The past few days I've been doing the nose-to-the-grindstone bit. Actually I've been doing that for the best part of a week solid including the entire weekend, because the Universe has graced me with lots of work... all of it apparently due at the same time. I'm not complaining about the amount or the nature of the work because it's good stuff AND the more of it I have, the more I am assured of having an even longer stay in Paris.
Since I freelance and all my clients are actually outside of France, everything I do - including finding the work, otherwise known as the dreaded "M" word (marketing) - takes place remotely. Which means I basically get my work either by referral from past or existing clients or friends, or by people who Google what they're looking for, and find ME. Other than keeping my website up-to-date, I'm incredibly lazy about the marketing part of my business. But somehow I always seem to have work anyway.
Today I'm giving myself permission to play hooky and spend the day hanging out with a friend. Actually, he's a former life coaching client with whom I worked for three years as his coach. He's Dutch and lives part of the time in Amsterdam, part time in Victoria, BC and part time in Los Angeles where his fiancée lives (this guy is always on the go!) We've never met in person (another aspect of my kind of work and getting clients long distance is that I rarely get to meet them in person)... and now that I'm here in Paris, we're finally going to have that opportunity! He's taking the train in for the day and since it's looking a bit overcast I think I'll suggest we go to the Centre Pompidou for some crazy modern art and maybe lunch at the rooftop restaurant which is supposed to have a great view over Paris. I haven't been to the Pompidou yet, myself, so this would be another first for me. Other than that, we're making the day up as we go along until he has to leave at 7pm.
So, that's where I've been the past few days and where I'll be today and why I haven't posted much this week. (But an update will follow on the totally LAME "Harry Potter train" that KylieMac and I waited an hour in line to see on Tuesday -- here's hint: we thought it was going to be the real Hogwarts Express train. It wasn't. Not by a long shot. You didn't miss much.)
