save your pennies

(in new york, off the 6 train, the dancing dolls help a man hustle his pennies)

Did ya’ll know that the unemployment rate is pretty darn high right now? And that we’re all about to head into a recession. Hmmm…wonder why there’s such a shift in this country’s economy? Could it be because the amateur spending style of the government needs to be revamped? Example: Why is the big bro spending over 20 million on a national PR campaign to convince the American public that the war in Iraq is still necessary?

I’ll admit that (recently) when people begin their rant on why Bush is stupid, the state of economy, policies that Palestinians/Israelis/Shiites should follow, my eyes begin to glaze over. My disinterest is similar to my thoughts of those ruffled miniskirts that were trendy 2-3 years ago… pure unnecessary ugliness. The catalyst of my disinterest is stemmed from being in the company of “intellectuals” whose repetitive dialogue often veered far from viable solutions and headed more towards a “gossipy”/uninformed tone.

Of course, the easiest way to motivate individuals to realize that these global issues apply to everyone is similar to giving a teenage girl life lessons. In other words, they ‘aint gonna listen and they have to learn on their own from personal experience.

So here goes my “learning on my own” experience. Within the past couple months, do to occurrences beyond my control, the personal economic development has been on a bit of a slow tip. (Have you seen Sicko? Remember that couple in the beginning? I can relate to their experience very much so- minus their “having to sell their house and move in with their kid” issues.) But the transition from full-time work into attempting to freelance while getting my mind and body correct was and is still an interesting process.

Anyhoo, two weeks ago was pay day and I also got a call from GP saying to stop by the set as he was DP (cinematographer) for a short film directed by S. Kurup (actor from Lost and Heroes.) After I got off the day job, I headed directly to Los Feliz/Atwater area where they were shooting. I arrived on set with the intent to just hang out and be GP’s little errand girl, but I ended being the pseudo-grip/still photographer. The actors, director, and others present were all super good vibes, so I didn’t mind helping out even though I was a little exhausted from the day job.

Just as we were about to wrap, a little after 2am, the director tells me to give him my soc security number and info because he was going to pay me for my work. “Suhh-weet!” I thought to myself, “I just hustled a gig without initial intention to!”

On my way home around 2-3am, I was a little anxious because I didn’t have gas in my car and I didn’t have any money as I was unable to turn my paycheck into cash. Thankfully, I made it home okay. However, the next morning I was a little worried, “Do I have enough gas to even get to the gas station?” I then get a text from GP saying, “Another check came in the mail for you.”

So, here I am, sitting at home, with money coming in, but no means to get that money. Go figure! So, I had no gas in my car, therefore I couldn’t pick up my money. I didn’t let this bother me as I thought, “Ok, I was meant to stay home today anyhoo.” As I started to (attempt to) reorganize part of my pad, I stumbled upon a jar of change that I forgot I had. Like a kid who just won the lotto, I giddily dumped all the change on the ground, counted that mug and it was freakin’ $50.00! Hooty hoo!

I immediately went to the gas station, handed the attendant $25.00 in dimes (he was so cool about it and didn’t even count it) and was on my way!

How does this relate to economic development, the state of the economy, you and me? Well, it just made me realize to never underestimate the value of a penny, the amateur spending habits of the our U.S. government can be paralleled with my amateur money management habits (time to put an end to my own hypocrisies!) and that the act of hustling isn’t an option these days, it’s a necessity!

Save your pennies yo, save em.