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Discouraged

August 13th, 2011 at 01:39 pm

Not to be Debbie Downer here, but I am feeling really discouraged.

The main reason for this is that this was the week I expected to hear from that company where I interviewed for the energy analyst position. I had turned in the writing assignment the Thursday before, and I figured sometime this week they'd have reviewed candidates' writing and decided who to call back (or make an offer to).

I thought I had a pretty good shot at that job, and I allowed myself to visualize how things would work out with that job. I hate the waiting game, so on Wednesday I sent a brief and friendly email asking about the status of the job and whether I'm still a candidate.

The fact that I didn't get an answer is troubling to me. I'm guessing that they have either made an offer to someone else and are waiting for it to be finalized before notifying others they interviewed, or they are about ready to do a 2nd interview/make an offer and don't want to tell anyone anything until it's finalized.

It's just so discouraging. My life these days revolves around finding ways to make money. The jobs I've applied for include both full-time perm job I could live on as well as part-time or periodic gigs that will just help me get by until I find that f/t job.

A while back I applied to a tutoring company and only heard back from them yesterday, via email. Although I have no tutoring experience, they apparently have so far accepted my application, I'm guessing, based on lifetime experience as a writer/editor. So they would then contact me when a tutoring position in my area, in my field, opened up. Who knows when that might be. I'm curious to know how it would all work out since I have no tutoring experience and wouldn't know where to start. Do they supply materials? They haven't given me any idea. The ad says it's 7th grade through college and they require at least 1 year of teaching/tutoring experience, which I lack. You have to pass a background check and be willing to work some evenings/weekends. It pays decent, $24 to $27 an hour.

As for the p/t job editing transcriptions others have written from meetings, interviews or focus groups, they seemed happy with the first test they gave me. Then they asked me to do a second one, this time with a one-day deadline. It would have gotten my suspicions up, but this time they said they'd pay me. I turned that in and my contact said "so and so would be in touch with me." I guess/hope that means they want me for the job. It's a throwaway job to me ($11/hr) but until something better comes along, I'll do it.

I also haven't heard back from the online publishing company in the self-publish market. I spent a lot of time on their writing assignments and thought I did pretty well, although I found the Chicago Manual of Style book I borrowed from the library confusing when it came to citations/footnotes.

As it turns out, I think I've adapted fairly easily to giving up cable TV. I do enjoy watching episodes of a few of my favorite shows on Hulu,and it's just as good as watching them on TV. The advantages are that I can watch when I feel like it, and there are fewer commercials.

I finished painting one wall in the spare bedroom with the free paint samples I got from Glidden. I was quite surprised to see that "Tropicana Surf" is actually extremely close in color to the blue I chose for my office, to go with some wallpaper. The office is kind of an icy, cool blue while the blue in the bedroom is a paler shade of that. I have 2 more quarts, so I can continue painting, but first I have to scrape and soak off the rest of the foot-wide wall border I have in the bedroom, and to get it off just the one wall was very time-consuming. But it's got to come off because the colors don't really match the new blue paint.

I don't really know what I'm doing this weekend. I have nothing planned. I'd be tempted to do a bike ride, but I have to try to stay out of the sun while I'm still taking these antibiotics for Lyme. I think I have about 4 more days to go, but I doubt the low humidity of the past 2 days will last much longer.

I have like a gazillion cucumbers and am looking for someone to give them to.

My dad was up for a second surprise visit; this time, he was spending the night at my sister's. We hung out and chit-chatted, and he admired my new siding. Then he went to my sister's, and later I joined them for dinner at a local diner. First they wanted to go to a new, very nice restaurant in my town and I got all excited as I've never eaten there, but they were, once again, so crowded, they just wanted to go to the diner,which was quick and easy, cus my sister had to get back to her home before dark to put the chickens in the coop. The diner food wasn't very good....dried out chicken, carrots that I think came out of a can, an iceberg lettuce salad.... I'm so much happier when I can cook my own food!

I made a yummy cold lentil salad the other day. I don't really care for lentils much, but I know they are good for you. This was pretty tasty: lentils, chopped red onion, feta cheese, chopped green bell pepper and tomato and oil and vinegar.

I have so much produce from the garden that I'm on a race to eat and use them up every single day before they go bad. So far, nothing's gone bad, but some of those cucumbers might. I can only eat one whole cucumber a day. I considered putting a sign out on my mailbox, which is by the road, that says, "Free Cucumbers, Organic & Homegrown. Help yourself. See inside mailbox."

The mailbox is perfectly shaped to hold a bunch of cucumbers, although I'd have to wait until after the mail is delivered, around 2:30 pm.

18 Responses to “Discouraged”

  1. NJDebbie Says:
    1313241317

    ((Hugs)). I understand why you feel discouraged, but I'm certain that your persistence will pay off. I wish I lived near you because I would take those cucumbers off your hands.

  2. Gamecock43 Says:
    1313244495

    Does the tutoring company have a "z" in their name? I worked for that national tutoring company. They do not supply materials because they work with what the student is learning in school. You would be helping with homework and assignments.

    Good luck with the big full time job!

  3. rob62521 Says:
    1313244690

    I'm sorry you are discouraged. I wouldn't give up yet. Although you want an answer pdq, it seems that places don't move that quickly. I applied for a transfer over a month and a half before I received an interview and then had to wait almost 3 weeks for an answer, and this is within the same school district. I hope the news will be worth waiting for! Hang in there!

    As for your cucumbers, have you ever made cucumber soup? I made some recently and my dh who doesn't care for cucumbers said it was OK.

    Cucumber soup
    2 cucumbers, peeled and seeded, chopped up
    1 small onion
    1 T olive oil
    2 cups chicken stock
    1 t dried taragon
    1 cup sour cream
    parsley to garnish


    Chop a small onion and saute in olive oil. Add cucumber and cook until translucent. Add chicken broth and simmer until cucumber is soft. Add sour cream and taragon and garnish with parsley. Can be served hot or cold.

    I served it cold. I would think you could freeze it if you made enough without the sour cream and then add it when you heated it up.

    Hope things look up for you!

  4. Thrifty Ray Says:
    1313245138

    I can only imagine how discouraging this is for someone with your skills and experience - I hope it isnt long before that f/t opportunity presents itself.

    THe mailbox idea sounds perfect- the only concern would be someone seeing the sign and checking back when there is mail in it..

    Good luck to you!!

  5. Joan.of.the.Arch Says:
    1313245274

    I have a way to save cucumbers for future use without pickling them. Peel, chop, and freeze them! How will you then use frozen cukes? In a frozen slushy drink. Put frozen pieces in the blender with lime juice and sugar (I use Splenda.) Delicious and refreshing. I served them at a barbecue. They mix nicely with alcohol, too.

  6. patientsaver Says:
    1313245850

    Thanks, guys. Hugs.

    The cucumber recipes sound intriguing, especially that slushy thing. I may try it. So for just 1 cup say, you'd add a lot of lime juice with just the sweetener and the cuke chunks?

    The tutoring company is called American Tutoring. You're probably right, it would be homework and assignments.

  7. MonkeyMama Says:
    1313246655

    Well, you are certainly not alone. You may *feel* alone, but you are not. we were just talking about how the Unemployment rates were ridiculously under-reported here. IT's got to be 20%+, and doesn't include people like my spouse who pretty much gave up employment at the beginning of the decade, but has embraced it as a temporary *choice.* Part of the choice is he couldn't find a job when he wanted one though (YEARS). My dad hasn't done much better the entire decade, and though his employment was always high turnover (project based - new job every year or so) he was never unemployed for more than 5 minutes before he turned 50. The unemployment rate here has got to be much higher for age 50+. It's so prevalent among friends and family that I just figure I will be lucky to find steady work once I turn 50. IT seems to be the way it is any more, and was already the case somewhat before the economy went WAY south.

    Can you donate the cucumbers to the food pantry? That is what my MIL has been doing this year.

  8. Ima saver Says:
    1313263220

    Sure hope you hear something soon.

  9. KiwiJo09 Says:
    1313273774

    The job market is down. But, you can get a job. It's completely possible, it just takes time. You'll get there. Smile

  10. Joan.of.the.Arch Says:
    1313279550

    You can add some plain ice to the blender, too, if it seems too "cukey." I don't know how much lime juice to say. Just to taste; is that okay? Maybe in the proportion that you'd make lime-ade. Serve with straw or long handled teaspoon.

  11. FrugalTexan75 Says:
    1313288369

    The waiting game stinks donkey turds. Employers have the upper hand now a days - think they can play with us like a yo-yo. Hope they get back to you soon - with good news!

  12. baselle Says:
    1313295301

    I'm sorry that you are feeling discouraged. It's hard even in the best of job-hunting times to keep it together. Even five years ago you couldn't depend on an employer to have even the most common courtesy to tell you you didn't get it, hence the wait. Fingers crossed that someone's vacation is holding things up.

  13. ThriftoRama Says:
    1313344588

    I'm a writer as well and it is discouraging. During the search for my last part time job I was forced to do so many writing assignment "tests" that I started to wonder if there was a job at all of it they were using a fake job as a way to get free work out of people. You just never know. It's frustrating, but it's just the way it goes.

  14. baselle Says:
    1313371107

    ThriftoRama - That is exactly what I was thinking! Wicked, but not unheard of.

    Speaking from the other end of the table, I was on an interview panel a month ago. All job applicants have an issue ... and this was the case even when times are good. Back then it was, "we'll work around it because the pluses outweigh the minuses". Now with beaucoup applicants, applicants coming out of the woodwork (candidates who miss the deadline but apply anyway because, well...) and multiple interview panels, the decisions are slooooow. Nobody's decisive because of all the second guessing - what if the right candidate shows up tomorrow? Its a wonder anybody's hired at all.

  15. Joan.of.the.Arch Says:
    1313447823

    I was ashamed of my own negativity in suspecting that these writing tests could be a sneaky way to get free work from you. Frown Guess I had company in those thoughts.

  16. PatientSaver Says:
    1313450795

    Joan of the Arch, that definitely does happen. Trust your intuition.

  17. snafu Says:
    1313943012

    Sorry this is truly a tough time in the job market. Unemployment figures are based on the numbers drawing unemployment benefits, it doesn't include those no longer eligible, those who were never eligible, those who have given up, those who take PT work etc. The real figures are acknowledged to be more than double official numbers.

    I wonder if ageism is adding to your difficulties. I hope your resume has been crafted to emphasis more recent accomplishments.

    Garden abundance ideas...The most popular way of preserving cukes is variations of pickles. I'm guessing friends and families would be delighted with gifts of pickles or relish for Thanksgiving/Christmas. I suggest having friends over for group effort, everyone brings stuff easily frozen and served over rice or rice noodles. I've never made it but understand frozen pickles can be assembled in zip bags avoiding the cost of equipment and processing effort.

    Good luck wishes going your way

    I'm sure your local food bank and their receipients would be delighted to have your crop.

  18. snafu Says:
    1313943604

    to my surprise, the mid section of post went off to cyber space so repeat...

    I suggest having friends over for group effort, everyone brings stuff easily frozen and served over rice or rice noodles.

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