random thoughts

ON LAW SCHOOL: Last June, I took the LSAT and seriously considered law school for fall ‘07. Since then, I’ve decided against the idea for a lot of reasons, mainly money; nonetheless, it’s interesting that a school just offered me a large scholarship: they’d give me $20,000/year of the tuition’s $25,888/year. Basically, I could get the entire J.D. for around $16,500. Tempting, a little.

ON THE INTERVIEW: Lots of pros and lots of cons about yesterday’s meeting. The biggest drawback is the commute: 1.25 hours each way. Good pay and benefits, good opportunity for advancement, nice people.

ON GAS PRICES: If I had the energy, I’d make this a post of its own, but can I just put in another plug for my fabulous, inexpensive, diesel VW Jetta? I’m paying $2.89/gallon, here in Chicagoland. My friends and family are paying almost $4/gallon for their gas. My car gets 50+ miles to the gallon, and it’s reliable. Best gift I was ever given.

when bad news is good news

I made pro-con lists, got advice, further researched the non-profit, and still couldn’t come to a decision.  My gut said not to take it, but logic focused on its location, career potential, challenge.

Then I got the news, by e-mail, this afternoon: the company is pursuing other candidates—as in, they don’t want me. Hallelujah! Decision made.

Also: I have an interview tomorrow with a firm downtown. Expect a play-by-play tomorrow, I’m sure.

interview 5 or, fear

I don’t mean to make this harder than it is, but here’s the thing for me with job-searching:

When I graduated from undergrad in 2004, I moved home and job-hunted. I applied for all sorts of things, but hoped to write or edit. After several weeks of nothing promising, I got called about an editor position within a private investigation company.

The woman I interviewed with was fabulous: she and I had so much in common, and the job she described sounded good. They offered it to me, and I took it.

The next week, I went to my first (shortened) day of work: 10-4. And, I hated it. Hated it, hated it. The small company only had a dozen or so employees, yet in cubicles. The job turned out to be more tedious than I’d expected: conforming copy to match a template, over and over again.

I went home, freaked out, and called Awesome Interview Lady to quit. I never regretted it.

What I did (and do) regret, however, is that I took the job in the first place. I wish I hadn’t gone through that whole process, disappointing Awesome Interview Lady and myself. So now, when I interview for jobs, I always have an image of that first job in my mind. I can’t explain what this process is like really, except to say I look for a feeling–just this sense that the job is the right one. Is this normal/good/healthy? I don’t know.

Today I interviewed with a not-for-profit in the area, for a project assistant/writer position. I’d be writing in a much more business-y format than I’d prefer, I’d be reporting to one particular (self-described unorganized) person, and the job description remains fuzzy beyond that because it’s a new one. That warm, fuzzy feeling I’d hoped for isn’t there, but should I wait for it? Or is it better to take what you can, even if your gut is hesitant?

the end is the beginning

I spent the end of last week in Wisconsin, visiting my best friend and her husband and their beautiful new(ish) baby. {Sigh} If money were no object, I’d really fly away to new places every weekend—or most, at least. I’d see Baby more than once before his first birthday. I’d go to Prague. I’d know just how horrible my old roommates’s job in NOLA has been.

In reality, I suppose, I have everything I need. My friend’s baby is stunningly, amazingly wonderful, and I got to spend two whole days getting to know him. All for the cost of gas for 600 miles round-trip (I love you, my affordable diesel VW Jetta—you, with your only-one-tank-needed road trips) ($40). And I paid for one lunch ($11) and two admissions to a park ($3). All in all, not such a bad deal: $54 to see people I love.

A fringe benefit of the trip, I found, was the wonderful distraction from job-searching. My friends live in the country-country, as in—you pass ten farms and three packs of cows before reaching their street. They have dial-up Internet, no cable, unreliable cell phone signals. I hate it and love it, if you know what I mean. There’s the initial withdrawal and nervous cell phone checking, the itch to know if any job offers have been missed. Then there’s the relief, the peace of letting go of a few responsibilities in favor of marvelously satisfying ones like sitting on the porch and watching Baby giggle.

All good things must end, and I’m back in Chicagoland now. I have two more interviews scheduled tomorrow, and I’m hopeful, hopeful, hopeful about a job I have yet to be called regarding. Someone at the company visited my online portfolio three times, so I’m telling myself it’s a good sign and trying very hard not to count my chickens.

Interview (4)

Yesterday morning, I put on my pinstripe jacket and black dress pants, slid into my pointy-toed shoes with the kitten heels, grabbed my Mapquest directions and resume and got in my car.

I wanted to be early, as HR suggested. Mapquest estimated a 20-minute drive; I left an hour before my scheduled interview.

Cruising up the expressway with only a little traffic, I somehow missed my exit. Then I couldn’t turn around for twenty minutes (who designs these roads??). When I finally recorrected myself, I made another wrong turn. I called the company but got voicemail. Ten minutes late. Fifteen. I called again: voicemail.

Frustrated, tired and confused, (feeling a lot like The Budgeting Babe recently) I turned my little car homeward: I called my friend and we laughed about it. I went home and slept for two hours. I took allergy medication and ate Matzo ball soup.

All that driving around gave me time to think about the job/company I was desperately trying to locate, and I realized something: I don’t want to write catalog copy (yes, that’s what it was). Through a resume I’d posted online, a company had contacted me—via e-mail and phone—requesting an interview for a job that may or may not be available. The pay was decent, the location near (though, turns out, hard to find) and they were very interested. So I’d agreed to an interview, while being totally uninterested in the job.

Sometimes this pays off, true. But for me, in this case, it just wasn’t worth it.

JCPenney

Well, first it was their new commercials: cute, fun music, feel-good. Now it’s their clothing: absolutely adorable dresses, tops, skirts… and for very reasonable rates.

Armed with two $10 coupons that came in the mail (with no minimum purchases required), I left my local Penneys with the following this weekend:
1 black-and-white wrap dress with 3/4 sleeves ($26)
1 new pair of jeans ($24)
1 striped tunic top ($11)

Total cost? $61. Love it.

interview 3

Position: Associate Editor (though position not currently available)
Source: school e-recruiting site

I met with the HR rep at another magazine publisher today. She had me take some tests and fill out a company application. I like the office, the job description and benefits; I don’t like the 1.25 hour distance. If I were to get a job there, I’d have to look for a place to live in that area ASAP. I guess I’ll cross that bridge when I come to it; HR Lady said she’d contact me as soon as something opened up.

job-hunting 3.0

Source: school e-recruiting site

I have an interview scheduled Thursday with another magazine publisher. Less than a week ago, I applied for an associate editor position within their organization, through my school’s e-recruiting website. Yesterday, a woman from HR e-mailed me, saying that the position had been filled, but they’d still like to interview me and keep me in mind for future openings. I went ahead and called her back to set up a meeting–good experience, I tell myself.

I partly wonder if this is just a training opportunity for a new HR person or something. But what the heck.