This Has Been My Life On Pause

This has been the most insane week work-wise for me since I went rogue freelance. I think it's like some kind of unwritten rule that the more stuff you already have on your plate, the more people who suddenly come out of the woodwork needing things from you. Also, the more impossible the request, the more likely it is that they need it "right away."

A few publications have amped up the volume of copy editing work they're giving me this month, which is awwwwwwe-some, BUT ... "Barcelona" is due tomorrow (with PHOTOS, sweet lord ...), and I am praying the Muse helps me crank out the last few pages of this beast of an article before I rip all my hair out. Pray that the internet gods do not crash any of the sites I need to use as resources, nor do any lolcats jam the waves as they are being transmitted through the tubes. Pray that I can continue to subsist on whatever I can still find in my fridge and pantry, and that I one day eventually remember how to socialize, since I haven't been out of the house since last weekend.

So help me god, when this week is over I am going shopping to spend every last dime I have on clothes and shoes in order to restore fun and frivolity to my life!!!

Not really. That would kind of defeat the purpose. But I am going shopping. Maybe I'll even buy something not on sale this time -- you know, get all crazy-like.

The Rules of Moving

I'm getting ready to move apartments two weekends from now. And so, since the topic has been on my mind, I thought it might be an excellent time to review a few rules pertaining to what I like to refer to as "moving etiquette":

1.) If you asked people to help you move, and if they agreed, and if they did, in fact, help you move, then whether they are your friends or a guy you recruited off the street, the polite thing to do is to pay them back in some way.

Note: Your token of gratitude need not be huge, but it should probably reflect the amount of labor you required of them. Thus, if they have helped you move your one-bedroom apartment across the hall, you might want to treat them to ice cream. If, however, they have helped you move your three-bedroom townhome clear across the city, you should probably pay for dinner that evening. (Preferably after all of you have had the opportunity to shower.)

2.) Also, if you asked people to help you move, and if they agreed, and if they did, in fact, help you move, then whether they are your friends or a guy you recruited off the street, you have granted them the right to ask you to help them move the next time they need it.

3.) ALSO, if you asked people to help you move, and if they agreed, and if they did, in fact, help you move, AND if they did, in fact, exercise their right to ask you to help them move, then it is very bad form for you to decline. Very bad form indeed.

I've numbered this list for the sake of convenience, however, I think most of us will agree that the first and foremost rule of moving has always been, and always will be: Get your crap as quickly as possible from point A to point B in whatever way you possibly can. Am I right or am I right?