Happy Hour at Chez Animal Hair Can I get you a drink?

Some of you know that a few weeks ago I skipped out of a job interview. The reason was that I felt uneasy about going. Here’s the scoop.

I had two phone interviews with a very nice woman named Amanda. The interviews went well. She kept asking if I’d be OK with a very small company. Very small. She made this clear. I told her yes, a small company was perfect. She told me that I would be reporting to the CEO, Director of Operations and Construction Manager. I got the impression that these were the only people IN the company. That’s cool. She explained that she is not even really part of the company. She is from a hiring/HR agency that was hired by this company to find an Admin.

So in preparation, in the event I get an in-person interview, I thought I should learn more about the company so I Googled them. Nothing. I looked them up on the Yellow Pages online. Nothing.

So no website, no entry in the phone book. Hmmmm… So I went back to the document I kept about this job (I have a Word doc about all jobs for which I have applied and I have had contact with someone about it). I noticed that I had found this job on Craigslist. So I was even more suspicious now. I emailed Amanda asking her where they are, if they have a website, can she tell me anything else about the company. She did not respond.

A few days later I got a call from Amanda saying that they want to meet me. She said she’d send an email with the details. She did, they wanted to meet me Thursday at 3pm and their location. In her words, the company “offices out of one of their former *name removed* Mini Self Storage facilities.” Pardon me? So I am supposed to go to a storage facility for an interview? Are you kidding me? I’m a regular watcher of Dexter, CSI, Bones, and Criminal Minds, there’s no way in hell I am going to a storage shed for a job interview.

So I did a drive by the day before. It turns out there actually is an office there. If you look really closely. It’s tiny and the name on the door, while similar to the company name I was given, was not exactly the same. All I could see was a large window from floor to ceiling. In the room was a desk and there were piles of papers stacked on the floor about 3 feet high. But at least I felt a little better about it seeing as it was a real place…sort of. But I still emailed all my friends telling them where I’d be at 3pm on that day.

My dad lives right near there so I thought I’d call him and see if he wanted to meet me there after the interview so that I could say that I have someone waiting for me in case they were planning on chopping me up into little pieces. My dad was out of town. So was Greg. So I was really all alone. I considered canceling, but chalked it up to my overactive imagination.

So the day of the interview I got all ready. As I was leaving the house I said to Dudley, ‘OK I’m leaving I’ll be back in a little while.’ But a little voice in my head said ‘maybe‘. I started to think what might happen if I did end up in little pieces in the Mississippi River. The dogs would be alone in the house for days until Greg got home. I shook it off and got in the car.

I got about a block from my house and started getting a panic attack. I pulled over and tried to talk myself out of it, saying I was being an alarmist. Then I remembered a friend of mine. She moved to New York City for a job. She was visiting a friend in her apartment building and when she stepped into the elevator a man approached and asked her to hold the door. She felt really uneasy about him but didn’t want to insult him (and thought she was being silly) so she let him in. Well, the doors closed and he attacked her. She was in the hospital for a long time and it still recovering mentally (this happened about 3 years ago).

So I thought, if I go, there is a chance of something bad happening. The chance might be small, but there’s a chance. If I don’t go, there is NO chance of something bad happening. So I called the woman and canceled. I said something came up. It did, my panic attack. I apologized profusely.

I drove home very relieved and emailed Amanda telling her that I had to cancel and I was really sorry. I said I’d reschedule. She wanted to reschedule the next day. Greg was still gone and so was my dad. I asked if I could do it Monday. I didn’t hear back until Tuesday and she said that they chose other applicants.

I’m not surprised and I’m not sad I made the decision. Because a few days ago I heard this story:

[Craigslist Killing]

So all of you who thought I was being crazy, pppththththththppp (or however you spell that). While it doesn’t look like anyone else who went to those interviews was murdered, you never know.

I didn’t get the job, but that just means it was not the right job for me. Be careful out there. It’s better to err on the side of caution

Posted under Random Thoughts

I slept about 3 hours last night. Not sure why other than the usual Solving All the World’s Problems. So I am too tired to try and write something clever.

I saw this photo online…It belongs to 4durt on Flickr, [take a look] at the other stuff. I know it’s photoshopped, but still cute.

Ok I know you find stuff like this on Craigslist but I didn’t know eBay:
[check it]
It’s some guy selling his ex’s laptop and he tells the whole sordid story.

I’ll update this post later if I find anything else good.

Posted under Random Thoughts

I hope all of you and everyone you know is OK.

Posted under Random Thoughts

OK I am officially OVER this whole job searching thing. I had a really good interview last week. I really thought I had this job. The HR person even went over all the benefits, explaining to me when I’d qualify for each one and stuff. The interview with the whole marketing department went really well, they said they liked my answers, I made them laugh, even though one of them did ask me a question that is illegal to ask in an interview (about my personal hobbies and stuff, apparently that’s not ok but I didn’t mind).

I mentioned my website (not this one) and gave all of them my card. So the only thing I can think of is that they visited that other site and decided that they don’t want someone with that much of an internet presence working for them. Because honestly, that job was perfect for me, and me for it. I’m really sad about it.

I hope I am wrong about the site thing, because I cannot do anything about it. I could take my name off of it, but my name is on other people’s sites in relation to it so I could never really wipe it all. I never thought it would be a problem. It’s not like it’s a porn site or anything!

I went to a meeting last night for an organization that I think I want to join. It’s music related and the networking could be really good. The only thing is, that to be on the board you have to volunteer at shows and of course, those all take place at night. If I wanted a night job I’d have gone to culinary or realtor school.

Tonight I think I am going to the (evil) Mall of America to see my favorite blogger, Crazy Aunt Purl, speak about her new book (which is great by the way).

Anyone know of any company that is hiring?

Posted under Random Thoughts

I am really steamed about this.

I’m sure everyone knows by now about Ellen DeGeneres and the dog problem. If not here’s a recap:

She adopted a little doggie, Iggy, from a rescue group. She had it for a
month or so. She took it to obedience class, the vet, got all its
shots, etc. Spent like $3000 on it. But the dog didn’t get along with
her cats.

So she gave it to her hairdresser on the show. This woman
has a little girl that had already loved that dog. When the rescue
group called to see how things were going Ellen told them that the dog
now lived with her hairdresser. They threatened her with lawyers and
media coverage* and said she has to give the dog back. Ellen refused
and they sent the POLICE to the house and physically removed the dog
while the little girl cried her eyes out.

The thing is, apparently, there is a rule that when you get a rescue
dog you sign something that says if you can’t take care of it, you bring it back. Ellen didn’t know or maybe remember that. So she gave it to her friend who she sees everyday.

It’s really blown up now because now the rescue woman is getting death
threats and stuff from Ellen “fans”. Ellen has already gone on TV
saying to cut that shit out. She just wants those little girls to have
their dog back, but the rescue woman won’t even consider it.

I understand that they want the dog to have the best home, but if the
original owner passed all the tests that they have to in order to get
he dog in the first place, shouldn’t that person be trusted to give
the dog to a good home should it not work out? Do they really think
that Ellen is going to give that dog to someone that can’t take care
of it?

The owner of the group was quoted as saying, (and this is a direct quote) “If Ellen wants to place dogs and decide what’s a good home, then she should start her own rescue group.”

I’ve now learned more about this “rescue” place…they retain ownership of the dog. Apparently, when you adopt a dog and PAY FOR IT, it is still not yours. They still own the dog, you are just paying to take care of it.

This makes more sense as to why they feel they can swoop in and steal it back from a loving family, but it’s still bullshit. So at least if nothing else, this fiasco has educated people to never sign something saying that the rescue place retains ownership. Of course this will ultimately be bad for homeless dogs because now people will avoid rescue groups like the plague. I say, if you want a dog, or cat, or rabbit or hamster, get it from the ANIMAL HUMANE SOCIETY!

Also I think it’s just a way for the rescue group to get paid twice
for that same dog. The dog is now placed with someone else and you
know that new family had to pay for him too.

I feel bad for that little doggie who has been in 4
homes in the past few months. They are obviously not putting the dogs best interests first and for that, they should have all their dogs taken from them and be put out of business.

*for those who say Ellen should have kept this private and not talked about it on her show, I remind you, that the Mutt agency threatened to do the very same thing first.

But of course, that’s just my opinion…what do you think?

Posted under Random Thoughts, pets

Let’s see, what’s new…

Greg and I both have nasty colds. Mine started on Friday and Friday night I spent the entire night sitting up in bed coughing and sneezing. Now mine is at the stage where I am coughing uncontrollably and am super sneezy. Last night my chest was making rattling noises that woke me up.

I was supposed to have a job interview today but I rescheduled for Wednesday. I sure hope I am done with this nastiness by then.

I had a phone interview today and I probably should have rescheduled that too. It was for a job I really want and I probably blew it. I was so tired and woozy I don’t even really remember it, but I do remember thinking that I was fucking it up. She was really tough! She kept asking for examples and further explanations for every answer I gave her. I ended up saying things I never would have said, but she kept pushing. Mostly about why I left my last job. She asked about my worst manager and why the person was the worst. I know you’re not supposed to say bad things about former employers, but how are you supposed to answer that?!

I got the feeling that she didn’t think I was right for the job and was making me prove to her I was. She seemed to fight me all the way. Saying things like ‘wouldn’t you be more content doing a web design job?’ well, sure, but I don’t have the education so even though I know how to do it, no one will hire me. I didn’t say that of course, but still. I mean, what I really want? To be sitting on the beach sipping a daiquiri and counting my money.

I hate this.

But the good news is, even though the woman called me almost a half hour late, I still got off the phone in time to order my Barry Manilow tickets. Yes, you read right. I adore him and I am not afraid to admit it. I got pretty good seats considering I couldn’t afford the three highest priced tickets. The highest were $248, can you believe that? It’s still costing $184 for two. Sheesh. I don’t think I’d pay that for anyone else. And I certainly wouldn’t have paid it if it had been the Target Center, but it’s Excel which has good sound. The show isn’t until January, but I am very excited.

Ok back to laying on the couch blowing my nose and feeling sorry for myself.

Posted under Random Thoughts

Yesterday was my birthday and even though Greg was out of town, I had a really nice day.

I went out to breakfast with my mom, dad and Jackie. We went to Maria’s. I’m still not completely convinced of the food. It’s OK but nothing great. I went there once before and tried a bite of the corn pancake with cheese. It was so good that I tried to make it at home. It was such a disaster that even thinking of the corn cake now makes my stomach roll. They overcook their eggs and it’s just not great. Give me Sunny Side Up any day!!

But we still had a nice time. My dad did his usual Show and Tell hour. It seems every time we get together he has brings with him a bag of pictures, newspaper articles or some other visual aids and we listen to his stories and he shows stuff. It’s kind of humorous. I guess you can’t take the show out of the showman.

The last few times it’s been some really old photos he found. These are actually really fun to look at even if I don’t know everyone in them. I’ve posted some here and will do so again soon.

Then I came home and relaxed until I had a phone interview at 2:30pm. The woman actually called me a half an hour early. I wonder if that was just to catch me by surprise, see how I’d answer? Anyway, I think it went pretty well. Judging by the questions, I don’t know if this is the job for me, but we’ll see what happens.

Then another company that I had applied at three times finally called and asked to schedule a phone interview on Monday. I also have another interview on Monday too; this one is in person. So all in all it was a good day on the Looking For Work front!

Then in the evening I went to happy hour with Jody. A few of The Regulars were there so that was cool. I got a bunch of free drinks. That’s always nice.

Greg will be home in a few hours. So we’ll probably go out tonight again since it’s the only time we will be able to for another week and a half.

Posted under Random Thoughts