I’m already freaking out about the painting project I am in the process of beginning. I’m not sure I want to do it.
I was originally asked to do a painting on a gate. Ok. Now she wants me to do both sides of the gate and a second gate that has yet to be built. And she wants me to do it all for $300.
Uhm. If I’m doing four murals (even if it is only a total of 12′ wide) that are all supposed to be separate seasons in different forests… that’s complicated art. Not to mention that I emailed and asked her to pick a season because that decides what colors of paint I should buy. She responded that I should paint all four seasons.
But the $300 she is paying me is also supposed to cover paint.
I’m starting to feel like this is not a reasonable project.
I can’t buy paint (I’m running low on vibrant exterior paint… for some reason…) and do four murals on $300. Well… I could. If I was doing it for my house and it was a labor of love.
I feel like I am being asked to put my heart into a gate someone is putting up in the apartment complex they will probably only live in for a few years.
I’m not sure I have the spoons to spare for this. I am already so frazzled in general that I am alternating between crying, shaking, and sitting like a zombie on the couch. (I cry or shake while I work.)
I outsourced painting my god damn arbor because I am so dizzy all the time I was afraid I would fall off the ladder.
I think this is a stupid plan right now. I am drowning. I am not managing my body.
I emailed her and cancelled. I can’t spend 25+ hours at her house this week painting. I will be angry and hateful and nasty and by the end of this affair I will hate her guts. That seems pretty stupid to do on purpose.
I hate my incompetence. I hate my weakness. But I don’t see how it will improve my life to force myself to go do this work when I will spend the time gritting my teeth and cursing about how much I hate her guts for asking me to do it in the first place.
She didn’t do anything wrong by asking. I just can’t say yes.
Oh- That doesn’t sound like what the original idea was… where is it… paid by the hour and paint is covered. Was that, like, your opening and then she counter-offered? And maybe she doesn’t understand that all four seasons is More Paint. (I mean, if it was me, I’d be like, all enthusiasm, which seasons? ALL of them! Doesn’t that sound fun?!? without considering consequences.)
I mean, if you don’t wanna, don’t. Do you want to? If you want to, tell her to pick a season or pay for the paint like you suggested or you won’t be able to.
Or just say nope. (And she probably will be disappointed to miss out on your artwork, but most likely not offended.)
These are the thoughts in my brain.
I said nope.