Mandy Update

So wanna know what I’ve been up to since I finished —or maybe rather “stopped” would be the correct word—my Walgreens project? Well, the first thing I did was get really, really poor. I mean, I was kinda-sorta poor throughout the project, and then (as I mentioned earlier) I was quite poor right after it ended, but I was super-extra poor the first 6 weeks of this year. It was crazy slow at my restaurant job, and so I wasn’t working as many hours, and I kept getting colds and couldn’t work, so I was poor. BUT the good news there is that this Walgreens project was really good training for being poor! I couldn’t shop anywhere or buy anything fun; it kinda didn’t feel like anything had changed. And with all my free time with working fewer hours I actually wrote and (eventually) submitted a smutty short story to a publisher*. So… good for me, I guess.

Anyway, I got awfully tired of being so poor and I demanded that the universe cut me a damn break already. And it did. Two days after my demand I got a call about doing some freelance writing work for a cable channel that’s based in town. Honest to god. That was totally how it worked. I made a demand, and the universe gave in to it within 48 hours.

And, part of what helped get me the job was this here blog project. I’d like to think that my boss saw this blog and said to herself “What writing! What voice! And tone! And style!  I must hire her!” But I’m guessing that it was more of a situation where a project like this shows a certain amount of self motivation, stick-to-itivness, and good old fashioned gumption.** And I guess it shows the ability to pound out a couple thousand words every week; that’s probably a good thing to demonstrate for a writing job too.

So that’s the happy ending to my story. I’ll write and post the epilogue over the next couple of weeks.

OH! And I’ve been playing the most super-fun awesome facebook app/game EVER! Yeah! Check it out!

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*I just submitted it maybe a week and a half ago, so I haven’t heard anything back yet. I’m just glad I actually submitted something. I’m always writing writing writing, but I never submit anything.

**I actually applied for a job, mentioned my blog in the cover letter, and was asked about it during the interview. It’s not like somebody ran across my blog randomly and gave me a call… though that would be a better story.

Huh?

I haven’t visited my blog in an awfully long time.  It’s true.  It was abandoned.  I’m like one of those turtle mothers, bringing life in to the world and then letting it fend for itself with no help. But I came by today because someone left me an amazing comment on the post about what stuff at Walgreens is locked up.  So I dropped by, and my stats aren’t bad.  It’s weird.  I worked like crazy to try to get readers for 6 months, and then I gave up, and now I’m getting readers.  So that’s awesome.

I also was wanting to do a blog post because I shopped — like really shopped — at Walgreens for the first time since November on Monday. I mean, I’ve dropped by to grab cold medicine and then ran back out again, but I actually went in needing several things and so I wandered around the whole store.  I picked up some Cinnabon flavored cream of wheat, ’cause it was just a buck.  And it was pretty gross, so I’m glad I only spent a dollar. I also bought some Easter candy, because the Easter candy is cheaper at Walgreens than at the grocery store.  Go, Walgreens! All in all, it hasn’t changed much. It’s still good ol’ Walgreens.

Anyway, I think I made the right decision by doing this project in the summer and fall.  The winter clothes are so not as good as the spring/summer clothes.   They were even selling Easter bonnets at the Walgreens!  And it’s kinda early for that.  It’s only just Ash Wednesday today.  There’s over a month until Easter.  I wonder if stores sell more Easter stuff in the years where there’s a 7 or 8 weeks between Valentine’s and Easter than in the years when there’s only 5.

So… I guess it’s worth doing all the posts I was planning to do when this ended… I was just so OVER it all by the time December came around, ya know?  More posts coming soon then, I guess.