It's been a beautiful day, not a cloud in the sky, temperature got up to the low 80's for the first time this year. Twilight is almost done, only the faintest light left. I just came in from sitting out back with the dogs, helping them make sure the backyard is safe from those pesky squirrels. The sound of the kids playing in the cul de sac behind our house and the birds singing back and forth adding to the atmosphere. Reminds me of earlier times.
Best of all, tomorrow will be a repeat of today.
Saturday, May 16, 2009
Sunday, April 05, 2009
Spring!
What a gorgeous day! It hit 70+ this afternoon. Tomorrow is suppose to be even better. It should hit the midwest and eastern seaboard later in the week. Enjoy it while you can. I got a bit of yard work done today - mowed the lawns again. The sun did it's magic on the trees. The maple tree out back has been close for several days but it wasn't until this afternoon that the buds finally started to blossom.
We've seen the buds on the "tulip" tree in the front yard. (I don't know exactly what it really called, we call it the tulip tree because of these flowers it produces every spring)
We bbq'd for the first time this year for dinner tonight. That first time always smells and tastes sooooo good! I hope it made the neighbors change their plans for dinner.
We've seen the buds on the "tulip" tree in the front yard. (I don't know exactly what it really called, we call it the tulip tree because of these flowers it produces every spring)
We bbq'd for the first time this year for dinner tonight. That first time always smells and tastes sooooo good! I hope it made the neighbors change their plans for dinner.
I've sent my resume off a couple of times in the past several weeks. I haven't gotten any responses, but at least there are some positions out there. It's just a matter of time, right? I'm signed up for unemployment benefits now. Every little bit helps. If not now, it surely will in the long run.
Tomorrow, after the dog walk and the days chores we just might take a ride to the coast. There's a little place that serves a great cup of chowder. It will be a beautiful day for a ride. It will be just what the doctor ordered for attitude improvement.
Monday, February 23, 2009
Plan B
Got the call this afternoon, I was not the candidate choosen for the position. I guess I didn't do quite as well as I thought.
Time to pull out Plan B.
Wednesday, February 18, 2009
Waiting
Tuesday morning I had the face to face interview with the hiring manager (Quality), the head of Purchasing and the head of Logistics as well as the Sr Recruiter. I learned a bit more about them and the company's operation, they learned more about me. I'd already had an hour and a half phone conversation with the head of Quality. This time was so he could put a face with the voice and I could be introduced to others I would be working with if I'm hired. They had a preprinted list of interview questions to start from and then asked about things that concerned them. I thought it went well, except for the "ambiguous" question. "Describe a time in your work history when you were faced with an ambiguous situation and how you handled it." I wasn't quite expecting that and kind of fumbled through it. I had a hard time coming up with an "clear cut" ambiguous situation. I managed, I guess. They didn't ask for further clarification. There were more concrete questions after that and I got a chance to ask some questions of my own about their processes. One of them had another meeting after an hour and the others wrapped it up fairly quickly after that. I got a folder of company propaganda from the recruiter on the way out. He said they had more people to meet and then meetings to discuss us all. He thought I should hear of their decision by Friday.
Tomorrow.
We have been patiently and not so patiently waiting ever since. P is three days into a head cold now and still trying to find the right combination of drugs to make her feel half-human. There aren't a lot of activities to take our minds off the decision and what hangs in the balance. I've done some work on the taxes. Not the most ideal task to take on when you're kind of anxious in the first place. I go over the interview in my head every night while I'm on the treadmill. Sometimes I think I've nailed it, it's in the bag. And not three minutes later I'm sure I've blown it, they're going to hire someone else. All we can do is wait. Hopefully by this time tomorrow we will know, one way or the other.
Thanks for all those good thoughts!!
Tomorrow.
We have been patiently and not so patiently waiting ever since. P is three days into a head cold now and still trying to find the right combination of drugs to make her feel half-human. There aren't a lot of activities to take our minds off the decision and what hangs in the balance. I've done some work on the taxes. Not the most ideal task to take on when you're kind of anxious in the first place. I go over the interview in my head every night while I'm on the treadmill. Sometimes I think I've nailed it, it's in the bag. And not three minutes later I'm sure I've blown it, they're going to hire someone else. All we can do is wait. Hopefully by this time tomorrow we will know, one way or the other.
Thanks for all those good thoughts!!
Monday, February 09, 2009
Unemployed
I signed the Participation Agreement for the Voluntary Separation Package on the 2nd. That was my last work day. According to the terms of the agreement, because I'm over 40, I get an extra 7 days to think about it and can revoke my agreement if I so choose. There must be some legal reason for that part of the plan, I certainly have never heard of such a thing in the past. At any rate "The 7 day revocation period will be a non-working but paid period." Now, THAT is nice work, if you can get it! So, I'm not officially unemployed until tomorrow.
As for the job search, I had a phone interview last week with the hiring manager.He called from the plant in California. About half way through he said he had an emergency that had just come up, he would call me back shortly. About 10 minutes later he called back and explained that they'd had a fire drill! Luckily it turned out to be only a drill. We laughed about it and continued on with the interview. After about an hour and a half he concluded the call saying that the next step would be a face to face interview. He did say he had several other candidates to talk to and that he would leave it to the recruiter to arrange the details for the face to face. I hope to hear more about that in the next couple of days.
The dogs sure love my being unemployed. It means a walk first thing every morning. Yesterday and this morning it was foggy and frosty. Very slippery in places where the moisture from the fog condenses on the roads and sidewalks and then freezes. You have to be very careful because the thin layer of ice is transparent. You can't always tell where it's slippery and where it isn't. And with a couple of dogs pulling their leashes it doesn't take too much to put on quite an acrobatic show trying to remain in an upright position.
Remember those picture of the fountain with all the snow on it. Well, this it the result of Ma Nature's worst:
It had some cracks in it already so I checked it out after the cold and snow spell . The bucket portion of the statue fell apart in my hands when I touched it. There is just enough of the bottom of the bucket to hold about a cup of water. As you can see from the picture we've had some more sub-freezing temperatures. The forecast for this afternoon is for snow mixed with rain and more of the same tomorrow. Yeah, I've had enough of this for one year.
As for the job search, I had a phone interview last week with the hiring manager.He called from the plant in California. About half way through he said he had an emergency that had just come up, he would call me back shortly. About 10 minutes later he called back and explained that they'd had a fire drill! Luckily it turned out to be only a drill. We laughed about it and continued on with the interview. After about an hour and a half he concluded the call saying that the next step would be a face to face interview. He did say he had several other candidates to talk to and that he would leave it to the recruiter to arrange the details for the face to face. I hope to hear more about that in the next couple of days.
The dogs sure love my being unemployed. It means a walk first thing every morning. Yesterday and this morning it was foggy and frosty. Very slippery in places where the moisture from the fog condenses on the roads and sidewalks and then freezes. You have to be very careful because the thin layer of ice is transparent. You can't always tell where it's slippery and where it isn't. And with a couple of dogs pulling their leashes it doesn't take too much to put on quite an acrobatic show trying to remain in an upright position.
Remember those picture of the fountain with all the snow on it. Well, this it the result of Ma Nature's worst:
It had some cracks in it already so I checked it out after the cold and snow spell . The bucket portion of the statue fell apart in my hands when I touched it. There is just enough of the bottom of the bucket to hold about a cup of water. As you can see from the picture we've had some more sub-freezing temperatures. The forecast for this afternoon is for snow mixed with rain and more of the same tomorrow. Yeah, I've had enough of this for one year.
Friday, January 30, 2009
Happy Groundhogs Day!
It's cold and foggy out tonight. I went out back a bit ago to take the air and keep the dogs company while they made sure the backyard was safe. We heard some geese flying in the dark, north I think. I sure hope so. We're ready for spring to start. The plum tree in the front is starting to get buds already. Monday IS Groundhogs day...
Today was my last full day at this job. Monday I go in to sign my paper, get my exit interview and turn in my badge. Nine years and four months. I'm getting a pretty good Voluntary Separation Package, 14 weeks pay plus two weeks for every year of service. It isn't something I really wanted to do but with the changes to our little part of the company it became apparent that taking the package was a win-win situation. It will provide a cushion while I look for another job. I was working on being depressed for a while when P's friend, Sally suggested I look for work at a local company that many of the people at her job were applying at. I checked the company's web site and third on the list of "career opportunities" was Sr Document Control Specialist. Well you could have knocked me over with a feather! Document Control positions are not that easy to find and with the current state of the economy I expect there are fewer than usual. I had to whip together a resume as after nine years I no longer had a copy of the last one I used. Luckily I was able to get a copy of the last application I filled out. It had all the dates for my past jobs. That was a great help. The rest I was able to word smith. It's hard to summarize all those years in just a few sentences. I submitted my resume on-line that night. I got an email the next day and yesterday I had a phone interview with the recruiter. I think it went well. Now I wait. I should hear something next week as to whats next. Wish me luck!
In the mean time, the dog will be expecting a walk every day now. Any day I don't go to work they watch me like a hawk until it's light out then they pester me until I get the leashes out. At least they wait until the sun comes up.
Today was my last full day at this job. Monday I go in to sign my paper, get my exit interview and turn in my badge. Nine years and four months. I'm getting a pretty good Voluntary Separation Package, 14 weeks pay plus two weeks for every year of service. It isn't something I really wanted to do but with the changes to our little part of the company it became apparent that taking the package was a win-win situation. It will provide a cushion while I look for another job. I was working on being depressed for a while when P's friend, Sally suggested I look for work at a local company that many of the people at her job were applying at. I checked the company's web site and third on the list of "career opportunities" was Sr Document Control Specialist. Well you could have knocked me over with a feather! Document Control positions are not that easy to find and with the current state of the economy I expect there are fewer than usual. I had to whip together a resume as after nine years I no longer had a copy of the last one I used. Luckily I was able to get a copy of the last application I filled out. It had all the dates for my past jobs. That was a great help. The rest I was able to word smith. It's hard to summarize all those years in just a few sentences. I submitted my resume on-line that night. I got an email the next day and yesterday I had a phone interview with the recruiter. I think it went well. Now I wait. I should hear something next week as to whats next. Wish me luck!
In the mean time, the dog will be expecting a walk every day now. Any day I don't go to work they watch me like a hawk until it's light out then they pester me until I get the leashes out. At least they wait until the sun comes up.
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