V for Vendetta

Um. Wow. Okay... this is an amazing movie, and I think you should go see it. Now. Okay, tomorrow will do. It resonated for me on a deep level - our freedoms are so frail, this could be our future. And yet... there's a message of hope. "People should not be afraid of their governments; governments should be afraid of their people." I belong to the generation that stopped a war - we need to get off our middle-aged butts and do it again. Demand our individual freedoms before they steal them all away.

"A revolution without dancing is a revolution not worth having."

Job Hunting: Update

Well, it wasn't as good as being offered a job, but I have a second interview tomorrow at noon. Here's hoping...

Job Hunting - Cautiously Optimistic

I've heard back on the first two interviews, and I'm zero for two. I'm disappointed about the Resource Center, because I really thought it would be a good fit for me, and visa versa. I'm not surprised about College of Ed. While the interview went well, I got a vibe that the director I'd have been working for was not particularly comfortable with me. No worries - you can't be a great fit with everyone. Being down two of the three made me more anxious when I went to the third, though.

I interviewed Monday at the College of Veterinary Medicine (secretary for two assistant deans). Good interview, nice guys, and a shared passion for coffee. No clear vibe. I applied for a couple more jobs and already know I didn't make the interview list for one. Bad news, but a nice feature of the new HR application manager.

Today I went out with friends to see The Libertine, and when we got back after dinner sixish, there was a call from Vet Med on the machine. It was a noncommittal "Please call me as soon as you can", and I shrugged it off and settled down to run my Chill game. Sometime into the game it struck me - if they were calling to tell me they'd chosen someone else, they would probably have just left that as a message. They generally want to talk to you directly to offer you the job! Or, maybe they have some additional questions... but I am cautiously optimistic.

I've set my alarm for 8:05 and will call first thing to see what's up. I hope I'll have good news to report.

Dear Mr. Lucas (redux)

The web comic Popcorn Picnic provided the comic below. I've copied it to my server to save their bandwidth, but I encourage you to click on over there and tell them how much you enjoyed the strip. Copyright and all rights belong to Popcorn Picnic.

In the spirit of the season

If my adoptive mother is to be believed, I'm Irish on both sides. I certainly have the coloring they call "Black Irish", and the temper and fondness for liquor to support that. (D'y'know why God invented whiskey? To keep the Irish from taking over the earth.)

I had corned beef and cabbage for lunch (though mostly because I like corned beef and cabbage), but otherwise mostly cordially ignored the American celebration of my purportedly native holiday.

To all of my friends, Irish honorary and native, I raise my glass of Jameson's and offer an Irish blessing.

May you have warm words on a cold evening,
A full moon on a dark night,
And the road downhill all the way to your door.

Sláinte!

The Employment Shuffle

Things have finally been looking up on the job front. I'm still unemployed, but I reworked my resume just in time for the University to set up a new, very convenient application system. I've had two interviews in the past couple of weeks, and have another on Monday. I applied for two more jobs today. I must have about 15 applications in, and common wisdom indicates that three interviews is a pretty good return rate. I apply for 2-5 or so every week. All I really want out of life any more is a day job with health insurance.

I'm looking for secretarial or clerical work, because my IT skills are too rusty to sell, and my last IT job darned near killed me anyways. I type 70 words a minute, and Microsoft Office is my bitch. Ditto Outlook, WordPerfect Office, etc. I wrote the Counseling Center's client tracking system in Access and I'm pretty sure I haven't forgotten that yet. I'm a dynamite editor, write good manuals and am willing to do pretty much any work that's not illegal (or telemarketing). I'm personable, I have good references and I make a fantastic cup of coffee. What's not to love?

I really want the first job I interviewed for, but won't know till next week at the earliest. It would include web work, editing, document creation and would put me in a position to help make life a little better for college kids under a lot of stress. I hope I get it.

I've already heard that they chose someone else for the second job, but I'm okay with that. I had a sense that it was a good interview, but I wasn't as good a fit as one of their other candidates. It only takes one job to settle me, after all. I did have the best interview question ever, though. With a perfectly straight face he asked me: "What would you do if I gave you a camel?"

"I'd have to take it to the zoo. We have a nice zoo here, and I live in a condo. Too cramped for a camel, and the cats would complain."

He said the idea behind the question was to see how people did at thinking on their feet. He said most people just locked up. I thought it was pretty funny.

Monday I interview at the Vet Clinic, again for a secretarial job.

As long as the interviews keep up and I get a job reasonably soon, my spirits are good.