Wow I'm tired.
It's been a long couple of weeks, but a lot of good stuff has happened to me recently.
First off, a while back, Val got me contact details for a tattoo artist in the area. Apart from wanting some fresh ink for myself, I've always wanted to work in a tattoo and piercing place, and Val worked some kind of magic on the bloke to get him to agree to have a look at some of my stuff. So... a couple of days ago, I got a portfolio together and bit the bullet and took myself over there.
I was shitting myself nervous, but the bloke turned out to be all right. His name is Ricky and he's not a bad sort at all, from what I could tell. He looked over my stuff, hummed and hawed a lot, and decided I Have Potential. (Good to know, since two of my mates back in Cardiff are wandering around with my artwork nailed into their skin.) I thought at first he was going to just agree I was doing all right and kick me out, so of course me being the prime idiot I am, I took it into my head to actually go and say, "So, is there any chance of some part-time work?"
He looked at me like I was mental, asked me what I meant, and I could feel I was going scarlet -- really not a good look on me, what with being bright red auburn and all. "You know," I said (oh so intelligent, I know), "maybe something on reception initially? Working up tattoo designs?" And then I copped out of actually saying 'and eventually learning how to pierce and ink people', but I think he got the general gist, because he considered me for another moment or two and then nodded and said all right. My instinctive reaction was pretty much "SCORE!!!", but I held it in and just grinned like a bloody fool and said thanks. He took all my contact details and emailed me over a bunch of stuff -- less scary than it sounds, it seems like the actual work bit is pretty informal -- and I start on Monday. ARGH YAY ARGH SHIT WHAT THE HELL HAVE I DONE oh wait this is a good thing. I'm going to be working up a few designs, just on paper, and we'll see how it goes. I might end up with some guns and needles training... On the very much plus side, it's paid. I need to catch Val and buy him a drink to say thanks. :D
Also in Val-related news, and maybe even more 'yay' than the previous, he's starting a band, and he's asked me to be in it...!!! I'm going to be playing violin and maybe bass fiddle/double bass. I'm a bit nervous about the double bass stuff, because I'm technically a cellist, but I have faith I can work it out fairly quickly. Val and I are going to find a music shop or raid the music department at some point to make sure I can actually pull it off, and work out whether we want acoustic or electric. I'm really excited about it all -- I've never been in a band before, so I'm sort of edgy too, but it should be pretty good. I'm looking forward to meeting the rest of the gang and figuring out the sound, and whether I can actually play a double bass. It's all exciting stuff. :D
Still not a glimpse of any of the Mystery Flatmates. I'm starting to wonder if it's just cabin fever. That said, I'm out quite a bit, and if they are too and our schedules don't ever clash, I suppose it's possible I've just missed them. Bloody weird, though!
Well, actually, no, I have had a single glance at one of them. He was shooting off out as I was coming in, waved to me, said 'Hey', and was gone. I'd have loved to strike up a conversation but he was obviously going somewhere rather fast. Still, at least I know I'm not actually going mad. Next step: talk to one of them. I'm considering leaving a note.
Further updates on band and tattoo stuff to come. Wish me luck!
First off, a while back, Val got me contact details for a tattoo artist in the area. Apart from wanting some fresh ink for myself, I've always wanted to work in a tattoo and piercing place, and Val worked some kind of magic on the bloke to get him to agree to have a look at some of my stuff. So... a couple of days ago, I got a portfolio together and bit the bullet and took myself over there.
I was shitting myself nervous, but the bloke turned out to be all right. His name is Ricky and he's not a bad sort at all, from what I could tell. He looked over my stuff, hummed and hawed a lot, and decided I Have Potential. (Good to know, since two of my mates back in Cardiff are wandering around with my artwork nailed into their skin.) I thought at first he was going to just agree I was doing all right and kick me out, so of course me being the prime idiot I am, I took it into my head to actually go and say, "So, is there any chance of some part-time work?"
He looked at me like I was mental, asked me what I meant, and I could feel I was going scarlet -- really not a good look on me, what with being bright red auburn and all. "You know," I said (oh so intelligent, I know), "maybe something on reception initially? Working up tattoo designs?" And then I copped out of actually saying 'and eventually learning how to pierce and ink people', but I think he got the general gist, because he considered me for another moment or two and then nodded and said all right. My instinctive reaction was pretty much "SCORE!!!", but I held it in and just grinned like a bloody fool and said thanks. He took all my contact details and emailed me over a bunch of stuff -- less scary than it sounds, it seems like the actual work bit is pretty informal -- and I start on Monday. ARGH YAY ARGH SHIT WHAT THE HELL HAVE I DONE oh wait this is a good thing. I'm going to be working up a few designs, just on paper, and we'll see how it goes. I might end up with some guns and needles training... On the very much plus side, it's paid. I need to catch Val and buy him a drink to say thanks. :D
Also in Val-related news, and maybe even more 'yay' than the previous, he's starting a band, and he's asked me to be in it...!!! I'm going to be playing violin and maybe bass fiddle/double bass. I'm a bit nervous about the double bass stuff, because I'm technically a cellist, but I have faith I can work it out fairly quickly. Val and I are going to find a music shop or raid the music department at some point to make sure I can actually pull it off, and work out whether we want acoustic or electric. I'm really excited about it all -- I've never been in a band before, so I'm sort of edgy too, but it should be pretty good. I'm looking forward to meeting the rest of the gang and figuring out the sound, and whether I can actually play a double bass. It's all exciting stuff. :D
Still not a glimpse of any of the Mystery Flatmates. I'm starting to wonder if it's just cabin fever. That said, I'm out quite a bit, and if they are too and our schedules don't ever clash, I suppose it's possible I've just missed them. Bloody weird, though!
Well, actually, no, I have had a single glance at one of them. He was shooting off out as I was coming in, waved to me, said 'Hey', and was gone. I'd have loved to strike up a conversation but he was obviously going somewhere rather fast. Still, at least I know I'm not actually going mad. Next step: talk to one of them. I'm considering leaving a note.
Further updates on band and tattoo stuff to come. Wish me luck!