Trial and Error
A surprising lot happened on Monday.
Uber Eats:
I decided to try being an Uber Eats driver for the first time. On the way to my start point I realized, I don't have a thermal bag! You can get away without one but often the customer is there for the food handoff, and can see how you've transported their food. It's been recommended that you have a thermal bag to show that you handled their food safely or kept it warm/cold for them.
So I drove to the nearest store that had one, which was QUITE far away, but now I have a really good thermal bag which frankly I should have for myself in the excessive heat of Florida anyway.
By the time that was done I only had time for two delivery requests and both were to the same location, Flamingo Crossings. It's a mixed-usage village for Disney's college program. I learned two things from this: one, that Flamingo Crossings is likely the closest cash cow if I want to stick close to home; and two, that Uber Eats reimburses you for tolls (I had to take toll roads to get there totaling $3, which was returned to me after each trip.)
The first delivery was from Chipotle. It was just like picking up your own food, you give the cashier a name/order number and they hand it to you. You confirm that you've got it in the app, then follow the GPS to the delivery spot. Then follow whatever instructions the customer has given ("meet in lobby," "leave at door," etc.)
The second delivery was from Panda Express and was a bit troublesome because there were three large sodas and the restaurant was out of beverage caddies. Looks like I'll have to get one of those too (I've sourced one for just $3 at Michael's craft store, thanks to Uber Drivers Reddit.) For both deliveries the handoff was fine and both times the customer saw me pull their food out of my giant thermal bag. This is important because later on I received additional tip money. Extra tip money comes from good service and hot food!
I had meant to work for 2-3 hours but because of the trip for the thermal bag, only got about 1.5 hours. However with just the two trips I made $10. If you consider that a basic tip is usually $3 I'll need to do at least four deliveries per hour to make this worthwhile.
-- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- --
Dinner:
For dinner I made us carbonara. I've been nervous about it because I'm using the farm-fresh eggs that Pat gave me, they're unpasteurized and carbonara is essentially pasta with undercooked egg yolks. But I decided to trust, and go ahead with it.
I used the real Italian bucatini that I'd bought from Eataly in Houston so long ago. Then the whole duck egg that Pat gave me plus two chicken egg yolks. Grated some fresh parmigiano reggiano, crisped up some pancetta, cracked fresh pepper on top, and stirred the whole thing together with a wooden spoon. It came out beautifully. Served with arugula and toasted pine nut salad with lemon vinaigrette.
I don't eat enough duck eggs to know a flavor difference, especially in this format, but can say that the sauce was rich and delicious and I'd totally make this again.
-- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- --
Firefly Petunia:
After dinner I received an Amazon box with a grow light and a tub of petunia fertilizer. I feel a bit guilty for the expense, but it's probably true that anyone who gardens should have ONE grow light, and the fertilizer may help this rare and special plant take off. The thing is, the company that developed it has given permission to propagate!! That means I can clone the plant via cuttings or grow them from seed. So if I can get the petunia large and healthy, I can grow MORE of them! Not for sale of course, but I thought a bioluminescent flower would be a wonderful gift for family this Christmas. Not to mention simply having more glowing plants of my own!
The plant has started producing flower buds again, and they are the brightest part, like little LEDs in the dark.
-- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- --
Jobs:
I got onboarding paperwork for my new hat job, which I completed and returned.
Then I got a surprise message from the transcription company that I onboarded with months ago, saying they'd like to go ahead with a background check (again) for contract work this fall. Sure, why not. Will be interested to see if I ever actually get to do work with them, or if it just keeps getting put off indefinitely until I'm in the nursing home.
Then I got a zip folder full of Disney's Candlelight music! This means I'm still on the sub list for that event come Christmas. Yay!
And THEN I was offered an interview for a library job, to take place via Teams on Tuesday morning.
Now before anyone tells me what to do about this, LISTEN because there are some factors to consider.
1) The library job is a 45-minute drive away.
2) The library job is temporary, the contract is only for six weeks.
3) Although it is full time and pays more than the hat shop, the library is very unlikely to be flexible with hours, especially since it's contract work. This increases the likelihood that I'd have to turn down trombone gigs if I accept this job. In addition to being out of a job again after the six weeks is up.
The pros are that it pays more, it's full time, and I've always wanted to work in a library! I'd really like to get the experience, which could help me get library jobs in the future. But the question is, how much am I willing to sacrifice in my musical professional life for that opportunity? Mainly I need to know how flexible they could be with my schedule, and whether there is any chance that the position could extend beyond six weeks (highly doubtful, it's a TINY library.)
Well the interview is tomorrow so let's see what happens.
-------------------------------------------------------------------
Up early for breakfast and to get dressed, then interview at 9am.
It was short, only about 15 minutes, and inconclusive. The hiring folks seemed nice but couldn't tell me whether the temp contract has any possibility of extending past 6 weeks (it depends on getting government funding and approvals for said funding.) On the upside they said I could have work hours flexibility if I was able to give 48 hours notice for gigs/Disney stuff, which I think is very reasonable.
Still, I'll probably end up sticking with the hat shop. It's a lot closer, a lot more flexible, and even if it doesn't pay as well it's not temporary.
After that Jameson went to the gym so I vacuumed, then tried Uber Eats again. I was less successful today, and waited nearly 45 minutes before getting an order. It was a "drop at door" so I got to do the thing where you take a photo of the food before leaving. Then I got a grocery delivery order, which I enjoyed; just walking around Target and finding the items, scanning the barcodes, and delivering them. Easy.
But between 10:30am-1pm I only got those two orders, for a total of $8.50. Not worth it.
I'm still considering this a "training period," but want to figure out how people actually make money doing this.
Tomorrow I'm going to try a flat rate opportunity. If you sign up for these, they require you to drive to and stay in a specific area for a set number of hours. During that time any jobs that you pick up and any time spent working are paid out at $12.50 per hour, plus tips. The time slot is from 11am-2pm, and it's in Winter Park which is an hour away but I'm willing to try this once and see what the payout is like.
Back home I ate lunch, cleaned the inside of my car because it's getting dusty, and practiced trombone.
I put the firefly petunia under the new glow light for about four hours and it seemed happy with that.
For dinner we went to Skyline Chili because Jameson was craving a hot dog. I've never in my life had Skyline! It was surprisingly good; the chili looks like poop on a plate but the flavor was more complex than expected. The red cream soda really hit the spot too :)
----------------------------------------------------------------
Wednesday I drove all the way out to Winter Park to try Uber Eats fixed rate driving.
This experience finally solidified for me that driving for Uber Eats is not financially beneficial.
Problem 1: As it turns out, just because Uber Eats wants you to START in a particular area, doesn't mean you get to STAY there. The second order I got took 50 minutes to complete, and took me all the way to downtown Orlando, then halfway to Kissimmee before I could turn around and get back to Winter Park.
Problem 2: While working a flat rate time slot, you cannot turn down more than one order per hour. If you do, you will lose your flat rate. That's why I HAD to accept that order that took me all the way to Kissimmee and took 50 minutes to complete. What if I had rejected it, and another EVEN WORSE order had come up? I'd HAVE to accept it or risk losing the pay I'd driven all the way out to Winter Park for in the first place.
Problem 3: You are only paid the flat $12.50 per hour rate while ACTIVE. This means while actively accepting, picking up, and delivering an order. So for example if it takes me 10 minutes to get the food and another 20 to get to the person and drop it off, I only get paid $6.25 plus the tip. I'd have to get literal back-to-back orders to earn an actual $12.50 per hour.
The end result was that after spending three hours actively driving for Uber Eats, I had only completed three orders and earned $20. By contrast, working just ONE hour for Papa Pal gets me $17 an hour plus travel reimbursement. Needless to say I'm switching back to Papa Pal IMMEDIATELY.
Other driving/delivery services pay more...which is why they have wait lists. I should have known that there must be a reason it was so easy to get into the Uber Eats loop.
Well I learned my lesson, and it wasn't such a bad day, I didn't LOSE money (unless you count grocery shopping afterward) and I learned something new :) Also, I think it's good to keep Uber Eats as a way to earn a little extra money between jobs or gigs. For example if I'm scheduled to work at the hat shop until 5pm, I could turn Uber Eats on for the commute home and complete an order or two for some extra cash, since I'm on the road anyway.
Back at home I put away the groceries and told Jameson of my discoveries. We had Whole Paycheck sushi for dinner. I mixed up the first batch of fertilizer for my petunia in a 1/2 gallon Motts apple juice jug.
Three of the flowers are formed and will probably open tomorrow or the next day.
I'm very glad that it's bounced back so well from shipping.
-------------------------------------------------------------------------
Tomorrow I haven't scheduled anything, the plan is to have a morning walk, practice the trombone, and make cocktail meatballs in the crock pot for dinner.
Friday and Saturday I've scheduled three Papa Pal visits totaling about 4 hours, we will see how that goes. Might do more on Sunday. I've emailed the hat shop to see when my first day will be...hopefully next week.
Oh and also...I was offered the library job, and had to turn it down. Why? Because they lowballed me. Same pay as the hat shop but it's temp work and 40 minutes away. It wasn't meant to be.
Uber Eats:
I decided to try being an Uber Eats driver for the first time. On the way to my start point I realized, I don't have a thermal bag! You can get away without one but often the customer is there for the food handoff, and can see how you've transported their food. It's been recommended that you have a thermal bag to show that you handled their food safely or kept it warm/cold for them.
So I drove to the nearest store that had one, which was QUITE far away, but now I have a really good thermal bag which frankly I should have for myself in the excessive heat of Florida anyway.
By the time that was done I only had time for two delivery requests and both were to the same location, Flamingo Crossings. It's a mixed-usage village for Disney's college program. I learned two things from this: one, that Flamingo Crossings is likely the closest cash cow if I want to stick close to home; and two, that Uber Eats reimburses you for tolls (I had to take toll roads to get there totaling $3, which was returned to me after each trip.)
The first delivery was from Chipotle. It was just like picking up your own food, you give the cashier a name/order number and they hand it to you. You confirm that you've got it in the app, then follow the GPS to the delivery spot. Then follow whatever instructions the customer has given ("meet in lobby," "leave at door," etc.)
The second delivery was from Panda Express and was a bit troublesome because there were three large sodas and the restaurant was out of beverage caddies. Looks like I'll have to get one of those too (I've sourced one for just $3 at Michael's craft store, thanks to Uber Drivers Reddit.) For both deliveries the handoff was fine and both times the customer saw me pull their food out of my giant thermal bag. This is important because later on I received additional tip money. Extra tip money comes from good service and hot food!
I had meant to work for 2-3 hours but because of the trip for the thermal bag, only got about 1.5 hours. However with just the two trips I made $10. If you consider that a basic tip is usually $3 I'll need to do at least four deliveries per hour to make this worthwhile.
-- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- --
Dinner:
For dinner I made us carbonara. I've been nervous about it because I'm using the farm-fresh eggs that Pat gave me, they're unpasteurized and carbonara is essentially pasta with undercooked egg yolks. But I decided to trust, and go ahead with it.
I used the real Italian bucatini that I'd bought from Eataly in Houston so long ago. Then the whole duck egg that Pat gave me plus two chicken egg yolks. Grated some fresh parmigiano reggiano, crisped up some pancetta, cracked fresh pepper on top, and stirred the whole thing together with a wooden spoon. It came out beautifully. Served with arugula and toasted pine nut salad with lemon vinaigrette.
I don't eat enough duck eggs to know a flavor difference, especially in this format, but can say that the sauce was rich and delicious and I'd totally make this again.
-- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- --
Firefly Petunia:
After dinner I received an Amazon box with a grow light and a tub of petunia fertilizer. I feel a bit guilty for the expense, but it's probably true that anyone who gardens should have ONE grow light, and the fertilizer may help this rare and special plant take off. The thing is, the company that developed it has given permission to propagate!! That means I can clone the plant via cuttings or grow them from seed. So if I can get the petunia large and healthy, I can grow MORE of them! Not for sale of course, but I thought a bioluminescent flower would be a wonderful gift for family this Christmas. Not to mention simply having more glowing plants of my own!
The plant has started producing flower buds again, and they are the brightest part, like little LEDs in the dark.
-- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- --
Jobs:
I got onboarding paperwork for my new hat job, which I completed and returned.
Then I got a surprise message from the transcription company that I onboarded with months ago, saying they'd like to go ahead with a background check (again) for contract work this fall. Sure, why not. Will be interested to see if I ever actually get to do work with them, or if it just keeps getting put off indefinitely until I'm in the nursing home.
Then I got a zip folder full of Disney's Candlelight music! This means I'm still on the sub list for that event come Christmas. Yay!
And THEN I was offered an interview for a library job, to take place via Teams on Tuesday morning.
Now before anyone tells me what to do about this, LISTEN because there are some factors to consider.
1) The library job is a 45-minute drive away.
2) The library job is temporary, the contract is only for six weeks.
3) Although it is full time and pays more than the hat shop, the library is very unlikely to be flexible with hours, especially since it's contract work. This increases the likelihood that I'd have to turn down trombone gigs if I accept this job. In addition to being out of a job again after the six weeks is up.
The pros are that it pays more, it's full time, and I've always wanted to work in a library! I'd really like to get the experience, which could help me get library jobs in the future. But the question is, how much am I willing to sacrifice in my musical professional life for that opportunity? Mainly I need to know how flexible they could be with my schedule, and whether there is any chance that the position could extend beyond six weeks (highly doubtful, it's a TINY library.)
Well the interview is tomorrow so let's see what happens.
-------------------------------------------------------------------
Up early for breakfast and to get dressed, then interview at 9am.
It was short, only about 15 minutes, and inconclusive. The hiring folks seemed nice but couldn't tell me whether the temp contract has any possibility of extending past 6 weeks (it depends on getting government funding and approvals for said funding.) On the upside they said I could have work hours flexibility if I was able to give 48 hours notice for gigs/Disney stuff, which I think is very reasonable.
Still, I'll probably end up sticking with the hat shop. It's a lot closer, a lot more flexible, and even if it doesn't pay as well it's not temporary.
After that Jameson went to the gym so I vacuumed, then tried Uber Eats again. I was less successful today, and waited nearly 45 minutes before getting an order. It was a "drop at door" so I got to do the thing where you take a photo of the food before leaving. Then I got a grocery delivery order, which I enjoyed; just walking around Target and finding the items, scanning the barcodes, and delivering them. Easy.
But between 10:30am-1pm I only got those two orders, for a total of $8.50. Not worth it.
I'm still considering this a "training period," but want to figure out how people actually make money doing this.
Tomorrow I'm going to try a flat rate opportunity. If you sign up for these, they require you to drive to and stay in a specific area for a set number of hours. During that time any jobs that you pick up and any time spent working are paid out at $12.50 per hour, plus tips. The time slot is from 11am-2pm, and it's in Winter Park which is an hour away but I'm willing to try this once and see what the payout is like.
Back home I ate lunch, cleaned the inside of my car because it's getting dusty, and practiced trombone.
I put the firefly petunia under the new glow light for about four hours and it seemed happy with that.
For dinner we went to Skyline Chili because Jameson was craving a hot dog. I've never in my life had Skyline! It was surprisingly good; the chili looks like poop on a plate but the flavor was more complex than expected. The red cream soda really hit the spot too :)
----------------------------------------------------------------
Wednesday I drove all the way out to Winter Park to try Uber Eats fixed rate driving.
This experience finally solidified for me that driving for Uber Eats is not financially beneficial.
Problem 1: As it turns out, just because Uber Eats wants you to START in a particular area, doesn't mean you get to STAY there. The second order I got took 50 minutes to complete, and took me all the way to downtown Orlando, then halfway to Kissimmee before I could turn around and get back to Winter Park.
Problem 2: While working a flat rate time slot, you cannot turn down more than one order per hour. If you do, you will lose your flat rate. That's why I HAD to accept that order that took me all the way to Kissimmee and took 50 minutes to complete. What if I had rejected it, and another EVEN WORSE order had come up? I'd HAVE to accept it or risk losing the pay I'd driven all the way out to Winter Park for in the first place.
Problem 3: You are only paid the flat $12.50 per hour rate while ACTIVE. This means while actively accepting, picking up, and delivering an order. So for example if it takes me 10 minutes to get the food and another 20 to get to the person and drop it off, I only get paid $6.25 plus the tip. I'd have to get literal back-to-back orders to earn an actual $12.50 per hour.
The end result was that after spending three hours actively driving for Uber Eats, I had only completed three orders and earned $20. By contrast, working just ONE hour for Papa Pal gets me $17 an hour plus travel reimbursement. Needless to say I'm switching back to Papa Pal IMMEDIATELY.
Other driving/delivery services pay more...which is why they have wait lists. I should have known that there must be a reason it was so easy to get into the Uber Eats loop.
Well I learned my lesson, and it wasn't such a bad day, I didn't LOSE money (unless you count grocery shopping afterward) and I learned something new :) Also, I think it's good to keep Uber Eats as a way to earn a little extra money between jobs or gigs. For example if I'm scheduled to work at the hat shop until 5pm, I could turn Uber Eats on for the commute home and complete an order or two for some extra cash, since I'm on the road anyway.
Back at home I put away the groceries and told Jameson of my discoveries. We had Whole Paycheck sushi for dinner. I mixed up the first batch of fertilizer for my petunia in a 1/2 gallon Motts apple juice jug.
Three of the flowers are formed and will probably open tomorrow or the next day.
I'm very glad that it's bounced back so well from shipping.
-------------------------------------------------------------------------
Tomorrow I haven't scheduled anything, the plan is to have a morning walk, practice the trombone, and make cocktail meatballs in the crock pot for dinner.
Friday and Saturday I've scheduled three Papa Pal visits totaling about 4 hours, we will see how that goes. Might do more on Sunday. I've emailed the hat shop to see when my first day will be...hopefully next week.
Oh and also...I was offered the library job, and had to turn it down. Why? Because they lowballed me. Same pay as the hat shop but it's temp work and 40 minutes away. It wasn't meant to be.