Friday, December 05, 2008

Wintery thoughts

Random thoughts from where I sit on a Friday:

I enjoyed being out in the first snowfall of the winter. This is the time of year when wintery weather like snow is still a novelty. Ask me again in January and I might have a different answer for you.

Five degrees above zero this morning and I dragged 18 bags of leaves to the curb for the final pickup of the season. First I had to unbury them, then break them free from the icy clutches of the ground beneath them without ripping the bags - they seem to get cheaper every year. This is the first year in several that I have been successful in getting all my leaves raked/blown/bagged and to the curb on time. Nothing awaiting my attention next spring. Woo hoo!

Today is the three-month anniversary of the Gang of 24's last day at work for The Company. I really, really miss my old cubicle (snort/snicker). A number of the Gang keep in touch by e-mail. All but a couple of the Gang are still looking for full time work.

It's a tough job market for marketing/communications types like myself. There are a good number of job postings, but companies are very, very particular about who they're hiring these days. No on-the-job-training or getting acclimated to their particular industry is allowed. If you can't hit the ground running, fuhgeddaboudit. Oh, and the job descriptions! They're packing enough responsibilities in those babies to keep three or four people swamped. You need blue leotards, a red cape and a big yellow "S" on your chest to make the first cut anymore.

Totals so far - 900+ resumes sent via e-mail, 50+ ads responded to, 50+ resumes sent via snail mail. About 1,000 contacts made in the last three months. The results - two first-round interviews. I'm batting .002. Hoping things will pick up after the first of the year. Really - how can they not?

So I'm kind of like the tree in the above photo. I'm reaching, stretching out toward the forest of opportunities I see ahead of me on the other side of the clearing. Still elusive, but still hopeful that I'll get there.

Click on this post's headline for image EXIF data. Click on picture to enlarge. Photograph © James Jordan.

4 comments:

Anonymous said...

As someone who has done the out of work thing from time to time. (As recently as this past April-July.) My only thought is to focus on the tangible (call backs, interviews, feedback from your network) and not on the resume send out count. It is the people you actually connect with that matter most. That resume send number is going to be huge and it can play tricks on you if you let it.

keltic said...

maybe the cubs will take you. they frequently hire people with that batting average.

Dave said...

Great photo! Really striking composition.

We had the same snow up here in Southern Wisconsin. I got a couple pictures, but not during peak hours for lighting -- baby care takes up that time.

Good luck with the job search. Be happy you have the time to take these great photos.

Dave said...

Like the photo and the sky colours. I still have your shot as screen saver. Cheers