Noise in the Shape of Writing

After my Zen interview over a week ago, I got a call asking me to come in and do some freelance work there to see how I liked the place. In fact, I spent all of last week there and now I know why graphic designers have bags under their eyes and a pale albino look to make Brent Spiner jealous.

Offices are dark, bordering on pitch black. Hours are late... like 10-7, and OFTEN much later. Work is nonstop -- I didn't have time for a full lunch Mon or Tues, and by Thurs and Fri there wasn't time for even a few minutes of rest, let alone a break.

On the plus side, there is unlimited Coca Cola, Oreo cookies and Goldfish crackers. They know how to get me where it counts! Clearly they want their designers to stay awake and wired. And I know how fish-shaped cheesy morsels get me in a creative mood...

And often creativity comes in the form of naked pictures of actors. Apparently in order to make a really good poster of a scantily clad hot chick, you have to take hundreds of pictures of her half naked. That is for the artists to get a good idea of how to draw her with clothes half on. Unfortunately, if the movie also calls for Rob Schneider's ass to be seen, then there has to be a certain number of naked photos of Rob Schneider. And the worst part is you never know which you will be looking at until it is too late.

Another interesting item of note is the fact that my office overlooks the corner of Sunset and Spaulding -- probably one of the busiest prostitute hangouts in the city. There is ALWAYS someone (girls AND girls with Adams Apples) on the corner, and they usually get picked up within a few minutes. Plus, the pimps don't even try to be subtle. You cen tell them by their cars and their odd driving habit of coming by every hour or so, parking in the red and using a payphone.

All in all, between the having no time to think and the constant excitement happening outside my window, at least I wont be bored.