Ouroboros says does that mean, you've found a job?
Sadly, no. I got not one but two separate rejections for jobs at Ohio State University today.
One was an official in-the-mail rejection for an editing job I applied for so long ago I'd forgotten I even applied.
The other was an email rejection for a job I interviewed for last week at the department of horticulture. They needed a half-time webby to help out on a plant education project that was almost identical to some of the stuff I did for the BioTech project. I thought my interview there went pretty well, and I further thought I had exactly the kind of experience and skills the professor was looking for. Apparently, he thought not. I was supposed to get an "official" rejection yesterday; I'm guessing it will actually arrive two weeks from now.
I'm bummed over the horticulture job. The pay wasn't that great, but it would have given me the all-important health insurance benefits, and it's the kind of work I love to do.
I have an interview for an entry-level ad compositor job at a local weekly paper this Friday. The woman I'm interviewing with called the other morning when I was fast asleep. I managed some level of coherence, but probably not enough; it's hard to wake up suddenly and be forced to have a cogent conversation with someone.
She said something like: "You have a lot of experience. Are you sure this job interests you? I hate to offer an entry-level job to someone with this much experience." Which is all code for, are you sure you aren't going to bail on us the moment you're offered something better?
"No, really, I am interested in the job." Meanwhile, I was thinking, Damn, lady, I wish I could find something suitable, you know, but right now I need a fricken job! And I can do this one. I've done it before. I know how stressful the work is, and how low the pay is, but it's more than I'm getting on unemployment. It amounts to a slightly larger bandage to stop the bleeding.
So far, I've had two interviews I thought went well, and one that didn't go so well. None have resulted in an offer. I'm starting to worry about my interview presence. Is it my clothes? I used to wear a professional suit, but it doesn't fit right anymore, so I've been wearing a nice conservative dress or dark pants and a blazer with a dress shirt.
So, tonight I'm going shopping for more interview clothes.
I hate clothes shopping.
I can never find my size in "good" clothes. Jeans and other casual clothes take some hunting, but they're doable. Shopping for professional business attire makes me feel like a freak of nature. And the cost -- yikes. I hate spending a lot of money on clothes that I fundamentally dislike, you know? I dislike the very idea of a business suit. And I will dance the day I can burn all my pantyhose. But if you interview, you're stuck with having to conform to the conventions of interview attire.
I wear a size 11 in shoes. Target and Meijer ironically carry cheap shoes that fit me very well. But if I go to the better stores looking for dress shoes, fuggedaboutit: their sizes usually stop at 10. I ask, "do you have this in an 11?" and the shop clerk usually says "Oh, we sold out of that size." It makes me want to grab the clerk by his lapels and scream, "IF YOU SELL OUT, SHOULDN'T YOU ORDER MORE?" But this of course wouldn't help my cause, at all. I can find my size in the really expensive shops. But I can't justify spending $100+ on a pair of loafers. And men's shoes don't fit me right, though I have resorted to them on occasion.