Alex's Blog of Awesome

I Tried To Quit My Job Yesterday.

My boss just laughed and said “everyone tries to quit their first week”.

So, yeah, good to know I’m not the only knee-jerk flighty person working here.

A Greasy Security Blanket.

I’ve just realized that the Wendy’s in the mall nearby has become my de facto choice of comfort food here in Indonesia. Any time work or culture shock gets the better of me, I make a beeline there and drown(?) my sorrows in a cheeseburger. I feel sorry for the female clerk who always takes my order as she always has to see me at my worst: hunched over a number #4 combo meal, gnawing away quite piggishly with little regard for how I am supposed to be representing Canada.

I think the only reason the Wendy’s was put there is to cater to wimps like me, judging by the fact that they are the most expensive stall at the mall. They know I’d be willing to pay any price for a small slice of home - and they are quite right.

Thank god for my high metabolism. If it weren’t for that I would like Jabba The Hutt by now…

Professionally Unprofessional.

I’m starting to think I was not cut out for any line of work that requires me to wear a tie and not say “fuck” whenever I please.

What I’m trying to say is, this whole “being a professional” thing is a lot harder than I thought. Right now, it fits me like a bad suit: awkward and constraining.

Blame it on inexperience. I worked a lot of jobs in my life; most of them minimum wage, “shut up and push this button” kind of jobs. I didn’t mind those because they gave me time to think and write. Also, the energy I conserved not doing anything important came in handy when my job ended for the day and my real career began: stand-up comedy.

When I think back to what I loved about comedy, I have to say it was the freedom. It was the pirate’s life: no rules; you were your own boss; you set your own goals and expectations; and when you screwed up, the only person affected was yourself. Sure, the pay sucked, but we never seemed to mind all that much. In fact, any time we did make money, it would be a victory - a victory quickly and happily spent at the bar.

Now, it’s different.

I have a serious job now. I have a contract. I have people who count on me to wear pants on a continual basis. I have expectations to meet and impressionable minds to mold. I have to watch what I say and do because I no longer have carte blanche to act like a dick in the name of art.

I’m not complaining about Indonesia or my school, mind you; both have been wonderful to me. I’m complaining about me - and my apparent inability to settle down and act like an adult over these past few years. What was once a boon is now a liability.

All I hope is that I can make this all work out. I really like this place.

On the plus side, I can look pretty good in a tie and dress shirt.

Good Morning, World.

It’s 7:30 in the morning and I am typing this from my iTouch while still in bed. Thank god, we have the technology to do this, elsewise I would have had to actually get up and walk five feet to my computer like some primative caveman blogger. No, thanks to wireless Internet and handheld electrical devices, I can inform you the very instant I wake up.

Because that is something everyone needs to know.