Have you met my friend Jimmy?

Since returning from a week in Istanbul, my spirits have been much better. I realized that my personality was really suffering from investing so much of myself into work, and so I've made more of an effort to relax and not take every tour that comes my way. At the moment, I'm working for 10 different companies, and I get calls all the time, and many of them are last minute. Real pain in the ass. I guess it is good that I have a reputation in this town as one of the better guides, but still. Oftentimes it is up to me to find someone for another company too. A guide. Because I have a network of guides that for some reason none of the owners of these other companies have. How they don't have a network of guides I don't know. But I imagine it is because most of them are living like fat cats in their air-conditioned offices taking no risks every day, so they never mingle. I know it sounds stupid, but it is true. I need to start charging a finder's fee on every guide that I find, every tour that I organize. The only good thing about this situation is that I can set my own rates and hours. I bring in 35-50 euros an hour now. Which ain't bad. Especially since every other guide is working for half that. So I'm obviously quite pleased with myself. Allow me to pat myself on the back. Hoorah.

Jordan and I are working on a new project. Something that if it is successful, can take me out of the tour guiding industry altogether (though I must admit, I'd still do tours; just too damn enjoyable). I hesitate to discuss this on the internet, but I don't think anyone is going to read this blog anyways. But we're trying to set up a website where teachers of anything (foreign language, yoga, guitar, dancing) can post profiles and find students. If an English teacher here in Rome posts a profile, maybe they could say they are really good teaching business English or maybe they are better with children. Then the students can leave reviews and feedback on the page. Sorta like myspace.

Currently annoyed that there don't seem to be any attractive females in my life. At least in the States, though I was depressed before, there were girls around. I'm happier here, but there are no girls. Maybe the two points are related...? Just a goddamn shame how rarely I meet someone with fucking vision. Got all these brain-dead American students here right now, so I talked to a bunch of them at the pub the other night (just kept walking up to whoever looked interesting), and I got bored miraculously quickly. These aren't even real people, just slabs of meat... like all the people I went to high school with.

I don't know what I'm babbling about. Going to a show tonight. I actually like these guys. Their music is decent, kinda like old school Bad Brains. And the guys in it are pretty cool. Went and hung out with them last night. The guitar player's girlfriend is a guide and it was her birthday.

Fuck. I keep getting distracted while writing this. Nevermind. I give up. Next time.