Navigating Challenges in Web Development and Time Management

Yesterday was rough, emotionally.

I think the primary issue was that I held expectations going into this weekend. Expectations breed disappointment. I’m probably about 30-35% of the way done with my friend’s website, excluding images in which she is taking updated photos. I was hoping to have the website about 80% complete by now. My goal was to have it ready to go live before Thanksgiving. The reason for that is so she can hopefully get some more sales for Christmas.

There are a few roadblocks that I was not expecting though. I should know by now that hurdles come up in everything I do, so I should expect the unexpected and delays. The frustration really came from the support department with the software that I am using. They offer “priority” support but only for the top tier of subscribers. Currently, I am in the bottom-most tier. I’ll eventually either subscribe to the top-most tier or find other software but for right now, financials are a bit more strapped as I wait for funds to circulate through the pending period and then become deposited.

I would do other work on the website while I wait, but if I use the software to create and manage other pages when they come back with the project and I import it, it will wipe out all of the work that I did. So, there’s no point. The only way I can think to do work is to work on the pages I need, then export the individual pages, import the project when it’s fixed, and then import the individual pages into the fixed project. This presents its own challenges though.

So, ultimately I’m at a standstill until either support comes through or I come up with another workaround. I think until I can work on the website, I’m going to put more time into the paying job. What really got me though was how little time I have with therapy taking so much of my schedule. I think the part that irked me was that I would probably be finished with the 6 hours a day and down to only 3 had I not asked for an additional week. I’m going to speak to the therapist today and ask for her opinion. Perhaps we can do something to allow me more time.

Either way, both my friend and I are excited to get the website finished. I already have a lead lined up for the next website I want to work on. That would be a paying gig, which would be huge for me. My laptop (which is the only computer I have access to at the moment) is about to die. I found some really good laptops available on Facebook Marketplace but they’re $250-$300. If I save up for one of those, I won’t be able to complete this website. So, I’m hoping to use my current laptop while it’s on its last leg and if I can get a paying gig I can upgrade my laptop. I’m looking for an M1 Macbook Air. I’m currently running on an Early 2015 Macbook Air and it’s sluggish (to say the least). The monitor is also going out, the connectors must be bent because the computer things I am shutting the laptop, and then it goes into sleep mode. When I shut the laptop, it turns on periodically causing the battery to prematurely drain. In short, it’s a huge contributor to my frustration.

Everett wanted to see a bear singing in the rain, so he and I will share it with you.