Hello.
(laughs) Ever have one of those days where you're just like ... It's not happening today.
I feel like I'm having one of those days today.
I'm trying to power through it and I'm just.
It's not happening.
You know what I mean?
But I got some good news.
I've got good news.
My new laptop came in.
I'm gonna go pick it up.
Today's still happening.
Today will be a day.
Not a good day.
Not a bad day.
It'll be a day.
(lo-fi hip hop music plays)
Hey everyone.
I'm Hallease, a digital storyteller and video producer.
On this channel, I document my chaotic good life.
Subscribe, follow, social media.
(mail clerk) Hey, oh!
That feels like a laptop.
That's heavy.
(Hallease laughs) How did you know?
- I just know, girl!
- Oh, you just know it's a laptop (laughs).
- Ah, I know that feel.
Spending all them Biden Bucks.
(Both laugh)
(Hallease) Thanks!
(Mail clerk) See ya!
(lo-fi hip hop music plays)
This is how I do voice over.
That way, it sounds as clear as possible.
I put a blanket over myself so that way the ... it just creates more dead sound environment.
You don't hear too much bouncing of things off walls and so on and so forth.
(Sighs) I got a new laptop.
This is the old one.
This is the one I currently use.
It is a 20 ... This is a 2017 MacBook Pro.
This was when they first came out with that bar.
I love this laptop.
I love every laptop I've ever gotten, but I love this one because this was a parting
gift from my boss when I left the video agency and started StumbleWell my production company,
and started doing this full time.
She gave me the laptop as a parting gift.
She was like, "You know what?
Take it."
And I low-key ugly cried because I was scared I'd have to buy another one going off on my
own.
I thought I'd have to give this one back.
And she was like, "Nah.
You deserve."
And I was like (crying noises).
Me and this laptop, we've been displaced together.
Woo, amen.
Me and this laptop, we've been displaced together.
We've gone to London together twice now.
We've gone to Spain together.
I've cried on this laptop (laughs).
Hundreds of videos, hundreds of videos on this laptop.
I get a little sentimental when I get another laptop.
The one I just got will be my 4th MacBook Pro that I have owned.
The first one I got, I bought in 2008.
I had saved up money for two years and as a high school student, I saved up money working
over the summers for two years and bought it.
Even back then, it was MacBook Pro.
I think it was a 16" and it cost $3,000 back then (laughs).
That was like the most money I'd ever spent in my life, ever.
You know?
That MacBook Pro was how I got into filmmaking.
That was back when I used Final Cut 7.
I think now they're on 10.
Yeah, I always get a little sentimental when it's time to switch out laptops just because
they're kinda like a necessity.
They're kind of like having a car, or needing a car now and then.
Not everybody has a car.
But needing a car from time to time where you're just like, "I need a car to go do this
thing."
For someone in my line of work, laptops are that.
The thing that every couple of years you have to drop stupid money on.
It's a 16" and I tricked it out, man.
Every MacBook Pro I've ever bought, I've tricked out to get as high a quality as I can for
my budget.
But look, I'ma tell y'all how much I spent on this MacBook Pro: $6,000.
I have whisper it, 'cause it hurts (whispers): 6,000 (louder), thousand dollars.
But it was time because a thing I was realizing was this one, I teach classes on Skillshare.
I don't know if y'all know that, but I teach classes on Skillshare.
That is one of the ways I make a living as a creative person, independent artist, whatever
you wanna call me, digital storyteller is I teach classes on Skillshare.
I have two classes up right now.
But while I was producing that class, I was trying to record my screen and have Premiere
Pro open and this laptop was just like, "No!
No, ma'am.
No, you can't do that.
Does not compute."
That was the beginnings of, "Dang, I guess it's time.
I guess it's time."
'Cause I need to record the screen so I can show y'all what I'm doing so I can teach classes,
so.
(laughs) Really nice trackpad size, too.
I like the speakers ... Oh, that was weird.
What happened?
Scared.
Save everything over, transfer things bit.
Probably take a while, though.
And while it does, I'll talk to you about probably whatever the title of this video
is about ... Because, the title.
Right?
Old laptop.
New laptop.
And Mr. Hallease for good measure.
Oh!
Okay, while that's doing whatever it does over there at the table, hopefully in a few
hours I guess I'll have a updated new MacBook Pro and we'll be able to make classes that
much more easily.
With less complications.
Anyway, point of this video, I'm thinking about leaving Texas.
Been thinking about leaving.
Not gonna lie.
It's been on my mind a lot.
I know I've made videos in the past talking about leaving, having the inklings of what
does it mean.
I think I've even talked about going to California because of what I do, who I am, cameras and
such.
But now it's starting to feel like, "Dag, I really probably should do that."
I feel like, here's the thing.
I feel like ... I feel like Texas and I need a break, you know what I'm saying?
We need to take a break in our relationship.
You know?
That's what I feel like in my heart of hearts.
I feel like Texas needs to take a break from me and I need to take a break from Texas so
we can both just kinda figure out what we each bring to the relationship (laughs).
Then decide if we wanna continue the relationship together and what that means.
Set new boundaries if you will.
You know?
I've been just thinking about moving to California a lot.
I don't know where (laughs) in California.
I have no desire ...
Like zero desire to live in LA.
So, I've been thinking about San Diego a lot.
Here's the thing that's hard for me.
I have never moved just to move.
That feels like such a ... I'm having a hard time wrapping my mind around just like that
that's something I can do.
I've never moved just because, just to try something.
I've always moved because I was going to school or got a job or just something like that.
I never just moved just to be like, "I kinda just wanna try living here for a minute.
Just see it do, how it be.
Who all over here?"
(laughs) You know what I mean?
I've never moved for that.
I don't know.
It's a scarcity mindset thing that I think a lot of people who grow up lower income,
middle income, lower-middle income (laughs) you kinda just are like, "Wait, that's a thing
that you can do?"
I know that people move just to move, but it's never something that I felt was in my
grasp.
It's very much something I can do now.
I'm starting to kind of think about, what does that mean to leave?
If I go to California, what am I trying to gain?
Do I just wanna go there because I think it's better or will it actually be better?
I'm trying to work through that mentally right now.
My lease is up in June of this year, of 2021.
But!
I'm not gonna leave, just 'cause of work.
I have clients here in San Antonio and I want to honor the contracts I have with those clients.
'Cause they're good clients and I really like them.
I love the work I'm doing with them through StumbleWell.
I'ma stick around for the year to kind of do all that, but I think by this time next
year, I won't be in Texas.
I don't think I'll be here.
I think what I want to do ... I think I wanna try to live in a blue state for a little while,
just to see what that is.
What's that like?
I've lived in a red state my entire life.
I'm just kinda curious to see, what's that about?
I'm sure there's gonna be stuff about blue states in general that I'm like, "Ugh.
I kinda don't like this."
I'm starting to do the preliminary research around that as well.
Starting to just kinda see, "Okay, if I move to this state, what are things like taxes
..." as an independent contractor with a single member LLC, what does that look like tax-wise?
How do I transfer my business over to a different state?
My business is a registered business in the state of Texas.
What does that look like to go through the motions of transferring it to California potentially.
I'm also thinking about cost of living.
I live currently in San Antonio, Texas.
It's not nearly as expensive I would say as Austin for example, or I'm sure LA.
I mean, the cost of living here is getting higher.
It's getting a little ridiculous, low-key high-key.
I live downtown.
That's a part of it.
I live amongst everything so that kinda bumps the price up.
But, what does it look like?
How does that transfer to a San Diego situation maybe ... I don't know, I'm just using San
Diego as the thing.
I don't know if it'll ever actually be San Diego.
But, what does that look like cost-wise?
How do I need to start to think about, okay, I pay myself a certain amount from my company
every month ... Can I stick to that?
Or do I need to figure out how to potentially try to up my income a bit more to be able
to handle a move like that?
Or will my potential gains of just being in closer proximity to LA offset that new higher
cost of living?
These are things I'm thinking about and starting to just kind of work through my mind as I
consider leaving Texas.
I say consider because I ... It's so hard as a business owner and as an artist (laughs)
to know where you're gonna be ... even within like six months.
It's just so hard to think long-term, 'cause you're always kinda just like, "Oh, an opportunity!"
(laughs) You have to just like jump on it.
So, I don't know what's gonna happen in six months to a year.
I just have no idea.
But I know I can start to take the steps to say, I think I'm gonna leave so let me start
doing this.
Those are some of the things I'm just meditating on as just a practical, here's how to move
across the country kinda thing (laughs).
Those are some of the things I'm thinking about.
Then on the personal front, it's like, oh I can leave just to leave.
I'm just really ... let me know if that makes sense to y'all.
If that's just like, what?
You know what I mean (laughs)?
Hallease, yeah you can leave, duh.
Or are you like, yeah know I get it.
You just get ... you're just so focused on that scarcity mindset that you've never thought
about leaving before.
You know what I mean?
So, yeah.
(lo-fi hip hop music plays)