Almost Lisa: Pt 20, “Almost out of savings"
Almost
Lisa: Pt 20 "Almost out of Savings"
It's wildflower season!
(no
wildflowers were harmed in taking these photos)
I'm imaging I'm back in California, taking my annual drive through the canyons, watching the fiery orange poppies grow closer and closer until the ground is completely carpeted by the delicate flowers. Its stunning! Not only in the Antelope Valley, but in my favorite hiking spots. Like Wildwood and Fryman Canyons. After a good rain, the sunny, yellow blooms at Fryman can grow up to 6 feet tall! When you're small- like me- it's a beautiful playground. You feel like you're somewhere else, in a fairy tale!
Georgia has bugs.
They get in the house. They slip into the car just as I'm about to close the door. They creep me out. They're everywhere. Today alone I had a ladybug, a bee, and a wasp hitch a ride inside the cabin of my vehicle. I am not pleased. Then a creepy centipede scurried out from under a shelf in the garage.
*Sigh, I hate the element of surprise!
On a bright note, in my solitude and continued unemployment, I've successfully and completely overhauled my professional website to include some of my favorite automotive, travel, and street art photography. Finally, a place I can showcase and sell works, printed on canvas. Not gonna lie, I'm proud of www.lisacatara.com. I build it from the ground up, with no understanding of websites, SEO's, links, and such, and turned it (as I do everything I touch) into work of art! Now, how does one drive traffic to the space to sell Photographs? Bueller?
Even I'm surprised by my creative problem-solving at times. It's certainly an unusual and valuable gift. Unfortunately, it's something only a human can understand. And these days, AI is pre-screening job applications, making it impossible to connect with a human on the other side of the process. I must have applied for 60 jobs in the past 6 months. That number would likely be higher but most job openings are seeking sales help (something I don't do) or IT professionals (which I've never needed to learn). Of the jobs I'm well-suited for, my resume doesn't seem to be getting seen or isn't specific enough to secure an interview, which is where I shine. Don't they know how awesome I am to have around??! Perhaps the most amusing part of the online job market lies in job ambiguity. I swear I read job postings three times and still have no idea what a job is or requires. If only an opportunity to write job descriptions were a thing. Where is that job? How do I apply?
Of the two zoom interviews I was able to secure, both were rather disrespectful. The first was a company looking for an automotive photographer (oh, hello!) to travel all over the region to dozens of dealerships in the area and create photographic inventory for them. It paid $75. A day. Flat. No one should take the job. They'll spend $30-40/day on gas, wear and tear on their camera equipment, and still need to cover income taxes.
The other interview was for a job in marketing. My skills and experience lend perfectly to work at an ad agency or on a marketing team, creating compelling campaigns and such for products / services. This interview process occupied two of my mornings, on zoom, in a group chat, and wound up being a sales job (I specifically do not have "sales" listed anywhere on my LinkedIn profile nor resume). Nice enough people. Though I couldn't find nor vet them nor the company by googling or searching the BBB. Their simple website left everything to imagination and it quickly occurred to me that they were not major players, but promotions for the major players. There were two recent grads in my group, eager about the opportunity to stand around soliciting customers and giving away product. At the end of the 2nd zoom call, the pay structure was shared: a six day work week for the first 6 weeks or so at $500/week to do sales (not marketing). So much time wasted. And I'm certain it will keep happening since very few humans are personally screening resumes. Heck, some applications online don't leave room for verbiage, only a resume. But...well, mine is great! At least I've been told so by several companies stating I was overqualified and they couldn't afford me (we hadn't even discussed salary yet).
I soldier on...
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I'm surfing rental websites for one bedroom apartments around the Valley. I was paying $1700/mo for 1,000 square feet, in a good building and great location. Now, everyone is charging $2100+/month for 500-600 square feet (or worse) in lesser safe areas, in worse buildings. It's a mess. I contacted one place which seemed livable and affordable. The landlord liked me and was willing to verify my income with the materials I provided, but insisted I fly back to Los Angeles to meet him in person because he wont rent his property to anyone he doesn't meet (insert red flag, here). When he verified my income/ savings, he decided I had enough money to afford to be able to do this. Ha! Control issues. Everyone else manages to validate identity via zoom. Not this guy.
On this end, I've asked twice for my HOA to "permit" me to rent my condo (my first ever home which took 49 years to buy, for which I have a low mortgage rate that I don't want to give up). They denied me that right. This seems ridiculous, it's my home. But everyone here is living in someone's investment property, making life miserable for the rest of us. I may have to sell. I need to get back to my home, my organic food, my healthy lifestyle, my peoples, and especially my doctors. Georgia has- by far- the worst health care I've ever experienced. I will get sicker if I stay here.
Just got out of an interview for a admin position at a local business which wanted to pay $15/hour to help keep books and operations running smoothly. They hinted that they wanted me to use my professional photography skills at no additional compensation to help market the business online as well. After travel, food and taxes, I'd be working for about $9/hour. You know those "bootstraps" every wealthy, right-wing, out-of-touch commentator keep telling us hard-working middle class laborers to keep pulling up on? Well, they eventually break. And the place I used to get new ones from went out of business (couldn't compete with Temu and Amazon). One thing I've learned is to beware of those who have answers for challenges and problems they do not understand.
While my industry isn't completely back to work, only a few projects are filming locally. Many are overseas to avoid paying union rates/ residuals and avoid further potential strike shutdowns. I've been called to work on the west coast a few times, but can't afford to fly back for one day of work. We are all still awaiting what IATSE and Teamsters will do when their contracts are up, soon. This is the most unsettled I've ever felt in my life. And if you've made it this far in the blog (thank you for truckin' with me), that says a lot! If I'm able to survive this latest life setback, it will take a decade to recover from it. I have to hang in there a little longer. My career means everything to me. I deserve to be more than "Almost".
"...Bad
chapters can still create great stories. Wrong paths can still lead
to
right places. Failed dreams can still create successful people.
Sometimes
it takes losing yourself to find yourself." -Cynthia
Thurlow
*I retain all rights to my story, likeness, biographical information, quotes, poetry, photography, photos, fashion designs, art work, and all of my own creations represented herewithin*
*PS If you like what you're reading, I welcome contributions to these efforts via Venmo @CatarACT_Inc)
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