A real man

The other day I saw a man working to open his zipped bag - with a hammer (!). Creative way to get out of the trouble, you say? Being a man in all situations, you say? The view was quite something, in any case!

A perfect job

Perfect jobs don't exist. And not only because working couldn't be great - no no, my dear lazy friends. When you find an activity, which makes you jump happily out of your bed every morning, don't let it go, cause that sounds like you've found your place! But sometimes it happens in life that you are faced with a choice: to look for an office job, which would give certain frames and boundaries, or to try freelancing and create everything for yourself. 

I had a chance to experience both of it and I can tell that it can be difficult to decide which one is better. Both options have their own pluses and minuses, both open new opportunities - and put certain constraints.

Working at the office:
- it has a beginning and it has an ending, which is well defined and can be at times great and awful. Yet in the end of the day you just close the door - and all the worries are left behind. The rest of the evening is all yours, and if it' Friday - there is something to celebrate!
- this kind of work is stable. You can sleep calmly knowing that in the end of each month you'll be getting your salary, and you can already start planning what you'll be able to afford for that. You can plan your holidays and wait for it with a booklet on the wall above your work station - for inspiration.

- oh, right, and you always have a work station! Which means, you won't have to spend hours (and $$$) in the coffee shops or stay in bed the whole day. Such job gives you a reason to get up every morning, look good and be efficient. Which is great!
- unfortunately, working according to schedule you will always have to plan your time carefully, and to do some personal stuff at work - hide it from your boss or ask permission. The same is when you're planning holidays. Or think of anything new/awesome.
- you have a boss.

Freedom and independence:
- freelancing is often attractive because it looks so relaxed - imagine, when you have so much free time, how many things you would do!... But in reality it all comes to one question - would you really? Would you manage to forget all the distractions around and concentrate on working, the whole time?
- people around you might forget that you are also working - "look at that dude, in facebook the whole time, not locked to one place, I wish I had such holidays too!" Unless you are a journalist. Or earn so much that it makes sense for everyone to call it "real job".
- free and independent also means - unprotected. All the natural hazards like political changes, electricity cuts or lack of contracts this month - it all weights on your little shoulders. Though at the same time it gives so much flexibility that with a bit of persistence and a bit of luck you can get much better results than expected. The sky is the limit!
- every day is a new challenge and a new beginning. And it is all up to you how much satisfaction you will have in the end of the day.

So, what to choose now?

Tobulas darbas

Tobulų darbų nebūna. Ir ne dėl to, kad darbas pats savaime negalėtų būti puikus - ne ne, mano tingieji draugai. Kai randi tokį užsiėmimą, dėl kurio norisi keltis iš lovos rytais - laikyk ir nepaleisk, nes tai neabejotinai tavo pašaukimas. Bet kartais taip nutinka gyvenime, kad tenka rinktis: ar ieškoti darbo ofise, kuris įstatytų į tam tikrus rėmus, ar mėginti dirbti sau/ tapti laisvai samdomu darbuotoju/kūrėju. Nes tai iš tiesų yra kūryba ir kiekviena diena - vis kitokia.

Man teko paragauti abiejų patirčių ir galiu pasakyti - apsispręsti iš tikrųjų sunku. Abu variantai turi savų pliusų ir minusų, atveria naujų galimybių - ir savaip apriboja.

Darbas ofise:
- turi pradžią ir pabaigą, ir tai yra kartu pliusas ir minusas. Dienos pabaigoje pakanka užverti duris - ir visi darbo rūpesčiai lieka už jų. Visas likęs vakaras yra tik sau ir poilsiui - kaip ir savaitgaliai (dažniausiai).
- šis darbas yra stabilus. Kiekvieną mėnesį žinai, kokias pajamas gausi ir kada, tad dėl to nereikia sukti galvos. Galima planuotis savo atostogas ir jų laukti, pasikabinus atviruką iš svajonių šalies virš darbo stalo - įkvėpimui.
- dirbdamas ofise tu beveik visuomet turėsi darbo stalą. Ir nereikės leisti valandų (ir $$$) kavinėse ar kiūtoti lovoje visą dieną. Teks kas rytą keltis iš lovos, gerai atrodyti ir būti produktyviam. O juk tai yra puiku!
- deja, dirbant pagal valandas teks atsargiai planuotis savo laiką, o tvarkant asmeninius reikalus - atsiklausti viršininko leidimo. Kaip ir planuojant atostogas. Ar sugalvojus kažką naujo.
- turėti viršininką.

Laisvė ir nepriklausomybė:
- savarankiškas darbas dažną vilioja tariama laisve - oi, kiek daug laisvo laiko, kiek daug galima nuveikti!.. Bet realiai viskas atsiremia į valią ir darbo etiką. Ir galimybę susikoncentruoti bei pamiršti visus trukdžius ir visas pagundas aplinkui.
- Aplinkiniai ne visuomet supranta, jog tu iš tiesų dirbi, o ne tik naršai "feisbuke". Nebent esi žurnalistas arba uždirbi tiek, kad niekam nebekyla klausimų.
- Laisvas ir nepriklausomas kartu reiškia - neapsaugotas. Nuo pokyčių politikoje, elektros dingimų, užsakymų trūkumo. Nors kartu tai neįspraudžia į rėmus ir su trupučiu sėkmės bei užsispyrimo galima pasiekti daug daugiau nei tikėjais!
- Kiekviena diena - tai naujas iššūkis ir naujas baltas lapas. Ir tik nuo tavęs priklauso, ką sau pasakysi vakare.

Taigi, ką pasirinkti dabar?

Pochtalion Pechkin at work

For those who have no idea what the title means, the link below is a must-to-see. As a child, I loved this animation character, and even then understood that the local mailman Pechkin took rules too seriously. And yet, he loved his job, and everybody loved him....

Mailman has been such a special profession, over centuries this was the person who kept the remotest villages in touch with the world, carried important messages, life-saving parcels, love letters - his bags stuffed with stories and secrets. One of the most beautiful Chinese movies I have ever seen was about a postman, who has been delivering post his whole life. In the end he leaves for one last journey visiting the rural mountain communities together with his son, who is overtaking the job. Amazing scenery, tranquility, philosophical depth...and a postman, on his tiring journey, dutifully treading his path.

Ok, now lets return to reality and every day life. Maybe postman once was a noble profession, but it is hard to believe in it nowadays. Especially in Georgia, a post office is a mystical place for me. The system seems to be constructed to discourage people from using the post office services. And I'm not complaining - listen to the facts:

1.It is always so hard to FIND the post office. I couldn't find any photo of the post office building, but usually I look for the most run down house on the street, often with bars on the windows, and a tiny A4 format piece of paper on the door that mentions "POST". It looks something like that:

It says that the post office moved to another place - but there the sign looked almost the same

2.Once you get to the post office, you have to know how it operates. And it can be different in different places. If you want to send stuff, just bring it with you, and there you can get all the envelopes, stamps and everything you need. Don't bring your crazy ideas about just buying stamps - why do you need them after all? If you are persistent, you will be sent to another office next door; in a smaller office you might even get to buy those stamps - and a shrug with shoulders as a bonus.

Interior of one small post office, recorded by one German traveler in 2008. He seemed quite charmed and probably enjoyed his stay here quite a lot!

3.When you are sending stuff, it is always better to know the name of countries in Georgian or in Russian. And be prepared to pay quite much, too. I heard the fast delivery service in Tbilisi costs the same by Georgian Post and by DHL. And to send even a letter abroad can cost ~2 EUR, depending on the weight. So if you didn't get a Christmas postcard from me, please don't take it personally!

4. When you want to receive anything, you should know what it is, when it supposed to arrive, and look out for it in advance. Some of my friends learned the hard way that most of the parcels are sent to one specific post branch in Tbilisi. Mailmen usually do not bring letters or parcels at home - and nobody uses postboxes!

Ant this is why. Photo taken by Simon Chirgwin, http://flic.kr/p/8DdQAQ

So, mailmen come to your home, and bring a small piece of paper which says that you received something at a post office. It has a code and a post office's address, where you have to go and take it. And if its worth exceeds 300GEL - pay custom fee, 18%.
 Sometimes mailman cannot reach the person - if nobody is at home (and postbox is not an option), he can stick the post office note to the door. Today elevator at our house was not working, so I found mine stuck to the door of elevator itself. It's worth to read whatever you find new on your way home!

Whenever I visit a post office, I get the feeling that my case is somewhat special. Several times I was asked, what it is that I got (how can I know - you have my letter, people!). Once my first name was not written, and it caused some puzzle behind the counter. Another time I wanted to send a little thicker envelope, and it became an object of consultations for quite some time. I always wear my best smile to the post office :)

Oh well. At least there are no queues there, ever!

Lacrimosa

Some days are just worse than all others. Heavy. Unbearable. Stretched to infinity. When all you want to do is shut yourself off from the world, crawl under the blankets and disappear.

What do you do?
Wait
Run
Walk for hours, until your feet starts aching
Talk about it
Be silent about it
Let yourself be sad
Cry
Pull yourself together
Listen to something soothing, that would help to take your thoughts away.
Like something heavy.
or Mozart
or Vintage Trouble.
Just drift in the music, until it's all over.