Getting a Career

[kyle]

A metro spot has to do ok just by sheer foot traffic...

Oh definitely. I've been told by friends in DC that some of those guys have apartments in the neighborhood and that they make enough to pay their rent and buy all of the other stuff they need.

Sometimes I'm not sure all this self-respect is everything that it's cracked up to be.

[FreddyKnuckles]

Some of that's urban myth I think. Though even in missoula I once found a little handout in a parking lot for effective panhandling strategy. Get a dog, claim you've got ptsd from Iraq, that sort of thing.

There was a thing where some renowned violinist busked in one of dc's busiest subways and I wish I could remember how much he made.

Ah... here you go. So an insanely talented violinist made like 40 bucks in 40 minutes

"Virtuoso concert violinist Joshua Bell plays more than 200 international bookings a year. But in January, he found himself performing during rush hour for morning commuters at a metro station in Washington, D.C.
Bell, who on Tuesday won the Avery Fisher Prize for outstanding achievement in classical music, talks to Michele Norris about the stunt, an experiment concocted by The Washington Post columnist Gene Weingarten.
During the 40 minutes he played, Bell says only seven people stopped to listen — and only one person recognized him. He earned $59 — if you include the $20 the woman who recognized him left.  [Copyright 2010 National Public Radio]"

[Thermofusion]

The good people of DC might've thrown more money at him if he could actually phrase properly.

[elpollodiablo]

I wonder how much you could make by pointing out the perceived faults of insanely talented people

[Thermofusion]

I could go into a whole thing, but I know you're just trolling to be an ass, as that's your lifestyle choice, so I ain't.

[FreddyKnuckles]

What the fuck are you talking about?

Did you just accuse him of trolling just to be an ass right after you got done trolling just to be an ass? Or am I reading this wrong?

[Thermofusion]

I was criticizing a solitary aspect of his performance style. I'll leave the insightfully reductive "Zeppelin fucking sucks" assessments to elpollodiablo.

[FreddyKnuckles]

Gotcha

[elpollodiablo]

I could go into a whole thing, but I know you're just trolling to be an ass, as that's your lifestyle choice, so I ain't.

Physician, thyself, etc.

[cold before sunrise]

There is such a thing as paid hecklers. You could probably offer your services to the political opponent of any campaign, go pro with the whole 'being an asshole' thing.

[Augo]

How much do you think I could get if I busked all day?

About a month ago some friends of mine made $83 busking in Missoula for an hour on a Thursday night, and they actually sold a couple records to passers-by, too!  If you pick the right times and have something going on that is done well and that people don't see often, you can do well for yourself.  These same guys and I played in downtown Lincoln for about an hour following a Cornhuskers football victory and were able to split almost 300 dollars and a bag of Jimmy Johns salt & vinegar chips amongst the five of us.

[elpollodiablo]

I could murder some of those chips right now.

[Em]

She asked for a writing sample and then hired me on the spot to be the organization's grant writer until the real grant writer, who was on maternity leave, returned. She was supposed to be back a month ago, but nobody has heard from her. If/when she does eventually come back, there is a position in grants administration waiting for me.

So the previous grant writer is not coming back after all. That means I'm officially the permanent grant writer. Which is good, because if I get a couple/few years of experience under my belt at this zany place, it would really set me up for some pretty decent jobs in the future. So yay, I guess.

[elpollodiablo]

This would be one hell of a coincidence, but: you don't work for BOC, do you EM?

[Em]

Nope!

[FreddyKnuckles]

How much do you think I could get if I busked all day?

About a month ago some friends of mine made $83 busking in Missoula for an hour on a Thursday night, and they actually sold a couple records to passers-by, too!  If you pick the right times and have something going on that is done well and that people don't see often, you can do well for yourself.  These same guys and I played in downtown Lincoln for about an hour following a Cornhuskers football victory and were able to split almost 300 dollars and a bag of Jimmy Johns salt & vinegar chips amongst the five of us.

Nice nice nice! What were they doing in missoula? Drifting? A lot of that goes on. It is the best place on earth so it makes sense why everyone drifts there.  Not a lot of busking though, mostly just begging. If they're still there tell them to go to the ole's beer depot/gas station on the northside for cheap beer

[Augo]

They were just passing through on tour.  I think they played a house show later that night and then got in their van and drove to Boulder overnight, so they weren't there long. 

I'm really hoping to get up that way in the next couple of years for some hiking--good to know where the cheap beer is.  Thanks for the heads up!

[Maaik]

Glancing at this thread title, I thought for a moment it was "Getting Gayer."

Just thought y'all would like to know that.