My Dog Has Fleas

My Dog Has Fleas

From my observation, the income of a job in Southern California is directly proportional to the hours spent each day in rush hour traffic. It is proportional to the number of times the telephone rings, the number of times the blackberry goes off, the number of e-mails that have to be answered, and the number of lunches that have to be eaten with a person who is neither friend nor family.

Right now is four o’clock on a Wednesday afternoon. I am sitting up in bed, writing this entry. I can hear the gardener outside in the backyard, shaping a hedge with his electric trimmer, while his partner is at the front of the house, cutting equally into grass and concrete with his edger. It’s sunny and there’s a slight breeze. I am not making money at this moment. Except for the electricity bill, I am not spending money at this moment.

In order to maximize every opportunity of every day, one has to make one’s self constantly available. If one is eating, sleeping, bathing, or going to the bathroom, if the phone rings, one must answer it immediately or risk losing an opportunity. If a series of phone calls are missed, and a series of voicemails are waiting to be heard, one must listen to each voicemail, evaluate the importance and profitability of each message, and return calls accordingly.

My dog has been waiting for me to finish my morning work so that I can play with him. During the morning, my dog slept at my feet while I answered e-mails, made telephone calls, and worked on billable work. My dog would look at me and wonder what I’m doing. And then he would scratch himself, take a deep breath, and go back to sleep. My dog eats one and a half meals a day, plays with his squeaky toys, answers the call of nature, and sleeps. My dog seems happy.

The air conditioning system in any given office building is a complex series of heating units, cooling units, vents, filters, exhausts and time-controlled thermostats. In order to maximize efficiency while minimizing cost, careful monitoring and adjusting of what is considered “comfortable” must be made. Filtering units must be cleaned or changed regularly to avoid the spreading of germs from one area to another, but not too often as to be cost prohibitive.

I work at home and don’t drive in rush hour traffic, and am therefore taking a chance with the income-traffic proportional ratio. Since it doesn’t apply to me, I have no idea how I relate to the system. I rarely eat with anyone who is not a friend. I turn the phone off when I take a nap. I take a nap when I’m tired. I only drink coffee when my taste buds tell me they want to taste some coffee.

I am not making money at this moment. I am not spending money at this moment.

It was getting a bit warm, so I changed from my long pants and am now wearing shorts. My dog, who doesn’t wear clothing, drank some water and moved to a cooler part of the room.

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