It is a common misconception that those who are unemployed are on an extended vacation, sleeping in everyday, playing video games in our underwear, lounging by the pool (lake, ocean) and taking full advantage of every happy hour because, heck, we're broke and not doing anything at 4:00 in the afternoon. But the truth is, there is a certain guilt that comes with these indulgent activities. If we're not constantly looking for work we're worried about the money we're spending while engaging in such leisurely activities and that our dream job may be posted and snatched up in the time it takes us to attract the bartender's attention and pay our final tab on our multiple $2 PBR tallboys. Not only that, but we miss the days of structure...needing to be somewhere at a certain time and having a reason to get out of our comfy shorts and stained T-shirt to be presentable in public. But on the other hand, there are so many days where you're just frustrated at the amount of work you are putting out and the lack of results you are yielding, wondering why you aren't just spending everyday getting plastered by noon and enjoying a beautiful summer day.
Therefore, I have instated the European power lunch. This made possible by the abundance of new French-style cafes and English-influenced gastro pubs popping up around Seattle. The premise of these lunches is to connect with fellow unemployed friends, while reaping the benefits of eating great food and drink at affordable lunchtime or happy hour prices and balancing the guilt factor by actually doing "work".
For example, I've been in the process of building and launching a website to successfully promote myself for the past several months. However, my mistake was involving my employed friends in the process. Them being stretched too thin in their 9-5 jobs, or rather 9am -10pm jobs, to have anytime to dedicate to the non-compensated cause. So I contacted my very fun, very talented, and also very unemployed friend to take the reins. It's a win/win. I need someone to build a kick-ass website for me and he needs more projects to add to his portfolio. But instead of meeting at a coffee shop or one of our unairconditioned apartments, we meet at one of the many new Euro hotspots in town. With the French country design or plethora of beers on tap masked by the ambiguous black knob on the brass tap, these places radiate sophistication. And since they're Euro-inspired, there's a stigma attached that says, hey it's all right to drink at noon because "we" do and you're spending $8 for lettuce and 10 pine nuts so why not live it up.
I had one of these such days today (yes, I'm fairly intoxicated right now). So after a productive morning consisting of a 60 minute cardio routine followed by a 90 Bikram yoga session, I scooted home to prepare for my big "meeting". I showered and used my best Molten Brown pepper body wash and lotion (courtesy of the Chambers Hotel, MPLS from my latest freelance gig) and donned my never-before-worn-in-Seattle Diane von Furstenberg white shirtdress and set off to my favorite new lunch spot that reminds me so much of my beloved Roebling Tea Room in Williamsburg where I spent many mornings turned afternoon turned happy hour in Brooklyn working diligently across three time zones.
My friend arrived and was instantly down to business, but my growling stomach and over-caffeinated self had another agenda. So we promptly ordered a couple of sharable plates accompanied by a Leffe and champagne and then got down to business. Once that was settled, we spent the next hour sharing web ideas and mock-ups, tweaking design and speaking of branding. It was a success. Once we had established the best way to move forward and divided responsibilities for next steps we relaxed into our dishes just in time for happy hour.
Not only was this day a success in getting one step closer to launching my website (I'll keep you all posted) but also for reminding myself that I am a powerful business woman who can multi-task "getting shit done" while enjoying the company of a good friend and appreciating the finer things in life such as good food, drink, and a dress that makes me feel like a million bucks every time I step into it.
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