Tomorrow I start my new job. I haven't had a permanent job since 1999 and I must admit that I'm just a tad nervous. I just wanted to capture the last moment of unemployment.
It's late and I need to be on my best game in the morning. I start my job in 9 hours and 44 minutes.
Wish me luck!!!
Monday, January 30, 2006
Wednesday, January 25, 2006
Hi ho, hi ho, it's off to work I go
Bless me Father for I have sinned. It has been 3 weeks since my last blog. But boy, do I have some news to tell you!
As you know, I've been madly looking for work. I've updated my resume and tweaked it so many times; I've addressed countless selection criteria; I've phoned and emailed numerous job agencies and I've attended job interviews and agency information sessions...not to mention the number of skills assessments I've undergone. And for what? Stress. Heartache. Disappointment.
Upon reading earlier entries in this blog, I was contacted by two good friends regarding my jobless plight. The first contact was regarding a job that was sitting vacant which I might have been interested in. As it turned out, my skills were a little lacking in that area and I didn't want to take on a role which I wasn't suited to or capable of carrying out. I would only upset myself and reflect badly on my friend who has suggested me. My sincerest thanks to her for thinking of me though. ;-)
The second contact was from a very good friend who just up and offered me her job!!! What an offer! She was going away and needed someone to be her for a few months and that's where I was to come in. All was set for me to start next Monday barring other eventualities. Here's where the story gets good...
Late last year I saw an advertisement for a job which would suit me down to the ground. The size of the organisation was just what I wanted; the subject matter was interesting and diverse and the position itself looked pretty meaty and fun. The best part of the job ad was that they didn't have a selection criteria to be addressed...simply apply for the job the old fashioned way - a job application letter. (I miss those).
Anyway, I applied for the job and was called for interview. That was a thrill in itself. I was so chuffed that I had scored an interview that anything else was just icing on the cake. So when the day came, I toddled off to the interview. When I got there, I was given a list of questions which they were likely to ask. I read through the list and felt pretty darn confident in my abilities. There was nothing I couldn't handle. Then they called me in. I felt cool, calm and in control. I answered the questions fully and confidently and it all went rather well. There was nothing that I would have done differently. It came to an end and off I went.
As each day after the interview passed, I felt less confident and wondered why they hadn't called. But my concern was misplaced. I received a call asking me to come in to meet the staff and tour the library. I really enjoyed my visit there. The library was really nice and the staff were just lovely. They said the race for the job was between me and one other (a person I knew, actually). So then the panic set in again. When would they call? Would they pick me?
Well I'll save you the suspense... THEY PICKED ME!!!
I start on Tuesday. I'll keep you posted. Oh boy am I happy!
It would be very ungracious of me not to thank all the people who have had faith in me and supported me through the bad times I've had this past year. I especially want to thank my blog reading friends who came to my rescue with job offers - you gave me the courage to believe in myself when I had come to believe that I was useless.
I also want to thank God. I prayed I would get this job. From the moment I saw the job ad, this is what I wanted. He has answered my prayers and I am happy again for the first time in quite a while.
Thanks.
As you know, I've been madly looking for work. I've updated my resume and tweaked it so many times; I've addressed countless selection criteria; I've phoned and emailed numerous job agencies and I've attended job interviews and agency information sessions...not to mention the number of skills assessments I've undergone. And for what? Stress. Heartache. Disappointment.
Upon reading earlier entries in this blog, I was contacted by two good friends regarding my jobless plight. The first contact was regarding a job that was sitting vacant which I might have been interested in. As it turned out, my skills were a little lacking in that area and I didn't want to take on a role which I wasn't suited to or capable of carrying out. I would only upset myself and reflect badly on my friend who has suggested me. My sincerest thanks to her for thinking of me though. ;-)
The second contact was from a very good friend who just up and offered me her job!!! What an offer! She was going away and needed someone to be her for a few months and that's where I was to come in. All was set for me to start next Monday barring other eventualities. Here's where the story gets good...
Late last year I saw an advertisement for a job which would suit me down to the ground. The size of the organisation was just what I wanted; the subject matter was interesting and diverse and the position itself looked pretty meaty and fun. The best part of the job ad was that they didn't have a selection criteria to be addressed...simply apply for the job the old fashioned way - a job application letter. (I miss those).
Anyway, I applied for the job and was called for interview. That was a thrill in itself. I was so chuffed that I had scored an interview that anything else was just icing on the cake. So when the day came, I toddled off to the interview. When I got there, I was given a list of questions which they were likely to ask. I read through the list and felt pretty darn confident in my abilities. There was nothing I couldn't handle. Then they called me in. I felt cool, calm and in control. I answered the questions fully and confidently and it all went rather well. There was nothing that I would have done differently. It came to an end and off I went.
As each day after the interview passed, I felt less confident and wondered why they hadn't called. But my concern was misplaced. I received a call asking me to come in to meet the staff and tour the library. I really enjoyed my visit there. The library was really nice and the staff were just lovely. They said the race for the job was between me and one other (a person I knew, actually). So then the panic set in again. When would they call? Would they pick me?
Well I'll save you the suspense... THEY PICKED ME!!!
I start on Tuesday. I'll keep you posted. Oh boy am I happy!
It would be very ungracious of me not to thank all the people who have had faith in me and supported me through the bad times I've had this past year. I especially want to thank my blog reading friends who came to my rescue with job offers - you gave me the courage to believe in myself when I had come to believe that I was useless.
I also want to thank God. I prayed I would get this job. From the moment I saw the job ad, this is what I wanted. He has answered my prayers and I am happy again for the first time in quite a while.
Thanks.
Friday, January 06, 2006
A New Year begins with sadness
2006 is underway and I am hoping the first week is not an indication of things to come for this year.
My work contract ended just prior to Christmas and now I am unemployed. I went to Centrelink yesterday to see if I was eligible for any assistance. It seems I am on my own. Well, not exactly...I am entitled to register as a jobseeker in the JobNetwork but that just means I can apply for crappy jobs that I am way too overqualified for. This morning I went through the interview process with my chosen JobNetwork agency and the guy I was interviewed by agreed with my summation of the service.
Nevertheless, I will press on and apply for any and everything I can. With 2 mortgages, Steve and I need both of us to be working.
Steve returned to work yesterday after the holiday but was off work again today due to illness. I also felt like my virus was coming back. All of that paled into insignificance when my mother rang me this evening to tell me that my grandmother had just died. She was 92 years of age and had become quite frail and senile so I suppose her passing is a mercy but I still feel saddened by it. I didn't really know my grandmother or any of my mother's family due to the restrictive nature of their religion. They are Exclusive Brethren. I won't go into detail other than to say they stole my mother's family from me and I don't know my own relations. I feel cheated by them and I cannot seem to shake my resentment. I have been trying to come to terms with this my whole life but to no avail.
Anyway, that's all for now. I will mourn my grandmother and pray for her soul's rest. Bye Grandma.
My work contract ended just prior to Christmas and now I am unemployed. I went to Centrelink yesterday to see if I was eligible for any assistance. It seems I am on my own. Well, not exactly...I am entitled to register as a jobseeker in the JobNetwork but that just means I can apply for crappy jobs that I am way too overqualified for. This morning I went through the interview process with my chosen JobNetwork agency and the guy I was interviewed by agreed with my summation of the service.
Nevertheless, I will press on and apply for any and everything I can. With 2 mortgages, Steve and I need both of us to be working.
Steve returned to work yesterday after the holiday but was off work again today due to illness. I also felt like my virus was coming back. All of that paled into insignificance when my mother rang me this evening to tell me that my grandmother had just died. She was 92 years of age and had become quite frail and senile so I suppose her passing is a mercy but I still feel saddened by it. I didn't really know my grandmother or any of my mother's family due to the restrictive nature of their religion. They are Exclusive Brethren. I won't go into detail other than to say they stole my mother's family from me and I don't know my own relations. I feel cheated by them and I cannot seem to shake my resentment. I have been trying to come to terms with this my whole life but to no avail.
Anyway, that's all for now. I will mourn my grandmother and pray for her soul's rest. Bye Grandma.
Monday, January 02, 2006
Happy Christmas and New Year!
To all of my friends, family and complete strangers to stumble onto my little blog, I hope you all had a lovely Christmas and I wish you all a very Happy 2006.
Christmas for me began with Midnight Mass. I played the organ at my parish church to a congregation of about 1000. This was an extra special Mass for me as it was the first time my non-religious boyfriend has ever attended Mass. I hit a few bad notes but I did mostly ok and received a lot of compliments after Mass. I also did a vocal counterpoint solo which went down really well.
Christmas Day began with a rush as Steve and I had to do the family runaround but it wasn't so bad. First we picked up my Mum, drove to my brother Conor's house and spent some of the morning with him and his family. Then back to Mum's for Chrismas lunch which was a traditional hot meal of turkey, ham and load of vegetables, followed by Mum's famous sherry trifle.
Then Steve and I went home for a little rest and to wrap the remainder of the presents. Then off again to his Dad's for dinner. Dinner there was more Aussie in the sense that it was still turkey and ham but this time it was cold cuts served with salad.
We left his Dad's place to go home and as we drove down our street we saw the yellow flashing lights of an Energex truck. Our entire neighbourhood was in darkness. The storm which was going while we had dinner at Steve's dad's place was bringing down trees and branches on the power lines in our street. We had about 5 hours of blackout.
All in all, I enjoyed the day inspite of the rushing, the eating, the heat and the blackout!
The next thing on the agenda was our New Year's Eve Party. Steve and I were hosting our first NYE party so the pressure was on to get the house ship-shape and party ready. Unfortunately, I had just come down with a nasty virus and couldn't do as much as I needed to. So Super-Mum came to the rescue and helped Steve get the place ready. (I did put in a few days' effort before I succumbed to the lurgy though.) Our friends came over for a BBQ dinner under the house after which we took a stroll to the beach...after all, we do live on a peninsula! We took in the night view of Brisbane and then walked home to catch the fireworks on tv and toast the New Year. Then it was apple pie and ice-cream for everyone!
My cough got worse that night but I'm on the mend now. Fair dues to Steve who has nursed me back to health only to catch the damn virus off me. Now it's my turn to play nurse.
That's it for now. Happy New Year everybody!
Christmas for me began with Midnight Mass. I played the organ at my parish church to a congregation of about 1000. This was an extra special Mass for me as it was the first time my non-religious boyfriend has ever attended Mass. I hit a few bad notes but I did mostly ok and received a lot of compliments after Mass. I also did a vocal counterpoint solo which went down really well.
Christmas Day began with a rush as Steve and I had to do the family runaround but it wasn't so bad. First we picked up my Mum, drove to my brother Conor's house and spent some of the morning with him and his family. Then back to Mum's for Chrismas lunch which was a traditional hot meal of turkey, ham and load of vegetables, followed by Mum's famous sherry trifle.
Then Steve and I went home for a little rest and to wrap the remainder of the presents. Then off again to his Dad's for dinner. Dinner there was more Aussie in the sense that it was still turkey and ham but this time it was cold cuts served with salad.
We left his Dad's place to go home and as we drove down our street we saw the yellow flashing lights of an Energex truck. Our entire neighbourhood was in darkness. The storm which was going while we had dinner at Steve's dad's place was bringing down trees and branches on the power lines in our street. We had about 5 hours of blackout.
All in all, I enjoyed the day inspite of the rushing, the eating, the heat and the blackout!
The next thing on the agenda was our New Year's Eve Party. Steve and I were hosting our first NYE party so the pressure was on to get the house ship-shape and party ready. Unfortunately, I had just come down with a nasty virus and couldn't do as much as I needed to. So Super-Mum came to the rescue and helped Steve get the place ready. (I did put in a few days' effort before I succumbed to the lurgy though.) Our friends came over for a BBQ dinner under the house after which we took a stroll to the beach...after all, we do live on a peninsula! We took in the night view of Brisbane and then walked home to catch the fireworks on tv and toast the New Year. Then it was apple pie and ice-cream for everyone!
My cough got worse that night but I'm on the mend now. Fair dues to Steve who has nursed me back to health only to catch the damn virus off me. Now it's my turn to play nurse.
That's it for now. Happy New Year everybody!
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