Storm or no

Was kinda hoping for a thunder storm, but looks like that's no longer in the forecast.  Just chillier than yesterday, and lots of clouds building up.

A friend handed me an envelope with a check in it, to help me buy a phone, because I haven't had one in the past year.  (I've had other bills, and I didn't want to pay $60/month for something I hardly ever use.  My land-line was $35.)  I opened it at home, it's enough to actually buy a phone.  She had earlier told me about a low-cost option for service, but I still needed to come up with the money for a phone.  She's a generous person, but still...surprisingly, I don't know.  She's no more wealthy than I.  Remarkably humbling and remarkably touched.

Going to a forum on housing affordability later tonight.  That'll be it's own form of a storm.  Not sure what can be solved exactly...but for the first time in my life since I turned 20, I probably need a co-signer to rent.  I work full time.  I make more than minimum wage.  That's just sad.

Keep having ideas slip through my mind both for clown and for solo work, but they slip back out.  Scheduling conflicts too, there's an intensive training I want to do while I have the opportunity, but it conflicts with the show, a class, and a mandatory meeting for another show I'm applying for.  Need to find a director as well.  (I create better in an ensemble, even if it's solo work I create, so I'm trying to keep that avenue open.  I need to move to create, get out of my own head.)  And for some reason I'm in some tunnel-vision mode, even though I've done all the things I needed to get through already, it just hasn't registered that I can relax.  (Or maybe it's just the general tension floating around that has me high-strung.  Not looking forward to the housing meeting, but it's important.)

This is from last Friday, the petals were blowing around.

March 27/L Herlevi 2015

Spoke too soon on the weather.  All the lights just went off and came back with a high, tinkling click, all in succession.  Think we heard thunder.  Just in time for the evening commute.

The forum/panel was good overall, well-heeled.  The moderator, Sanjay Bhatt, handled it well, and two of the panelists,  Nela Richardson and David Rolf, brought in the issues of the disappearance of middle-income jobs, how we have now the highly-paid specialist/technical jobs, and the low-paying service jobs that serve them.  How most job growth has been in the low-wage category; how we need a more equitable distribution of services (grocery stores, stores, good schools, entertainment venues, restaurants, etc) and mixed housing throughout all neighborhoods; how those minimum wage increases pour money back into the local economy, if still never allowing the earner to own a home, perhaps they can afford their own apartment, have a little bit of dignity.

There was a lot of talk about building housing for earners in the $40-60,000 range (middle-class), but nothing for those who make above poverty, but less than $40,000, people who are paying more than 40% of income for rent. (Some people are at 70%.)  Housing was replaced in Holly Park, and now Yesler Terrace (formerly serving low-income tenants), to provide housing for people in the $40-$60,000 range...where do the lower income people go?  That's still not being answered, and that's where  many of your service economy workers find themselves.  Who does the service work when those who did it can no longer afford to live here?