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February 2012
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Dennis Jansen

February 9th, 2012

Smiling while failing

Technology failed me during these past two weeks. This is how I started the morning:

compfail

If you soften your gaze and back away slowly, the fail whale will appear.

Blue screens lit up my work computer throughout the weekend and the beginning of the week. I also caught some version of the plague Saturday night, but meetings and computer repair issues brought my germy-body to the office on Monday and Tuesday.

At times the sinus pressure was so great that my right eye would start pouring as I talked to coworkers. I’m pretty sure they wanted to swat me away with a Lysol wipe.

Add to this the fact that Tader and I broke up over the weekend. So, I’m sick, newly single, and my work computer is seizing. Sigh. These are my first-world problems.

Tader and I have a three-bedroom apartment, so we had to move the bedroom furniture (which he owns) to one end of the apartment and I dragged myself to Ikea several times to furnish my new bedroom. Putting together Ikea furniture while on cold medicine is slightly amusing…especially after the bed frame falls apart for the fourth time.

I eventually recovered from my sickness, just in time for our RuPaul’s Drag Race watch party!

compfail

RPDR is an amazing show and available on Logotv.com for free. One of the sponsors is Absolut: Cocktails Perfected, so I had to buy some Absolut for the party. Did you know that Absolut is three times more expensive than Bacardi? Bejesus

There is more going on than sickness and drag queens. The dogs took the furniture rearrangement poorly. Gertrude almost broke her kennel in protest and Harley is unamused.

compfail

I’m also volunteering at the IRS VITA program, AccountAbility Minnesota, again!

IRS Vita Program

I basically prepare taxes for low income individuals. I don’t mind preparing taxes – it’s fun, challenging, and a great networking opportunity.

Preparing taxes for underserved communities is also very encouraging. It makes my Ikea furniture woes, dying work computer, and head cold seem like minor annoyances. Many of my clients are single parents making under $20,000 a year. If they can juggle two jobs, kids and still find the resources to donate to charity, then I can spend four hours of my week preparing taxes for free.

I also found time to hang out with the people that matter,

compfail

…and made progress on my album!

compfail

That’s my setup before I moved my studio post-breakup. The new room is green, but the elements are the same.

This weekend is dedicated to catching up on work. After that it is time to bond with Ableton.

January 30th, 2012

Winter, finally

So winter finally came.

Winter in Minneapolis

Winter in Minneapolis

Well, snow did. We had a few sub-zero days but today we were well into the 40’s. We manage regardless of the temperature.

Winter in Minneapolis

The colder it gets inside the cozier it feels inside, so it’s not so bad.

My month of overtime just ended with 60-hour week. It felt like a lot, but I realize that many of my friends are routinely billing 80-90 hours a week at their law firms.

Today was a bit odd because I am now down to a 48-hour week. At some point I had to say, “Okay, I’ve been at the office for nine hours, it’s time to go.”

I took a quick pit stop at Mall of America on the way home. I accepted an offer for a senior position on another team, so I figured I could use some of my overtime pay to buy some new ties and sweaters for work.

The sweaters from H&M were a hot mess. I was horrified in the changing room and reminded that I need to get back to the gym. I was on the LA Fitness personal training schedule but my trainer randomly quit working for the gym without telling me. I found out when I showed up at 5:30 a.m. one morning and no one was there to meet me. That and a bad illness was enough to get me off of the fitness wagon. I’m back on now. I’m signed up for an ungodly time on Wednesday. Maybe my fitting room horrors will behind me come spring.

I finally found some semi-flattering sweaters and ties at Banana Republic. Someday I’ll get out of there with a bill under $250. Maybe I should get one of those credit cards they always try guilt me into. Finding a flattering overpriced sweater is quite a charmed problem to have.

January 22nd, 2012

Being comfortable with uncomfortable

The most important change that I made this year is becoming comfortable with discomfort. This is why I don’t whine about my 5:30 a.m. personal training sessions, 7-hour IRS Vita training, or picking up 19 hours of overtime at work. I’m more productive than ever and understanding the purpose of growing/learning pains makes the process easier, and even fun.

Short-term discomfort is necessary to achieve long-term gains. Understanding that discomfort is part of a greater process gives it purpose and makes it easier to work through. Sometimes I wish I had this mindset back during college, but I trotted out of undergrad and law school just fine.

Speaking of college, this video perfectly sums up my life back then:

The resident assistant job was one of the most challenging and frustrating experiences of my life. I met my boss’s expectations, followed university rules, and alienated scores of people in the process. The most vital thing that I learned from that experience was the importance of tact and networking. Sure, I learned that lesson a little late for that job, but it served me well in law school and afterward.

I also love what they called the “fishbowl.” Basically, my freshmen residents were always trolling for dirt to use when they got in trouble. That’s part of the reason why I didn’t drink until I turned 21 and why I learned not to post anything that I wouldn’t mind being spun against me.

I relived the RA experience while working for my last landlord. The job was awful at times but it turned out to be endless fodder for interviews. Past conflict resolution challenges? How about a drug dealer and an unmedicated paranoid schizophrenic as tenants? We also had heat that went out on a weekly basis and infestations galore. At least upset customers at work aren’t going to bang on my door at 2 a.m. (I hope.)

Obviously there was not much networking involved in the property management position, but it was very useful in another way. I just hope that none of my old tenants (or dorm residents) show up at my new place.

This coming week I will find out how well I communicated those experiences during my job interviews. I had four interviews during the last two weeks and I am really excited about the position. The interviews were actually a lot of fun, which I think is ideal. I never thought my old crazy tenants would be useful for my career, but this month’s interviews demonstrate that no experience is wasted.

January 12th, 2012

The interview

Part of the reason why I am employed at my company is because I had the dumb luck of being recruited from twitter during my first year of law school. That random break and the great people I’ve met along the way have allowed me to create a career for myself. That is why I try to recommend my qualified friends for open positions as strongly as I can without being obnoxious.

I have worked full-time for my company for close to a year now. Some of my coworkers think that my production levels and eagerness to pick up overtime hours are bizarre, but I disagree. I’m no Ellen Parsons, but law school definitely influenced my corporate life in two ways:

  1. Work ethic: even average UMN law students are used to working long hours and thriving in a highly competitive environment. This translates nicely in the corporate world if you can avoid being pegged as an OCD cutthroat. Ignore my twitching.
  2. Appreciation: part of the reason why I try to push myself at work is because I’m grateful to be employed. That sounds corny until you meet the hoards of my unemployed former-classmates.

I interviewed for a new position within the company today. The interviews made me realize that I am truly out of “school mode” and well into the next phase of my life. My work-life is exciting and rewarding. I just wish more of my equally qualified classmates were in the same position.

January 3rd, 2012

More shots of the Wynwood Art District

The rest of the shots from the Wynwood Arts District.

Wynwood Arts District

Wynwood Arts District

Wynwood Arts District

Continue reading “More shots of the Wynwood Art District” »

January 2nd, 2012

South Pointe

Here are some shots from around South Pointe on Miami Beach.

Miami Beach

Continue reading “South Pointe” »

January 1st, 2012

Another Year

What a year.

I started the year as a 3L law student living in a mouse infested apartment building in Whittier.

My weeks were hectic. I spent my time jetting between my last few classes, my internship in the suburbs, tax training, and a public defender clerkship in downtown St. Paul.

Things changed quickly when I secured a permanent position at my company and started working full-time in February. There were also drag shows, long nights at Jetset, and blizzards.

blizzards

The snow melted and classes ended quietly. Pride came and went, I turned 25, and I finally moved out of my ghettotastic apartment.

Work got busy once I moved.  Drag shows and dancing were exchanged for Netflix marathons. I was promoted at work and got good at making brownies and mojitos.

By the time of my Miami trip I was 20 pounds heavier than I was at the beginning of the year.

I took the love handles to Miami anyway, which was fairly epic.

The Manor House Fort Lauderdale

mojitos

I started personal training at LA Fitness again upon returning, so I was horribly sore once New Year’s Eve rolled around. I was one of the DDs for New Year’s despite the best attempts of some people in our group.

mojitos

My goals for this year include working harder, spending more time on creative projects, and losing these 20 pounds. Hopefully my grueling morning workouts help me get there.

Ending the year plump and employed isn’t bad, but 2012 will be better.

December 31st, 2011

Wynwood Sticker Graffiti

More sticker art pictures from the Wynwood Arts District.

Wynwood Sticker Art

Wynwood Sticker Art

Wynwood Sticker Art

Continue reading “Wynwood Sticker Graffiti” »

December 29th, 2011

The Wynwood Walls

As far as I can tell, Wynwood Walls seems to be at the epicenter of the Wynwood neighborhood revitalization. It’s an event space that has murals and a chichi restaurant-bar.

Wynwood Walls

Wynwood Walls

Wynwood Walls

The streets immediately surrounding the Wynwood Walls are covered in street art and most of the empty warehouses are now studio spaces and businesses. The developed area is massive, and probably the most interesting area in Miami today. I took a ton of pictures, which I will finish editing in the coming days.
Continue reading “The Wynwood Walls” »

December 28th, 2011

Leaving Miami

It’s back to Minneapolis and goodbye to the warmth, palm trees and breast implants. Not a bad way to spend a week in December.

Miami Biscayne Bay

Miami Biscayne Bay

The fact that there were 2-4-1 Whiskey-Diets on the plane made the return to winter easier to bear.
Continue reading “Leaving Miami” »