Sixteen tons...

...or, in my world, 3,500 words.

Eleven more pages done, which puts me at just short of halfway through. I'm aiming to be finished with the job by the end of the day next Wednesday, which will give my client some time to review it before forwarding it to the end client.

I also got a fairly desperate call from client T in Texas, asking if I would please, please do a 3,000-word job by Monday morning. I should have said no. Interestingly, I did decline two other jobs offered to me today. The market seems to be looking up.

Which reminds me: I got a call earlier in the week from client M in Texas, offering work. I declined, citing my current job. The response was to ask me to call them once I was free, so they could load me up with work. I was only half thinking when I said okay.

First, these guys pay a dismally low rate compared with everyone else on my client list. I think that when and if I do call to tell them I'm available, I shall have to lay down the law on this subject. I can't realistically conceive a scenario where I deliberately go out to get low-paying assignments that will force me to then decline work from better-paying clients.

Second, this is the client that's been not very responsive about the nearly $2500 owed to me since, um, February. Their story of "we had a bad address for you and were waiting to hear from you to correct our database" just doesn't fly, especially since at least three subsequent invoices were paid to the correct address. Feht tells me he's having trouble with these folks, too, as is at least one other of his acquaintances.

Come to think of it, I think I have my points reversed. First, I should make sure they pay me. Once they do so, then I can hit them with a price hike.

* * *Speaking of Feht, he's invited me to his house on Sunday to watch the World Cup final between Germany and Brazil. I doubt I'll be able to go, given my workload, but it's an intriguing thought. I'd just like to see a television at his house playing some kind of telecast (as opposed to items from his extensive collection of videos and DVDs), since he swears that, once the World Cup is over, he will disconnect the DirecTV unit and bury it somewhere in his back yard.

* * *I attended the ham breakfast this morning. There were quite a number of people there, including Chuck Kelley, the Marine I mentioned a few posts ago. He remembered me from when I lived in Pagosa before we moved to Houston in 1996. At that time, I ran a BBS called "The SpringsBoard" (yes, I know, very imaginative) that, besides the usual message board and download features, also provided users with free e-mail and access to Internet newsgroups via UUCP.

It is getting late. Lee promised to open the store tomorrow, to allow me to get a running start on work tomorrow (we'll see). Time to go to bed.

Cheers...