Jo
6:30 am Morning Battle of Willpower
The alarm is a nice chime sound.
I get out of bed and scoop up my partner’s black cat, Vonley. The name Vonley came to Josh in a dream after we rescued him and suits him perfectly.
Today Josh and I are getting up earlier than usual to see if it feels good. He works 9-5 and I work mostly afternoons into the evening, so time we can spend together is precious.
I got a great parking spot last night (after many circles around the block) so this morning is off to a great start.
I head to yoga and Josh starts off on a run. He recently ran the marathon so he is easing back into running for pleasure and general fitness. I’m excited to be strong with him since every step we take to be healthy means we can spend more years with each other when we are older, doing cool shit. It’s crazy what love does to the brain! Never thought I’d be this person but here we are :)
7:02 am Yoga
I am a minute or two late to yoga but the class is still getting settled so the vibe feels welcoming. I have the whole last row to myself. I like the space but also feel a bit disconnected from the room.
Class isn’t groundbreaking, but I’m glad I went! I wipe down my mat, put my shoes on and head to my car.
I’m also working at the yoga studio as part of their work exchange program, which I’m very excited about since doing yoga makes me feel wonderful, but joining a studio is out of my price range. I’m also recovering from a broken ankle so the balance and strength training is working nicely alongside physical therapy. Tomorrow I’ll work my shift at the desk and sign people into class, light some incense, tidy up, restock, take out the trash, etc. I enjoy hanging out at the studio and it reminds me to plan my next class! I’m sad my spring work schedule is going to conflict with my favorite teacher’s class, so I’m trying to go to all of her classes until then!
I pick up coffee since we are out of coffee beans, and I think getting up and being active warrants a treat.
8:22 am Breakfast
After arriving back at Josh's, we finish making breakfast together, and eat at the kitchen counter. Eggs and avocado on toasted Dave’s Killer Bread with everything but the bagel seasoning and red pepper flakes. Josh also makes tea in our favorite mugs.
9:30 am Commute
I drive to work, which is actually outside of PA. I am a Co-Adjunct at Mason Gross School of the Arts in New Brunswick New Jersey. It’s the art school associated with Rutgers. I earned my BFA there and found my way back last year! It’s really satisfying to care for the building, help students with their sculpture projects, and just get shit done. I like that there’s a combination of duties; being on my feet, working with my hands, supervising the tool room, and once in a while, filing receipts from art supply orders.
11am Work
I work 11-7 at LAB (Livingston Arts Building).
I enjoy working in a place with a lot of things happening and interacting with people who are usually working on something cool. The sculpture building is on Livingston campus so I see grads and undergrads. I love it here, makes it worth the commute. I also get to listen to audiobooks and music or phone a friend on the drive.
I work twice a week at Rutgers, and 3 days a week at Drexel’s Westphal College of Media Arts and Design as a woodshop technician. The commute to west is much faster by comparison, and can have more variety too. I can bike, take the train/ trolly, the bus, or drive my car over if I need to carry project materials to the shop.
Throughout the day some missions include
Hanging up signs with information on which chemicals are stored where, and what the risks are when in contact with them.
Bringing in mail and putting it in the right classrooms, saving the packing slips
Tidy the tool room and put away misc. stuff
Prep the computer lab for a meeting happening there this afternoon.
I like to keep a written to-do list since I’m in different sections of the building throughout the day, and I want to make sure I don’t forget a task while getting really focused on something in another room.
1pm Lunch
I take lunch (a huge apple) on the go so I can pick up a Christmas gift that is ready for pickup nearby. (It was out of stock in Philly).
2pm Tool Room
I start my tool room shift. There's a desk in the tool room so if anyone needs a demo on a tool or needs help finding something I’m there to help! I love the feeling of being helpful and being a part of people reaching their project goals. There’s a big class with a variety of projects happening on Wednesdays, so it’s a pretty busy time frame. The tool room and woodshop close at 6 but this class ends at 6:50 and I work until 7. We are having a problem where students are not cleaning up after themselves. This year we organized the tool walls and consolidated some shelves to make it easier and more intuitive, but students still get in the habit of leaving tools in their studios and not cleaning up their messes.
I’m really excited about taking on special projects around LAB, like making the tool room wall aesthetically pleasing and more intuitive. I also just finished converting an old studio into a documentation space so that students can take good quality photos of their art. The floor is solid grey and the walls are white. Good photos make for good applications and websites, which make for acceptance to cool shows and residencies!
I am also collecting 4 x 4 tiles from students to create a community mosaic backsplash in the communal kitchen. I’m going to make a few, and the ceramics teacher is having everyone in her class make one too. I hope some students get funky with it and 3D print “tiles” or weld metal or shape and treat wood to add in.
4:21 Grumpy
I am grumpy and need a snack.
I consider how I could get a snack without leaving work, and if it fuels me enough I could stay after work to work on a personal project or two. I’m grateful I get shop access!
One project in the works is a piano frame. I plan on making a big cyanotype of it, making more etchings, and possibly using it as a frame for a weaving, or as a table top, or in a sculpture. I recorded a video of me smashing the piano, and audio of me snipping the out of tune wire strings off of the frame. I’m not sure what, if anything, I’ll do with those recordings yet. I saved all the strings to eventually weave. There’s still some wood that I can’t quite get off of the back so I might take a blowtorch to it tonight. The strings are at my apartment in south philly, which I will soon weave by hand or on my floor loom, which I hope to utilize more frequently in 2025.
I am also making a “quilt” out of postcards that were sent to my dad in the 90s and early 2000’s. We had a family bicycle shop in north jersey, the shop was on the first floor and we lived on the second floor. Whenever he got a postcard he would staple or sticky tack it to the ceiling of a hallway in the shop. After he passed away in 2019 the shop closed and I saved the post cards. I scanned each one so that I can make a zine of them. As for the physical cards I am cutting them up, rearranging them, and mending them back together to make a quilt pattern. I’m deciding between a few options for the final piece, a banner style installation or a more three dimensional form.
When I’m done I’ll photograph them in the documentation space and post them on my website, johannacordasco.com
6:21 pm Hydrating and Planning
I took deep breaths and drank water and made a schedule about what type of physical activity I’ll do each day of the week, based around my work schedule. It’s hard to make those decisions day- of, so having a plan is nice, even if I switch it up based on what’s going on socially each week. We’ll see how it goes! Most days it’ll depend on getting out of bed early. I also want to carve out time for friends, which will happen mostly at night unless they join me in my workouts. I also need time to make art, which I can do before, sometimes at, and after work. I certainly hope this gets me through the winter since sometimes I feel like I am just tumbling through a fuzzy fog until spring returns.
Monday - Bike and yoga
Tuesday - Swim
Wednesday - Rest
Thursday - Jog
Friday - Core
Saturday - Climb
Sunday - Yoga
7pm Lock Up
I lock the tool room, snag some cool free rope I saw earlier, and then see a grad student using the lockbox to get the key to the tool room (grads have access) so to save them a couple minutes I unlock it again, asking if they can lock up when they are done. I say goodnight to my boss and the professor of the class, and I’m on my way! I don’ty have the energy to stay and work, I’d rather get actual groceries and have a chill night.
I pop by Trader Joes on the way home. There are a few cold raindrops that are alllmost snow landing on my windshield. It’s not wet enough to use my windshield wipers yet. I think it may really snow later tonight!
9pm Back in Philly
I lug my purse, laptop bag, free rope, groceries, and gift I picked up at lunch up into the apartment.
After unloading groceries I preheat the oven to make granola. I read over the recipe again and realize I don’t have all of the ingredients. I don’t want to go into the cold and grocery shop for a second time. My spending money is low and I get paid on Friday, so I’ll be patient.
10pm Evening battle of Willpower
It’s craft night with some friends tomorrow night so I should consider which project to work on and locate all the materials. There’s still a half unpacked suitcase on my floor from Thanksgiving. I'm considering cleaning my room tomorrow morning before the work exchange shift.
I settle for a hot shower before bed and the belief that I truly will do it tomorrow…
