(Ed.Note) Welcome to our journey into the world of recession blogs! The 405 Club wants to get personal via a handful of questions with our favorite fellow bloggers who are documenting the recession and unemployment firsthand.

Today we have the honor of chowing some grub with Sierra of 30 and Unemployed.

Before we chat about the blog, what will you be having for brunch?

*Organic oatmeal, egg white (free range) omelette with, soy sausage, extra tall double Mimosa1. When were you laid off and what did you do? Or are you employed/self-employed? If so, what do you do now?

*I QUIT (gasp!) my job in the entertainment industry one month ago. I did business development for a video production company based in Austin. I am now working part-time as a “family assistant” (think, part maid/part nanny) in Orange County, CA.

2. When and why did you start your site?

*I started my site, 30 and Unemployed, a little over a month ago, as motivation to myself and any others who have found themselves in similar life predicament. If you’ve ever asked yourself, “What do I want to be when I grow up?”, now is the time to figure it out. 

3. What is your motivation to continue blogging and/or running the site?

*Using humor to make light of a very serious life situation has always made things seem more manageable. This blog will serves as a way to monitor my progress and (hopefully) will inspire someone else out there to take a leap of fate. And of course, by documenting the highs and lows of my job search, I’m able to keep track of how my psyche is doing. Some days I wake up singing the Pixies song, “Where is my mind?” at the top of my lungs. Other days, I go for a morning surf or yoga on the beach. But through it all, I’m able to stay focused on at least one important task per day== remaining loyal to my followers.

4. Do you think blogging or running your site will help you find a job?

*Of course it will! Writing each day might be the thing that is keeping me sane right now. My mind is so scattered and confused with stress and fear about the unknown that I need something to ground me and make me feel accomplished. So, directly or indirectly, my blog is allowing me to hold it together long enough to keep my head above the water.

5. What do you want to do next professionally?

*I want to write! I can tell you some things I don’t want to do. I don’t want to work in the entertainment industry. I don’t want to write for a fashion magazine. I don’t want to work with advertising agencies. And I sure as hell don’t want to fold laundry and pick up dry cleaning for someone else. Ideally, it would be great to write professionally, but who gets paid for that these days? I would love to be a yoga instructor, but alas, that too doesn’t make money. Can I be professionally unemployed?

6. How will your blog change when you rejoin the workforce? (has it changed since rejoining the workforce?)

*I’m going to have to start being more cautious with the subject matter and the content of my posts. The overly casual conversational style of this blog is potentially dangerous to an employer. The scary truth is that the free-flow of thought that comes straight from my mind to my fingertips is not always written for the world to see. The even more horrifying fact is that the moment I hit “publish”, my little tidbits and anecdotes are immediately published for anyone and everyone to see forever (or as long as the internet shall live).

In my carelessness, I sometimes overlook the fact that I am speaking to everyone who might ever stumble upon my little blog in the future. “30 and Unemployed” could one day be (in)famous!

7. What’s new at your site and where does it go from here?

*Well, my whole site it new, so the possibilities are endless! I’m trying to learn how to get more people interested in what I have to say. I recently entered the world of Twitter and am still pretty clueless about social networking.

Any final thoughts or words of wisdom for members of The 405 Club?

*Don’t let being unemployed take over your life. Instead, do something each day that you are passionate about that has nothing to do with your search for the perfect job. If you have to, make a list of your favorite things—things that make you happy and relieve stress. Make a “Happy List”, and make a promise to yourself that you will do one of those activities every single day during your unemployment. Some of us go our entire lives trying to squeeze in time to read or go for a run. But then, all of sudden, you’re given all of the free time in the world, and you lose sight of the little things that make you happy.

My list (in no significant order):

• 1) surf
• 2) write in journal or blog
• 3) yoga
• 4) sexy time
• 5) learn to cook
• 6) run on beach
• 7) watch sunset
• 8) rock-climb outdoors
• 9) afternoon nap
• 10) read

Great list.  Last but certainly not least, what is your favorite series/feature on The 405 Club?

*Sunday Blog Brunch, of course! (Only for the free-range omelettes :-)