That’s right! I’m looking intently for illustration, web, and graphic design work. If you have anything — wedding invitations, a restaurant’s website, a comic book script — for which you’d like this kind of work, drop me a line!

I’ve updated my portfolio at sarahmcmenomy.com to show off some of my recent work and give you an idea of the kind of stuff I do for short-term, contract, or commission work. If you have something longer-term in mind, feel free to download my resumé and give it a look. I currently have no full-time or part-time work, which is a win for you — it means that whatever your project is, I am available to devote 100% of my time and energy to it.

You can view my Design work here and my Illustration work here.

As a general rule, my rates for everything from web design to custom illustration hover around $30/hr, but email me at sarahmcmenomy at gmail dot com with a project description if you’d like an estimate.

For two years, while I lived alone in Fremont and worked at the Fruit Stand, I’d find myself, on nights a little too lonely to just sit at home and re-watch Buffy episodes, taking up bar-space at the Buckaroo Tavern. The very definition of dive bar, it was not a place to go and hook up, be hit on, or really talk to anyone unless you actually wanted to. It was the place to go and listen to a non-stop stream of classic rock and shoot some pool. And I made a tiny tradition for myself of going to the Buck to drink while I filed my taxes via their wi-fi.

I haven’t been in in months. Something about my sister moving in with me, a different (much less stressful) job, and life generally having a more reliable routine have obviated the need for the Buckaroo, for me. But when it was there, and when I needed it, I was so glad it was there. And it was necessary to have someplace like that, for a single girl to go and get a cheap, cheap beer at one in the morning, and play a free game of pool with the bartender. For me to walk right in, and stay for three hours, chatting to the bartenders, after a stranger had followed me all the way down the street (and, actually, into the bar) from my bus stop. Everyone I met at the Buck was suddenly my best friend — though none were relationships that existed outside of the walls of the tavern.

It’s closing tomorrow. I stepped in tonight to say good-bye, but really, it’s already gone. It’s bloated with people I don’t recognize in the slightest, taking up every inch of available space. Random people man-handled me getting past the two inches I was occupying, and I felt very much like a stranger in my own home. I had an Odyssean urge to throw the suitors out and reclaim my territory, preferably via bloodshed. A tiny cluster of regulars whom I did recognize hovered outside, smoking, and casting angry, sad, annoyed, and amused looks at the throngs inside. Realizing that, having ordered my last Buckaroo drink, I was free of some sort of (completely imaginary) obligation, I chugged it and left. And like an adult, I resisted the desire to pour it on the ground as a blessing and a plea to the great gods of the dive bar to LET MINE LIVE.

It’s too late anyway.

Here are a few iPhone apps I’ve got on my phone, and am loving:

Big Oven - There are dozens, really, of recipe-compilation iPhone apps, but so far, this is my favorite. It speedily accesses its online database of 170,000+ recipes and classifies by dietary restrictions, ratings, type of cuisine, and more! It will even pick a random recipe from its trove if you ask it to, so if you find yourself stuck at the grocery store with no brilliant ideas of what to cook, you’ll find a shopping list appearing in your hands. Photos of their recipes are rather inspirational, too…

Cocktail Compass: Seattle - This is all about finding hours and specs on Seattle’s Happy Hour. It uses location services to show you what’s closest, and then goes on to tell you how much time you have to get there before Happy Hour ends. Tap on an interesting-looking entry, and you’ll get details on what that location’s Happy Hour involves, as well as a map to them, a call button, and an option to add them to your favorites list. No longer must you wander downtown like a lost, thirsty puppy!

Yelp - It’s just as good as the full website is, with hundreds of restaurant reviews, hours, phone numbers, and details. Even better, it integrates with maps and location services to tell you what’s nearby, and how to get there. You can search by ethnicity, price range, and more, and build up a list of favorites to come back to.

Open Table - So you’ve found a restaurant that looks great, is nearby, and in your price range. Of course, it’s only two in the afternoon, and you need a table for six, but no one’s answering the phone at the restaurants. Open Table will allow you to make reservations online instantly, for free. The one caveat I’d have for this is that the selection of restaurants available via Open Table, while large, is not Every Restaurant in Seattle. Yet.