim to see me.  I did NOT try to recruit her to move to PDX, as I can't sell this economy any more than a bottle of snake oil, but she fell in love with Portland anyway and wants to move here.  Portland is quite the seductress.

We had pizza at the new local joint in the 'hood.  They get local produce and we had fresh mozarella on our 'za.  Lunch leftovers tomorrow will be glorious.  Whenever we go there, which is not that often as we are trying not to eat all our money, the woman tells us "please come back" with a tone so genuine, it is almost a plea.  Yes, despite the more svelte size of my expendible income, it still feels good to buy local.

See you soon.

Radio Silence

So it has been a long time since I've checked in. Right now, I'm in the middle of doing my taxes, and by the middle, I mean the very beginning of a long haul.

I'm temping a long term temp job at a bank that I'll tell you more about in the future, and am trying not to get discouraged by the constant barrage of doom and gloom that is called "news." I keep rereading the Zen Happiness handbook I've got on eternal loan from the library and it helps, for a while.

It's the lack of exercise and art time that are getting to me, but I think the time change will help a lot. It will still be light when I get home from work.  Woo hoo!  Flowers are blooming all over the place here, which is helping immensely, and we keep getting sunshine, which is weird but welcomed in a rainforest.

I am doing well enough, but I miss my peeps and the comfort of my previous, regularly employed life in VT. Then, I realize that Vermont is covered with snow still and I can pick dandelions and stand under blooming rose trees.  Today, we kicked around Ian's new soccer ball in the park on green grass.  It felt glorious.

I will be much better off once taxes are complete.  I've got some pending design work due right about the time that taxes are due... and so I go back to my calculator and my ibuprofen.  Actually, no headache yet, but the night is young.  I'm going to do a photo essay on spring this week and post it.  That will be a nice little project.  Later, alligators!