Get up, get down, get a drink

I was feeling a little down about the job search so I went back to reread some of my 2009-10 posts from when I was completely unemployed the other day.  They actually made me feel even worse, b/c I might have been completely out of work then but it seemed like I was in a better mood most of the time.  And, the dog looked so young and happy in all of the pics I posted of her.  Her tearing her ACL has really been a downer. 

Maybe it was easier to feel positive when I was totally unemployed since it was spring.  Looking for a new job all year to the point where it's fall already isn't really helping my attitude.  The closer we get to the end of the year the smaller my window is to get out of here, which does not make me feel good about prospects. 

But then I get a late email from another university about a similar position, and I have an interview set up for Monday.  If I nail the interview and the pay is above where I'm at now, I'm out of here.  Two big "ifs," but that's enough to get through the next couple of days.  Drinks, football, interview prep, sounds like a good weekend. 

Current beer-scale: 7.1

Finally

So I finally got a callback from a resume I sent out in June, the first for that month.  I was starting to get worried that might be an 0-for situation; I had heard nothing but "thanks but no thanks" for that entire month so far.

But it's not until the 21st, and not for a job I'm entirely crazy about.  I've been trying to apply mostly to associate director-level positions, with a few director-level sprinkled in for good measure.  This one is a coordinator role, so of course that's what I hear back from.  Oh well.  These seem to come in bunches, so maybe I'll get lucky a line up a couple more soon.

B/c I need to get the fuck out of dodge!  And I need a new pair of bike gloves.  Not to mention shorts.  Not to mention beers, b/c we're one day closer to the Bears' preseason opener.

Current beer-scale: 8.1

That was a surprise

At the end of April I turned down a job offer from a non-profit in Evanston.  The salary wasn't in my range and as much as I'd like to go somewhere else, if it doesn't feel like a perfect fit I'm not going to say yes (unless the money is huge). 

There have been days since that I regretted that decision, so imagine my surprise when the hiring manager called me back out of the blue yesterday to touch base and see what a bigger number would mean in my decision making.  Again, not really a great sign that apparently no one wants to do the job at the salary they've set, but if I'm the top choice and they're coming back to me again it's a nice ego boost at least.

And now to buy some cheap whiskey and start enjoying my weekend.

Current beer-scale: an apple infused 7.8

Not quite as back on as I'd hoped

It's about 10 degrees today, when the average temps are closer to 39 this time of year.  Fuck.  And it's only getting colder?  Fan-fucking-tastic.  I couldn't find my facemask this morning so it was back to the train for me.

So at least I'm driving to tomorrow's interview in what's going to be below-zero temperatures.  Maybe I won't have to layer quite as much as I did for the Booth interview.

I've also found another LUC job to apply for, but I refuse to act quite as interested in this one.  After getting a token interview last time that reminded me a little too much of my last LPZ application I'm not getting excited about anything here.

I will get excited to have some drinks the next few evenings though.  Whiskey is amazing.

Current beer-scale: 8.1

Thank you but no, thank you.

Ugh.  I was not kidding about not feeling so great on Tuesday, b/c this week took a turn for the crappy, literally, as it went on.  But thankfully I think that is starting to pass.

I don't feel much better though, b/c after a long day and a conversation with the wife, I decided to withdraw my application to a job at Notre Dame that I was scheduled to interview for next week.  It was a tough choice--the job was interesting and I really liked the person I had my first round interview with.  Unfortunately, neither my wife or I like the idea of commuting to Chicago/South Bend from a point inbetween, and the salary for this ND job is not enough to support a soon to be two-child household, even in South Bend. 

Once I realized that, I didn't want to waste the search committee's time, especially after just being on one where an applicant wanted a 4-day work week so he wouldn't have to move and we basically laughed at him.  It's too bad; I was looking forward to having the chance to take a day trip to ND, even for a 4-hour interview.  But I think it's the right decision.

So it's back to the grindstone, looking for something that's a better fit.  It's out there.  We just have to find each other.

Current beer-scale: 6 or 7 whiskeys tonite will hopefully burn this out of my stomach. 

Trying something new

So after a guest presentation on social media in my class last night, today I signed up for twitter as an experiment in job searching. One follower later I had a new search board and one more letter to write than I might otherwise have had. It's a promising start but we'll see how it goes.

Current beer-scale: 8.1 but not feeling great.