In an attempt to separate need from greed, I occasionally make a list of things I need and want and try to prioritize them. Here they are:

• Apartment: Sometimes I think not having my own place is holding me back entirely too much. If I didn’t hate other people so much I’d split rent with a couple of roommates, but I don’t have the best track record living with other people. While I think my creative output might increased if I had more room to spread my things out, the cost of random essentials (eg. salt and pepper shakers, toilet plunger, table) seems really daunting. My plan is to be out this spring or summer, but that all depends on how much I can save and what kind of apartments I can find at that time and where I find them.
• Wristwatch: My watch broke. It’s not terribly important that I have a watch, but I feel weird not wearing one. I’ll probably buy one shortly, but it will be a fairly utilitarian digital watch.
• Video games: I was hoping to get myself a Wii along with a Fit in hoping that gadgetry would inspire me to work out again, but eventually I decided that would just be silly and a little willpower goes a long way. Tonight I ran in place along with some crunches and pushups, etc., on a little exercise mat in my room with the stereo on. It’s not fun, but it’s economical and effective. So then I started to think about how much fun it would be to have the latest Call of Duty game. Still, it seems like a lot of expense just to unwind. It’s funny how even though I enjoy simple pastimes like reading, I still want to sit around and play video games.
• iPod/Car Connector: This has made the list every year for three years. An iPod iteself is not terribly expensive (especially if you shop refurbished models), but the car connectors available for my vehicle seem like they cost just as much. Don’t try to sell me on those FM connectors either. I’ve had them in the past and they don’t work along my regular driving route.
• PreSonus Firebox/External Hard Drive/Logic Express: I have no interface for recording music to my computer and after some research have found the PreSonus Firebox to offer the most bang for the buck. The problem being I’d still have to buy an external hard drive (which I should get for back up purposes anyway) and it wouldn’t take me long to grow out of Garageband. Any one of these things on their own is not very expensive, but add up very quickly combined.
• New computer: I’m quickly coming to a point where my computer isn’t cutting it for various graphics applications. The problem lies with the 64Mb integrated video card which can’t be upgraded on my little MacBook. Almost any new or refurbished iMac or MacBook would solve this problem, but even the most affordable option is going to set me back quite a bit.
• Art Supplies: I have the basic supplies to draw things, but I don’t have much in the way of paints or paper or canvas or anything else.  Mostly I have pads of paper and a few different kinds of pencils.  I may invest in some more things when I get my tax return.
• Guitar: I don’t need a new guitar, but for years now I have dreamt of building one, sometimes with a handpainted finish.  I’d probably be willing to sell my current electric guitar to finance such a project, or just buy the parts one at a time and assemble it slowly.

It’s just a partial list, but those are some of the bigger items.  Usually when I make this list I try to think of extra things I can do to raise money, especially now since I’m not getting any overtime at work (and didn’t get paid for 12/26/08 or 1/2/09).  Looking around my room, I don’t see many things that I can unload on eBay, so it’s usually side jobs and things that I consider:

• Art Stuffs: I don’t have a lot of art related things in stock to sell right now, but my aunt and her fiancé seem to have some success selling things on Etsy.  My creative output just hasn’t been that great as of late and I’m having an awful time getting back into it, as evidenced by the robot without the left arm in the previous post.  Perhaps I should just try harder and throw my television out the window.  I do have two magnet designs ready and I’m currently working on a third and fourth.
• Musician: Meh.  This isn’t ever a high paying thing, but several people suggested I be out there playing bars on the weekend.  There is probably a reason you don’t see a lot of solo acts playing in bars or whatever.  It might not be an impossible task, but it’s difficult to say how much money I could actually make from it and it would occupy a lot of time throughout the week practicing and such.
• Second Job: This doesn’t sound fun at all and these can be hard to come by in this area, especially when a lot of people don’t have a first job these days.

Filed under: Art, General, Materialism by John