whitneybee’s Neighborhood

• 14:58 Weird things happen to us on our way to Disneyland. Waiting for aaa in the driveway. Battery is dead again. #
• 15:09 @Mjausson yes, it has been like I have been missing a part. #
• 15:09 Aaa is here! That was so quick!! #
• 15:11 Testing battery. #
• 15:15 Battery failed. But they can replace right now! Yay!! #
• 15:16 @coolzebras have fun! #
• 15:17 Monday is National Fried Sh rimp Day! (via @Chef_Jay) #
• 15:18 @Chef_Jay that sounds like a fun one to celebrate! #
• 15:19 @mamapigeon check marthastewart.com. I hear her eggnog is the best. #
• 15:34 A reminder to remember to smell the roses. yfrog.com/35hgej #
• 15:42 And we are off. New battery in place. Yay! #
• 15:42 @tencentwings I used to know that one. Not in December. You are right. #
• 15:44 @tencentwings not bad for 1-handed with an iPhone. #

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• 11:49 @Mjausson we don't know that it is a hamster. given # of times alarm went off, seemed even a cat would be bored. #
• 18:27 I'm back! Now with video. Watch out world. #
• 22:51 We're not going to Guam, are we? #
• 00:18 my new iphone is sync'd and set up with mobileme to find it! don't mess with my iphone. #

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• 14:49 RT @UChicagoMag: Observing dark matter takes some ingenuity. #UChicago's Michael Gladders has creative suggestions: bit.ly/8ASPCY #
• 18:31 poor @onetake left the car lights on. AAA is on the way. This is ONLY time living an hour away is good. Battery can recharge. #
• 18:32 the neighbors apparently still haven't trained their hamster to not set off their house alarm. #
• 18:58 RT @tommytrc: State Of California Doesn't Know How To Accept $14 Fee bit.ly/6I3tSD #

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• 11:46 @tirana me too!! #
• 12:13 :( RT @onetake: RT @LATimescitydesk: Roy Edward Disney dies at 79. Walt's nephew helped revive animation: bit.ly/7Sugff #
• 12:16 @Chef_Jay did you know that Godiva is now owned by Campbell's? #
• 12:26 @Chef_Jay missed that one. Guess it hasn't made the chocolate any better. #
• 12:29 RT @ScanMyPhotos: I met Roy Disney years ago at Beverly Hills Hotel during Kodak Rose Queen brunch, he was an Americsn icon #
• 15:02 Today only: use code bmc1216w for 25% off order @borders. bit.ly/YFp5e Plus get 6% back from ebates: bit.ly/196Ndu #
• 15:22 RT @imarriage: RT @GuyKawasaki: A marriage proposal in pictures (grab tissue) om.ly/dDwS #
• 15:23 @StarrGazr you made great time! happy to hear you arrived safely. #
• 23:32 feels like the christmas cards are mocking me now. #
• 23:34 hey @onetake! can you @tivo this? Look for Miss Piggy on The Bonnie Hunt Show Friday 12/18 bit.ly/5Rk7qb #

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As the pipe clamp blisters began to pop and heal on my hands, I knew I was in a race against myself to find my next gig in woodworking. I had just quit my job after I was put on a mandatory 72-hour work week schedule, which was neither safe nor necessary in the warehouse where I was a full time furniture maker. From my first taste of sawdust, I was hooked. I loved everything about it, especially the aches & pains associated with putting in a hard day of manual labor.

I had moved thousands of miles from my industrial Michigan factory roots, only to go to college and decide the blue collar life is what I wanted. I quit my job, only when it was obvious that it would either kill or permanently injure me...but it was still one of the hardest decisions I have ever had to make. Besides the fact that I love it, I realize now how wrapped up I was in the identity of being just one thing...In my working life, I have always had to have at least three side hustles going on and I've done everything from nude modeling, to being a maid, a well-paid executive assistant, an extra in movies, a make-up artist, to an apprentice sander in a woodshop.

When I call home to update my family, typically, whatever it is I describe is met with unconditional love & acceptance, even if there is a tinge of it not necessarily being understood. As a woodworker, I was finally able to align myself with an identity - one thing that I loved being and doing...and it was so much easier to explain that!

Predictably, when the job fell apart, I scrambled for any paying gig I could find on craigslist. As it turns out, it was a good time to be involved with film making and I even signed up for acting classes. Being involved in the process is as exciting as it seems like it would be - even the long hours of waiting, while being completely dressed to the nines for a 6:00 a.m. call time, shouldn't be exciting, but it still is.

Around this time I also found work as a fit model, working for a local design house. It's a job that pays very well but the work is inconsistent. Still, I am extremely thankful to have it, even if it is a bit weird for me to use it as an identifier at the dentist's office and have the receptionist squeal and ask me a bunch of questions about the job. That's a rock star moment, I'm not going to lie, but it's completely foreign to me to identify myself as "model" in any capacity...especially when "factory rat" was a closer signifier just weeks ago.

I'm not sure if all the discomfort in lacking a fixed occupation or identity squarely rests on my shoulders, or if I am reacting to other people's confusion when I try to explain, "Well, I'm actually a furniture maker, but I'm out of work, so I'm doing the acting and modeling thing, while looking for another woodworking gig." Who does that? I'm not sure if I even understand myself anymore.

In the long run, it's probably a good thing that I am so versatile & adaptable - I always have something relevent for any type of resume I'm creating for myself (and I have at least 3); but I long for the day when I have a short answer to the question, "So what do you do?" 

• 03:47 @StarrGazr 335 miles #
• 03:52 @StarrGazr so about 5 hours, 40 minutes #
• 15:12 @onetake when was this? that's the best movie for the holidays! #
• 15:13 @misfitina definitely okay. wow! #
• 15:15 @onetake i hope the tivo hasn't missed that movie. #
• 15:38 @onetake netflix? #
• 15:39 RT @KPCC: California expedites unemployment benefits extensions: Some relief is on way for tens of thousands of unemp.. bit.ly/6fRmYT #
• 16:05 RT @faboomama: RT @latimes: O.C. soup kitchen loses $50,000 worth of holiday food and gifts in an early morning fire bit.ly/7bYm7d #
• 16:16 RT @NortonSimon: Launched our online store. Lots of art books, stationery, posters & prints. Browse & give feedback: bit.ly/6TBppq #
• 16:25 @misfitina wow! sending good thoughts his way. what a day. #
• 17:41 First 50 people to whisper "coconut" or "vanilla milk chocolate" at Sprinkles Newport receive that cupcake for free! #
• 17:42 @onetake is that cooki crisp? hopefully not your lunch. #
• 17:43 @idealistique ow! are you okay? had that happen while playing tether ball - was hit by a basketball. yes, i have talent. #
• 17:44 RT @hardlynormal: Stacy was homeless 2yrs. As we move her into apt she tells me this is the bast day of her life post.ly/FCep #
• 18:22 @CRA1G there is a reason they sell 'i survived catholic school' tshirts. Are you sending that post to school tomorrow? #
• 18:50 sirens followed by helicopter is probably not a good sign. #
• 20:31 @RochelleVeturis have you seen the light show? They make it look frosty on the clock. Amazing! #
• 20:35 the lemon cupcakes are in the oven for National Lemon Cupcake Day. #
• 23:45 @ladyguenivere next one I know of is pie day - 1/23. Follow @chef_jay for more. #

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• 08:35 Sprinklesmobile is bringing cupcakes to Justin Herman Plaza in SF 11-5 today! 100% of proceeds will be donated to San Francisco Food Bank! #
• 08:51 @tencentwings what are you getting? #
• 08:53 @kodakCB your boss probably doesn't feel quite the same way. ;) #
• 09:06 crazy Kiehl's sale - free shipping for 3 hours only - no min. Use code DASH. www.kiehls.com #
• 09:09 plus it's cyber monday 2 at ebates so you could also get 8% cash back. sign up here: bit.ly/196Ndu #
• 09:09 @kodakCB i would probably turn him down if he asked you to sit in his chair. #
• 09:23 send a postcard to military stationed overseas. it's free & easy: bit.ly/6rLptv #
• 09:24 RT @abc7: Watch live: President Obama delivers statement on economy bit.ly/7g6tYa #
• 15:56 @charlottegeary you might want to get some shout wipes to carry in your purse. they work if you get stain right away. #
• 20:04 how is it 8pm alre ady? #darn3hournaps #

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• 19:22 @coolzebras my goal is in the mail by the 15th. It's still doable. I just need a magic pony. #
• 19:28 @coolzebras the magic pony or the christmas cards? ;) #
• 19:29 @padschicago i don't think anyone apprecitates those. #
• 19:59 @DrYueh but are they buying? or just saving on the heat? #

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• 15:02 The last day of the #12days of Wishing is a really good deal: Get 1lb of Christmas Blend @Starbucks for $7.95US & 25% off in Canada. #
• 15:38 let's get john melloncamp to quit smoking: bit.ly/5wsYsN (almost 1/4 there) #
• 15:39 @mixtape_ lol! sometimes @onetake & I tweet to each other in the same room. #
• 16:14 @Chef_Jay I heard it was cupcake day - really just lemon? #
• 16:42 @Chef_Jay okay then - lemon cupcakes it is! They are celebrating over @cupc akejonespdx. That's how I heard about it. #
• 17:21 house smells like bread. @onetake is baking off the dough that barely rose. #
• 17:54 get 15% off & free shipping at Levenger - extended to 12/13. Use Code Unique9: bit.ly/16PqyA #
• 19:00 @suebob or so you can still bring home milk after you bought those expensive pharmaceuticals. ;) #
• 19:11 @jspepper UPS recently delivered a package to a wrong address 3 miles away. It was sent from a UPS store. #
• 19:16 @tencentwings happy for you! #
• 19:58 @jspepper they did get it back to us - it took another 24 hours. #
• 20:06 @TeresaKopec one of the great features of Tivo is that you can pick your favorite actors. It will record shows + when they are on talkshows. #
• 21:06 RT @hardlynormal: A Jewish man donated $6k so our homeless friends can eat steak at Winter Shelter on Christmas Eve! I LOVE IT! #
• 21:53 @megfowler mine is set up so maiden name is searchable, but doesn't show up in my profile. #
• 21:55 Facebook seems to have forgotten what social means. Now you can see public updates, but can't comment on them. What is the point? #
• 22:02 @QueenofSpain party on dude! (oh wait, wrong geek movie reference) #
• 22:18 RT @Mamacita: Christmas music makes me feel as though I've re-discovered Hope at the bottom of the box. #
• 23:58 darn! i could have just sent bkholiday cards. what is wrong with me?!! #
• 00:08 Some Californians becoming homeless as EDD fails to send out unemployment checks bit.ly/74AFa Y <---OMG READ THIS (ht @abales) #

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• 13:12 Stonewall Kitchen 20% off - today only - use code Q32286U9: bit.ly/90jfHL can you say seedless raspberry jam? #
• 13:16 free shipping at Lands' End – no minimum – on any order now through Monday, 12/14 when you use this link: bit.ly/6D32Q9. #
• 13:22 code 129903 gets you free shipping + 15% off Bliss & Remede: bit.ly/1x3mp6 ends 12/14. #
• 13:23 @hensel sibling loss is so hard because no one talks about it. Be gentle to yourself today. Sending good thoughts to your family. #
• 13:24 my inbox is insane today! clearly an indicator of the economy. #
• 13:27 use code F2E0902 for 20% off at Restoration Hardware. Ends 12/14. It's round 2 of their friends & family: bit.ly/14MWSy #
• 13:44 @clamhead that's kind of sad. :( #
• 13:44 RT @sesamestreet: Cookie Monster: Cookie haiku: Cookie, cookie, cook. Cookie, cookie, cookie, cook. Cookie, cookie, cook. (Me love poetry.) #
• 14:15 RT @moleskine: We are loving the Moleskine Bauhaus notebooks so much, we're giving some away! bit.ly/8BqmV6 #moleskin #
• 14:17 RT @Mjausson Brilliant RT @Lifeisgood_ Dance like the photos not tagged, love like youve never been unfriended, tweet like nobodys following #
• 17:14 @ljc yay! isn't that a great feeling!! what's next? #
• 19:55 i just saved an extra 4% on my stonewall kitchen order thanks to ebates. you can too: bit.ly/196Ndu #
• 19:59 @socalmom yum! Happy Chanukah!! #
• 20:02 @sahmbody i've been a member of ebates for 9 years. love surprise checks in the m ail. #
• 20:04 calender marked RT @cupcakejonespdx: This Tuesday is one of a few "National Cupcake Day"s. It's the one we are observing, anyway. #
• 00:39 The Art Institute is celebrating that painting's 125th birthday with this unique fundraiser. Adopt a Seurat dot: bit.ly/5LaJri #

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