Reb MacRath's Seattle Rock: V. 8: 05/01/15

Nuts and Bolts 

May Day! You know you love it. The great trick is to love it in style and with heart. When winter's had its way with you, and April's made you wonder if there'll really be a spring or if the whole season is winter's last joke...the first of May arrives. And there's magic in the air: hope, anticipation, the marvelous sense of a new lease on life. You have been renewed again--and not a minute too soon.




Here are snapshots of the April that I've just left behind. I:
--Survived an intense two-week training period for a new job, a call center position. Graduated with honors.
--Hit the floor with minimal supervision for a half-day Saturday...then my first 2 nine-hour days.
--Finished drafting the work in progress that I began in San Francisco during my visit in March.
--Promoted a successful blog event: a round table discussion with six well-known writers on the subject of violence in art. Final score: about 4100 viewings.
--And I began:



Oh, yes, I had some studio cleaning to do. My halo there had gathered dust. But I wanted this May to be special, more than dusting and sweeping and straightening. And so:
--I got rid of all the old cool shirts I'd worked so hard to fit into my trunk.  My taste has changed. I'd outgrown these--and I want my new shirts to have pockets!
--I got rid of a $400 Ralph Lauren yellow seaman-style coat, also ten years old. I'd hardly ever worn it and it doesn't suit the style here.
--After a former friend turned foe, I tossed 3 large metaphorical bags filled with emotional garbage: anger, hurt, the whole gang. Internal spring cleaning: done.
--On the other hand, I took long and loving look at the circle of real friends I've been blessed with...and committed to strengthening those ties.

City Beats

Seattle is:

--The Cafe on the Ave:



This was what I had in mind when I moved 3000 miles.  An expansive indie cafe with a wealth of tables and outlets. The coffee is organic and the atmosphere is charged.

--My favorite shopping center:




I'd been a Trader Joe's fan since my time in Portland. The store there was a five-minute walk from my place. Naturally, in Charlotte, the nearest TJ's required a commute by two buses and dangerous confrontations with thugs and crazies on the buses and at the Transit Center. Boo-hoo. No Trader Joe's.

But...On the ground of our office building is a splendid Trader Joe's. And once again I'm lovin' pre-made sandwiches and salads made the same day, plus decent chocolate bars cheaper than $4.00.

Sports.

My gym hiatus continued. High stress from job loss for a couple of weeks...then the challenge of fitting both my writing and workouts into my new working schedule.



May marks my return. The tentative schedule will be:
Sunday: my first day off work.
Wednesday: my second day off work.
Saturday: a half day at work.

Goal: to fit in one extra night, so that I can hit all core/arms, then legs, twice weekly each.

Progress report next month.


Employment




Through a staffing agency I landed a temp-to-hire position at a call center in the University district. Commute time from my studio: about 20 minutes on a tunnel train, with a 7-minute walk after that. Salary: $4 more than I made at 'The Store'. It's a definite change for the better in most ways. But it's highly regimented and all about checklist call handling and speed. Main drawbacks: more hours than I want to work and the schedule conflicts described above. Will give it my best while keeping my eyes open.


Entertainment: Kick of the Month



After scrapping Hulu and maybe-scrapping Netflix I looked into Amazon Prime.  The free 2-day shipping would more than pay for the annual membership. Plus, close inspection of TV shows and films available made AP a no brainer for me. Will keep Netflix open for a month or two before I make my decision.

Currently watching on AP a terrific  recent Arnold film:




Next month I hope to report on purchase of a good flat screen TV.


Litrachoor

Just finished reading: The Assassination of Julius Caesar by Michael Parenti. I began reading this as further research for my work in progress, looking for anything the other Caesar books had missed. Lo and behold, Michael Parenti insists that the others have missed the real story: the assassination of a flawed but incredibly complex and brilliant, fearless man by the vested interests he planned to make pay for reforms. Parenti makes a powerful case. And none of the old 'champions of the Republic--especially the Nixonian Cicero--slink away smelling like roses. This 'peolpe's history' is highly recommended.

Now reading:  The Grail War by Richard Monaco. The Parsival cycle of novels is this author's masterpiece--and this is an exceptionally entry....with the semi-retired 'Parse' being drawn back into action.

In the works:
1) On 4/29 I printed out the completed first draft of Caesar's Ghost, my work in progress. (232 pages) For the second draft, and sometimes the third, I like to work from a hard copy. I'm in my glory with highlighters and multi-colored pens.  Goal: to finish the second draft by the end of May or mid-June latest.
2) At the same time, I'm proofing and revising, slowly, the scanned copy of Mastery. I'd hoped to do this in a month, but scanning results in scads of glitches. My scanner/formatter caught most of these. But I don't want any remaining, so I'm taking my time, also tweaking the ms. as need be. Expected publication: July.
3) Have nearly completed the second part of the round table chat about violence. Expected publication on my blog: by May 8.


Homebodying


Well, here's a purchase that was way overdue. And no well-dressed writer should ever be without one, not at home or on the road:



The Bilsom Thunder T3 earmuff/headset is an industrial-strength noise reducer--one of several in Bilsom's line. If you're working at home and car alarm outside is simply driving you crazy...this is your friend. Any loud, persistent noise is taken care of nicely. Voices are not erased but reduced: if someone speaks to you, you'll hear them...but if some is droning endlessly on his/her cellphone...the Thunder does the trick again.

http://www.amazon.com/dp/B00139YMDS?psc=1


Now that I'm better employed, I'll get back on track this month with Feng Shui-ing my studio.


Laptop Hoboing

My two favorite discoveries are both on The Ave (aka University Way) at 42nd Street--in fact, they're on opposite corners.
1) The Cafe on The Ave: please see above, under City Beats. Opens at 6:30 a.m.
2)  Starbucks--one of the great ones. Opens at 5 a.m.




Friendly service, clean locked washrooms for patrons, a wonderland of tables and electrical outlets. Once again, the preponderance of students and university staff make this a great place to write. And I haven't seen anyone rousted unless he falls asleep or sits forever with no purchase.


Ask El Reberoo

Chiquita La Flama asks: My boyfriend used to be a happening dude. Classic Harley badass. Then he discovered your blog and started meditating, cleaning our apartment, reading, writing, taking yoga, making nasty juices...What'd I ever do to you to make you ruin my life?
El Reberoo responds: Now, now, don't blame me. True, there's no way to right a Harley badass who's turned good, other than to ride him until he begs for mercy. To do that, though, you'll need the strength that comes from nasty juices.


Deep Thoughts




I

Reb MacRath's Seattle Rock: V. 7: 04/03/15

Nuts and Bolts

You're three days late, MacRath. It's true. But it's a good thing I can tell you that with a proud and happy face. For March, my seventh month in Seattle, tested my mettle--and awarded Thumbs Up.

--The trip to San Francisco--nearly canceled when my guest accommodations fell through--turned out to be a real success. I met with an online friend...an afternoon that resulted in the idea for a new book--with a plot line I'd never considered. More about this below, in the 'Litrachoor' section.

--After six years with my employer, in Charlotte and Seattle, I left. I've written often of the 3rd and Pike location--known as 'The Scourge of Seattle'--and the dangers that working there posed. When armed cops tell you that your job is more dangerous than theirs, take the hint and move along. There are cleaner, safer and healthier ways to make a living. And, though they say you need a job to get a job, you've also got to be ready to start when a new place has an opening.

--Redid my resume, filled out applications...

--My laptop died. More time lost, finding a new used one, affording it and setting it up.

--Completed a 'roundtable discussion' with six terrific authors on the subject of violence in art.  The whole thing was a delight and a cake walk...till it came time to copy and paste their individual responses, then find a format that was easy on the eye. A week's work. See the Entertainment section below.

City Beats

Seattle is:

--RE-PC: where to go if you need a used laptop.

The photo doesn't quite suggest the immensity of this store and warehouse: "the oldest and the largest computer retail recycler in the Pacific Northwest."

Terrific selection of used laptops, ranging from $69 to much higher. I found a Dell Latitude #6410 with Windows 7 PRO 64BIT, Intel GD Graphics for $239.95.

Location: 565 5th Ave. South, Seattle, WA 98134

--The Ave, The Ave, The Ave!






I'd gone for an interview in the University District. Startled by the lack of restaurants, shops and cafes--students no longer drank coffee?--I asked. Good thing I did. For I was only several blocks from another, really major, piece of Seattle Heaven. From Wikipedia:
"Once a 'department store eight blocks long', The ave has gradually turned into what now resembles an eight-block-long global foot court. And it is the District's pulsing heart for nearly 96,900 students, faculty and the staff of the UW. Here I found what I had sought: new and used bloo and record stores, clothing stores, movie theaters, cafes, inexpensive restaurants.
Location: University Way NE, most densely between NE 41st and NE 50th Streets.

--UtiliKilts. A Seattle take on the Scottish manly skirt. Think Cargo Kilt. Pockets galore.



Founded in 2000, this is a classic American success story--and a testimony to the power of word of mouth. Without paying for product placement or seeking commercial endorsements, using customers not models in photos, this outfit's profits are soaring. Annual sales at the start: 750. Three years later: 11,000. And still growing.
Location: 620 1st Ave, Seattle, WA 98104

Sports

On hiatus this month. The hunt for a new job took most of my time. The next photo sums up my feelings about the gym vacation:





Employment

A big change is coming on April 13.  But let's avoid the J-word--




--and save the details for next month. Stayed tuned for further news.


Entertainment: Kick of the Month



For some time I'd been toying with the idea of a group discussion on violence in art. The trick of it--and no mean trick--would be to assemble a lineup of a half-dozen topnotch writers...then to solve the logistical challenges of setting up and sticking to a production timeline, copying and pasting responses, creating a format that was easy on the eye and also easy to follow (six reponses to each question.

To learn more about those challenges and how I went about solving each, have a look at the following blog post:
http://tinyurl.com/pkb8utr

All in all, in turned out to be one of my writing life's better adventures. The discussion went Live on my blog 3/31. And you can find it here:
http://tinyurl.com/ptkfbpp


Litrachoor

Now finishing: History of Julius Caesar by Jacob Abbott. A short history in the public domain. Surprisingly well done, considering that the author published 160 books in his lifetime. I needed a good, no-nonsense account of a controversial but great man. In this book I found the basics I needed for my new Work in Progress.

In the works: 
1) On my short trip to San Francisco, a chance remark from a friend led to my decision to stop work on one book--and go full steam on an idea I'd never even considered. I started work the next day and have held fast to a quota of 1000 words a day. First draft should be finished in 2-3 weeks. Then, while I'm revising that, I'll complete the outline for...
2) The fourth Boss MacTavin mystery. When I set it aside last month, I'd completed most of the research and had half-finished a detailed outline. I plan to begin drafting it in June. So, for the first time in my life, I'll actually be working on two books at once.
3) Meanwhile, I need to proof and edit the scanned version of Mastery, just in from Yvonne Betancourt. I hope to release this as an ebook by June.


Homebodying

Improvements to the studio had fallen behind until I had the chance to act upon a long-standing dream. One day in Target, I saw my chance on a clearance shelf..and you'd better believe that I grabbed it at less than a third of its regular price. Say hello to Babycakes:





Slowly, but daily, I begin my return to the health regimen I once enjoyed long ago in San Francisco.. And it begins with fresh juices that I make more adventuresome: adding parsley, lime, spinach, kale, ginger to such conservative standbys as carrots and apples, etc.

Homebodying also includes now almost daily jaunts to Pike Place Market for small quantities of fruits and veggies.

Conclusion: The best way to return to our lost Glory Days may be to regain our lost wisdom on fitness and nutrition. And to follow our young footsteps.


Ripoffs and Savvy Savings
1) Do you take tea with your sugar? Or: God save us all from Bubble Tea.
I didn't mind spending $3.00 to use a Patrons Only bathroom before my job interview.  And I was okay with their not serving any herbal teas. But really, I thought I'd get something that I was able to drink.



One sip and I understood that I'd gotten a cup of hot sugar, flavored with ginger and a taste of black tea. Into the garbage it went.

2) Great shaving adventure update:  I ended up getting 25 shaves from my first Dorco cartridge. And it would have lasted 30, except shaving a thick mustache off took its toll. No nicks, no cuts: the honeymoon continues. And the tube of Proraso shaving cream looks good to last me a year. Not only that, the Proraso leaves my skin so smooth that I don't need after shave.
Monthly shaving cost, shaving every other day: about $1.


Laptop Hoboing



This section will be under construction through April. My new job will take me to the University District, where I plan to explore thoroughly the section called The Ave. I find that I've been limiting myself to the handful of coffee shops I listed in the March issue. An expert laptop hobo, though, needs a deep, expert lay of the land to give his adventuresome spirit more room.


Ask El Reberoo

Joe Bob Dee asks: So how I do get out of my own dead-end job? Not all of us are lucky, dude.
El Reberoo responds: A shift in your perspective might turn out to be the key. I'd always had the willpower of ten men, But what I needed to find a new job was the WON'T power of one man--me: I won't be treated like this any more/I won't be disrespected/I won't even consider that I might possibly fail. At all costs, Joe, keep the faith. For self-doubt's a tired soul's unending good night to its dreams.



Deep Thoughts



1) Abstinence makes the fond grow harder.
2) Poverty ennobles the spirit, they say...between sales of Florida swamp land.
3) The higher the horse that you sit on, the broader the view of your butt.

Reb MacRath's Seattle Rock: V. 6: 03/01/2015

Nuts and Bolts

March arrives with a flurrious blizzard of pending things and memories of my trip to San Francisco (02/25-03/01.) Last month I:
--Completed two lengthy kiosk job applications at a pair of stores claiming that they needed help. Quickly received two rejections, probably resulting from the restricted available hours I showed. (Heck, after years of working weekends and holidays, I want a better schedule.)
--Printed hard copies of my retail resume for a few personal store visits I have planned for March.
--Made serious note of the Help Wanted signs in the post office windows.
--Worked through February on the outline for my fourth Boss MacTavin mystery.
--Manned up when my free San Fran accommodations fell through, leaving me with a nonrefundable bus ticket. With a lot of online digging, I found a cheaply priced, decent hotel.


City beats

Seattle is:

--Mindful of travelers' needs. The light rail to the airport can rival the best in the country. But Seattle doesn't stop there. The light rail also takes us to the Amtrak station, conveniently close to downtown. And the Greyhound bus station is also a short ride. Better still, I learned, the bus station is adjacent to the light rail station. No nerve-wracking treks along derelict streets. Finally--and this really is almost unheard of--the bus station is bright and clean, with a smiling guard and ticket attendant. (Greyhound moved to this location in March 2014.)

--Mindful of non-drivers' needs. I was skeptical when I first heard that the city planned to start posting live bus tracking signs around town, using OneBusAway.  But they've begun to multiply in the following form



and also in plainer street-side signs with gold lights on black background.

--Committed to Old School customer service. I found it at the A-1 Laundry, when I needed same day service on a single shirt. Three other places had told me that turnaround time was a couple of days. A-1 told me to bring it in by 9 a.m. and I'd have it back by 4 p.m. Not only that, they boxed it beautifully. (My former dry cleaner in Charlotte considered a handled paper bag to be a box--cardboard, they said, was too expensive.) The A-! also made sure that I had a piece of red licorice and asked me to return. I will. Location: 2401 1st Ave, at the corner of Battery.






Sports

My 'guns' are good after four-plus months at Gold's. Not this good yet, I'm the first to admit:




But, still, my guns are much better than his:



'
I still have a couple of soft spots and my legs are lagging. But I'll humbly claim a silver star sprinkled here and there with touches of real gold.


Entertainment: Kick of the Month




My addiction to Homeland grew hopeless. I continued watching through the third season (so far the most recent available on DVD). And, when finished, I began rewatching the first season. 1-3 form a clear-cut, brilliant story arc. The last episode plays, in fact, almost like a show--not a series--finale. What happens next, I do not know. But the first three seasons can go toe-to-toe with anything else on the planet.

And week by week I grow more hooked on the new Breaking Bad prequel:




Litrachoor

Now finishing: Lost Years by Richard Monaco. Will be sad to finish this one because I've enjoyed it immensely--and because it has such a juicy part for the series' most compelling character: Sir Gawain.

Reading for the bus to and from San Francisco:
1) The Sparrow Conundrum by Bill Kirton. A rogue chieftain of Tartan Noir took a darkly comic turn in this first novel...and the opening pages grabbed me.
2) Killer's Countdown by Wendy H. Jones. A promising-looking mystery that's won some terrific reviews. Once again, the opening pages hooked me, so I chose to give this first novel a try.

In the works: 
1) I chanced upon a hot new angle to the crime that I'd picked to explore in my latest mystery. I hadn't been this stoked in years. So I started outlining in earnest last month and have begun to write now at my slow and steady pace of 500 words a day. At 15,000 words a month, I'll have the book drafted in 3-4 months.
2) Meanwhile, my formatter Yvonne Betancourt has started scanning Mastery, another of my Kelley Wilde horror novels. Yvonne is not only scanning the hard copy of this old book, she's cleaning up the glitches and typos that the process sometimes causes. The sample results she has sent me are flawless. And her hard work frees me to work on Boss MacTavin while getting out a second book this year.

Homebodying

Our apartment building gave presents to tenants to induce us to be spanking clean. The packages included  items from the Mrs. Meyer's Clean Day line:


I received the dish soap shown above, a package of surface wipes and a general spray cleaner--all with soothing lavender scent.  And there's no question now, friends, about which of these two rules my place:





Ripoffs and Savvy Savings
The Great Shaving Adventure continued...
1) Industry-wide extortion. It's all malarkey and hooey, folks: shaving gels and foams...cartridges holding a half-dozen heads...60 different brands, each with its own perfect gimmick...You're mad as hell each time you pay because you know you're being had. Common sense will tell you that. Your poor brain screams, 'There is no need to spend $30-$40 a month on this crap!"
2) Let your sanity rule and be happy. Know this: there are alternatives out there. My own choice is Dorco.
http://tinyurl.com/q42tnw2
And here's what I can tell you based on my experience over the last month:
--Shaving every other day, I've received 10 perfect shaves so far from my first Dorco cartridge--and I expect to get another 7-10 shaves. That's 17-20 shaves from a cartridge costing $1.22.
--I have not had a single nick or cut.
--Instead of rip-off foams or gels, I use these accessories: a boar bristle brush, a small shaving bowl--and--best of all:


 

A 150 ml tube of this cream may cost anywhere online from $6.50-$10. But only a dollop is needed, whipped up by your brush into the perfect lather. My own first tube should last me anywhere from 4-6 months. Do the math.

Laptop Hoboing

Going on six months here, my three leading candidates for Laptop Hobo Heaven are:
1) Seattle Coffee Works, 107  Pike Street, just steps away from Pike Place Market.



I correct my earlier reservation about "spotty" wi-fi reception. That issue was corrected. The wi-fi connection is strong enough for all internet activity...except downstreaming. The staff are friendly, the coffee's great, and the outlets are abundant. Washrooms are clean, keys for each outside their doors.

2) Starbucks, 4th Ave and Seneca.



A wealth of tables here, including one coveted double up front, alongside a column with a double outlet. I've gotten to know the other hobos who really dig this table and we help each other out. I may leave a little early, waving one of the two men over for his turn. They reciprocate.

3) Starbucks at 2nd and Cherry. The coffee house opened in 2013, but the building itself dates back to 1894. This is my little home from home, with a welcome touch of Old World charm.



Only major drawback: the local miscreants wreak havoc on the restroom every now and then. A few times every month the washroom must close for repair. Or even health department inspection. Literally filthy bums at work? Ewwww!

Classifieds

Wanted: Reward for information leading to the release date of Homeland's Season 4 on DVD.


Deep Thoughts

1) I always do what I say. But I don't always say what I've done.
2) My great aunt in old age confessed: 'From my earliest girlhood I've worshiped men's feet. But now that I'm older I've had to cut down. One foot, give or take an inch, is all my doc allows me."