it is still mostly dark and cold when I get home, but even in the dim light the silvery white grass is visible, it is the 1st night of frost this year, winter is officially here. the fair starts at nine am but i already know i have a scheduled support call at 9 am and I hope to be done with in soon. lucky the guy i need to help contacts me and we begin a little before 8, unfortunately its a new problem of the non obvious nature, hate those , since you spend time wondering around and supporting a site in Holland with not a fast connection and having to explain my actions to the Hospital IT makes it slower still. I get nervous for the delay but there are no errors. it takes me time but I finally find the source. this hospital admits a dummy patient, lots of sites do that for various uses, but this one has 20000 orders, imagine a real patient with this many medication, the stomach would explode! so i fix it and stumble onto something else wrong and my thought begin to wonder, I am already late for the career fair, I can drop this less important problem but I cannot, the traits that me me good and my work can cause me my work, annoying. 15 minutes later its done and the dutch guys actually write (we chat instead of talking on the phone) writes "I like you" and i recall the former vice mayor of ra'anaana with a similar saying (roughly translated to "you cute you"). its after 10 and I begin to question if I will ever get there.
and check my mail before I go and see another support call,,nooooooooooooo. a part of me says and the other says yesssssssssss, well i am not a psycho(or am i?). I am terrified of tests and interviews , though usually I do OK in them, the fear is never reduced, and on top of that the possibility of a choice. well here is the thing, i now work part time supporting our former clients, usually I work 3-5 hours a week on a bad week, sometimes I am on call but nothing direct, for the time I am actually working I get paid well (if you count the actual working hours) but you never know when a call would come in so its kind of a 24/7 thing and the over all pay is low. how ever we are starting a new project that might (yes only might) be profitable, If i pull out it will reduce chances of success and reduce my rewards, but should i stay with a maybe or go for some full time thing. the other problem is that what possibilities I have mean that I have to greatly reduce either my former pay or position (usually both) for a full time job, and i don't want to take a job knowing i will keep looking (idiotic of me, I know, but that is me). so now you may see why my twisted mind wants and fears a choice. another point is that I am a hopeless optimistic, meaning that if I go to this fair, I will get a job! i have no doubt, which will force a choice...
a while ago I interviewed with a big company for a lower level position, good pay and possibility of growth, so I went, passed 3 interviews then I was asked to go to lunch to meet the entire team.. yes great sign i know, only to find out later that I got the job, but the position was cancelled (stupid budget)...its like being hired and fired on the same day. but still i am optimistic. sorry, i took a break for a support call.
so back to yesterday, again i had an internal debate with my more ethical self and stayed to resolve another call, this one was in an area which is new to me so took a while but resolved, it was now 11:40 and my thoughts were racing with should I or shouldn't I go, so i asked my self, would i regret this later if i didn't go , my self said probably yes. so i happened in to the shower and was quickly interrupted by a call. I usually dont take calls while in the shower, I didn't recognize the number and fearing another support call I took the call and this was another company, checking my eligibility and telling me that someone else will call to set an interview. its kind of like the sign saying that a stop sign is ahead. this was Amdox and I don't know to which location I am recruited for(but I know its not Cleveland, they have no office here). I also got an email from a rival company of ours with a possible recruiting in Wisconsin! Wisconsin? its colder than here...
so I rushed and put on my suit with a green shirt and blue tie (later I was told these colors clash, but i never presumed to understand colors, that is why I don't do marketing. btw, this is not my only tie, but the only one that is noose shaped, so i can wear it quick, i still have not mastered the skill of tie knotting. wore pants, took my resumes and nice black folder and headed out the door. did I forget something? yes a belt!!!! so I was on the highway and thinking, should i go back to get it, if so i will definitely be late (its a 9-2 event) and it's already pass noon, and i decided to keep going, with the suit, no one notices the belt (or so I hoped).
nature break- there is a woodpecker right not on a tiki torch outside. the thing is made out of wood, but i have never seed the peckers on it, he is packing away and is not packing at the tiki box which holds a flammable liquid...freaky birds, ok he went away (its a he since the head is red).
I heard about this fair super mom Inna, one of there patients works there and i was supposed to meet her there but i didn't know exactly where would she be or how she looks like; anyway I parked at the employer's parking lot at the university and headed in, signed up, put my name on a sticker and than Ivanka (that's her name) recognizes me, for a short time she was filling in at the entry booth, lucky. i expected a Russian (Ivanka, after all) but she is not, or at least no accent, she quickly points out the right way, i take a breath and head on in.
Speed dating is an activity I never participated in, but there is a lot in common between a date (true it been over 41 months since the last one) and a job interview. the attempts to be your self and hide everything at the same time, the nervousness, not knowing what the other side is thinking, leaving without knowing if there will be a 2nd date. so for me meeting over 100 possible employers in one place is speed dating.
this fair is mostly for new graduates, but there are reps here from many big companies in the area looking to hire in various roles. I walk between the booths and nervously looking for eye contact (they say, don't fear the rep, approach them) i take my first shot at a company that called Gil....xxx something, I see it as a sign and approach, they are in construction, not my field, but I broke the ice (that's in my head) and started dating. I think i spoke with 10-15 companies (not all the companies were hiring in my field), I skipped the many sales offering, I checked the FBI but i need to be a citizen, so i passed all the other nice looking jobs in other governmental offerings. I reach the booth of american greeting, a place where I interviewed last week! 3 interviews and heard nothing back, but the recruiter was there so I asked, she checked her mail and notified me that i am not on the disqualified list :), and i should accept a call back for the final selection next week, good news. it is possible that soon i will ask you to buy your gift cards in a certain place, If not, avoid this chain! kept going after meeting this recent ex to another Ex, a company I interviewed in june! passed 6, yes 6 interviews than fell (they never tell you why), this recruiter (most recruiters here are regular employees to speak about the company, not real recruiters, except the AG one), and this guy remembered me, since he passed me onward, so he took my resume again and will see. GE my initials company always had a line. then i met brightskies, this is not the real name but very similar, never heard of this company but i think i will have an interview there soon, good position :). kept going, highland software another big firm. spoke to a QA rep there which was very excited about the place and got me excited too, since they are not a rigid company, I expect a call from them at the very least. mmc something my be promising ( I have the card with the real names). as you clearly see, I am too optimistic... some places were no match, looking for interns or beginners but over all it was a great session. I ran into Ivanka again at this MMC place and as i left the booth i heard her telling them that I come from a great family II think she knows only Inna, and I agree).
I took a break to get more resumes from the car and went again for the last session (Highland was the last) and the rest of the employers were already packing up their booths.
I feel great for going, and very nervous from all these possibilities, Plus Alla has an interview next week in Athens (not Greece) Ohio, 3 hours south. so all of a sudden their are numerous possible relocation options. my head is spinning.
went home, took of my belt less suit and raked some more leaves to relax, then later met my pharmacist for a date at a stand up comedy club (free tickets are always nice), it was perfect after a stressful day.
now I have nothing but possibles (and each one is a guaranteed job, of course) so I will have to wait and see.
on a totally different subject- last year i received a package with a late wedding gift. last week I heard that i did not thank the gift bringer. I don't recall that, I think I even sent a thank you note (how american of me, influence of my better half). but something must have slipped (could be my memory) so M, accept my apologies. and this week I got another package from LostInJaffa (who told me about my previous mess up) containing nice Africa photos a cool 50's style postcard and a mango chocolate, so thanx for that (but i don't like Mango!!!) , no worries, someone will enjoy it.
cheers from hopefully optimistic not from Seattle
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