I have a job!!!

So, I have been imagining my ideal situation since before my last day at Hydra-Power. I've been imagining it since I had to start looking for a new job. I was hoping for the big one. You know, that one company that you would leave your job for. If it fell into your lap... Well, for me, once I found that Precision Castparts Corp was hiring, THAT was it. Of course I kept looking - that's a requirement. I applied at all sorts of other places. Good places. I can only chalk it up to good timing that all of the really good IT jobs came up while I happened to be unemployed. How does that happen? I have no idea. Divine intervention? Coincidence? Market requirement? Industry growth? Whatever it is, I'm not going to question it. As they say " It is what it is." For me, I'm just glad that the stars aligned with whatever they align with and I ended up here.

This could have been a horrible, drawn-out unemployment, but now I can say it wasn't. It isn't. It was more of a summer vacation. I'm grateful for that. Regardless to whom the credit goes. I'll give it! And take it!

I send thanks to all of my friends and family who have given me nothing but positive vibes and support. It has not gone unnoticed! And, as you all know, I am here for you as well. For me to be in this receiving position felt unnatural and strange, but you all made me feel worthy and comfortable. And I thank you for that.

Now, to get on with my life...

Lincoln City in September

Lincoln City in September is a crapshoot. We got really lucky. Beautiful weather and a really cool full moon setting over the horizon in the morning. I have never seen that and I was in awe when I did.

 @5:43 AM

 

@ 6:23 AM

Oh, and Forest got his drink on during this vaca as well! Technically, he's like 63 years old in people years so I let him do whatever he wants!

 

Katie and Ricky - I had a great time with you guys! Thanks for making this a fun time! I love you guys!



The job search

The last time I looked for a job the Internet existed, but PC's were barely prevalent in schools and businesses. It was nothing like today where just about everyone has a computer in their home and we have Internet access on our phones nearly anywhere. It used to be you could walk into a business, fill out an application form (by hand, mind you) and then you might get to talk to someone that day or they call you back in later. And you search the newspaper want ads for anything remotely close to what you're looking for. Or if you had the funds, you could hire a headhunter.

Nowadays, it's all online. Companies don't even want you to call them. You need to submit your resume and cover letter via email or upload it to their website. It goes through a word-tracking program which looks for the keywords applicable to the specific position and then, passing that, it goes to the HR department. I understand the efficiency available in this format, but wow, there's no human factor left. It's kind of saddening.

So, any given job posting is open for 2-4 weeks, you apply and then wait until the job posting is closed and then they decide who to contact. If you're not one of them, you don't hear a thing.

This is a very interesting process. Honestly, I like the learning experience of things like this. It's certainly enlightening. I'm trying to go-with-the-flow on it and that alone is teaching me more patience than I knew I had. I'm extremely grateful for this endeavor, even though I certainly would not have chosen to take this path without coercion. It's so easy for a person to get comfortable in any given aspect of their life, including their job. I knew there were issues with my job and with the company but it is so much easier to stick with it. Looking for a new job is a lot of work. But then, any endeavor worth its salt is worth the work. I knew that before. Now, I've lived it, and I can say it's absolutely true.

I'll find that perfect job for me.

Only in Portland

Another morning walk story -

We're on our morning walk - me and the pups - and there's an area of the NE neighborhood that's not so much an alley as it is a walkway to the park. It spans about 4 blocks. We're in this area and up ahead I see a guy on a bike next to a large hedge, but he's not on his bike. He's dressed like 90% of the bicyclists you see in Portland. Well, basically he looks like Lance Armstrong. I can't tell what he's doing but he's off the bike and messing with something - I assume he's texting on his cell phone. I get within 6 feet of him and he takes off on the bike away from us. Two seconds later I'm in a plume of pot smoke. I walk through it thinking "Really, dude?" and then start laughing. Duuuuude! Eeere! I envision a person passing a joint to the next in the circle... We pick up the pace to a jog for me, a trot for Forest and a lumbering, pulling-of-the-leash for Tiger. Our ETA for the dog park is about 6:30am on this morning. Wow, that guy is hardcore! All the bike riding must stave off the Cheetos-induced calories.

Seriously - Only in Portland.

When you need a swim

This weekend, our morning walk took us downtown along the Waterfront and then along the Eastbank Esplanade. It was a beautiful morning. As we're walking, I look down at the river and see a small, empty dock. I wonder to myself whether people have to pay to dock there - it's so small, it looks as if it could only fit a few boats. As I'm contemplating the possibility of the dock's users, I notice a man standing on it, facing the river. Is he fishing? No, there's no telltale paraphernalia of that. He almost looked like one of the walkers or runners that occupy this route. Lost in contemplation, I witness the man strip off his t-shirt. Then his shorts. His tighty-whities came off next and then he dove into the Willamette River with nothing more than what God gave him. What??? Did I really just see that? I stopped walking and saw the man come up from his dive and bob around in the water. I just turned and kept walking, laughing to myself. Who does that? In a lake, sure. In the Columbia, maybe. But in the Willamette? That certainly wouldn't be my first choice, but I guess if you need to cool off while running, or if you're homeless and need to bathe, it's there for the taking. Or maybe he was a nudist.

Yikes.


No, I didn't take a picture of him, but I did take some pictures on that walk...