I finally broke down.

Kids, I've been out of work since November 1st. For anyone counting, that's just over four full months. I'm literally bouncing off walls at this point (from boredom, and from the extra energy I've gotten from my recent return to the world of exercise). Sure, I'm doing my volunteer work and I'm going to auditions and I'm seeking out reasonably-priced entertainment, but it's just not cutting it. Much as the thought of cubicles and taupe gives me hives, I really, truly, desperately need to get back into the world of the working. I want to be a taxpayer. I'm even getting all nostalgic for mandatory Sensitivity Training sessions.

So I did it. Yesterday I went to a temp agency and got all signed up again (disappointingly, no typing test!), and this morning at 8am I dutifully called in available. Sure, I have an audition this afternoon, but I figured (accurately) that it wouldn't end up being an issue, and besides, I wanted to make a nice impression on my first day on their temp list. Also, at 8am, I wasn't thinking clearly enough to say anything beyond "available." And then I went back to sleep. Looks like someone's got a case of the Mondays...
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The Game

The game is played thusly: my staffing/temp agency calls me just before my alarm is set to go off, and to win, I must either answer or call them back before they get someone else to do the temp assignment. Now, because I am a fairly light sleeper and live down the block from a very conscientious fire station, I sleep with ear plugs in, and as these ear plugs by necessity must be so strong that they prevent me from hearing screaming sirens, they also completely obliterate the noise of a cell phone ringing. The second hurdle is that I am (I've been told by roommates) completely incomprehensible when I first wake up, so returning the call immediately is not a good or productive idea. Left alone, I can sound relatively normal in 20 minutes, but with some serious voice exercises I can get that time down to 5 minutes. At the same time across town, the temp agency is furiously working to get someone else into that temp job before I can call back.

So far this week, they have two points, and I have zero.

Tomorrow, though, I'll be prepared and get up even earlier than today. That'll pretty much guarantee that they won't call, but I think if I lose any more points they'll take me off the books.
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