I need money

This week was mostly uneventful. I did a lot of reading and a lot of sleeping, and not terribly much spending. On Monday I got calls from a little place called the Vudu Cafe offering me a trial as a kitchen hand, and from the Buffalo Club, a bar just around the corner from my hostel, offering me a trial as a glassy (aka barback) on Thursday. Whether or not I would get the job was almost irrelevent, because Thursday night at the Buffalo Club is BuffUgly night, which is their version of Coyote Ugly, which means the highly attractive women who work the bar (of which there are plenty) dance on the bar and tabletops for a few hours. Either way it was going to be a good night.

The Vudu Cafe job translates into dishwasher, which is no big deal since that's what I'd been doing at Altitude Bar in exchange for hostel accomodation. It's pretty painless and the people are helpful and friendly, though supposedly the Kiwi manager Andrew goes on frequent power trips. Anyway the 1.5 hour trial went smoothly (most places here seem to offer a short-shift trial before they actually offer you a position, which means you don't get paid for that shift), and they offered me the job working 9-4 5 days a week.

I should also point out that I didn't really apply for this job. One of my roomates, Claber from Brazil, already worked there as well as in Altitude Bar as a chef, so he offered to help me out. Like nearly every job I've had, I got it through other people rather than my own initiative. Networking, people, networking.

Anyway the trial as a glassy for the Buffalo Club was last night. Shifts typically go from about 10pm til 2am, though I finished early since it was just a trial. Being a glassy just means washing glasses, replacing them at the bar, and going around the place collecting the empties. In a crowded bar this latter portion of the job requires aggression, so, you know, right up my alley.

The washing and replacing part was fine, but I learned I'm pretty shoddy at carrying many glasses at once, and my loudest voice in a bar is barely audible, but for some reason or other they asked if I wanted to come back. I told them I'd have to think about it cause not only did I think I did a pretty poor job, but working 9-4 at the cafe, 10-2 at the bar, and 5:30-9 on weekends for accomodation may not leave much room for sleep. But I've thought about it and I guess I may as well give it a shot. It is likely that I'll have no other job prospects, and what I don't want to happen is to have free time, because with free time comes boredom and with boredom comes spending. Yesterday I calculated that I've spent about $6000 New Zealand dollars since I've gotten here (not counting the plane ticket), so I'm not so inclined to spend any more for the next few months (except for a special birthday present I have planned for myself, plus I'm tossing around the idea of a side trip to Fiji).

So for the next few months, my most likely schedule will be work 9-4 at the cafe Tuesday through Saturday, 10pm-2am at the bar on as yet unknown days, and 5:30-8:30 or 9 at the Altitude Bar for accomodation. The longest break I'll have on most days for sleep and eating will be 7 hours. I can do that. Plus I can't really spend money if I'm working.

Next time: I'll give an update how the jobs are going, plus "Meet the Roomates". Cheers.