So my interview went pretty well. The guy interviewing me pretty much told me that I would be one of the people offered a job, as he said that, looking over my résumé and just talking with me for a few minutes he could tell I’d be a perfect fit.
This was after I told him that I’m pretty much expecting another job offer. He said, “That’s too bad. For us, I mean.”
I told him that the deal wasn’t sealed, though, and to keep me in mind just in case things don’t work out.
When I got there I was greeted by someone from the recruiting company. All I’ll say is that apparently there are a lot of hot chicks working in the field of technical recruiting.
I let her know about the potential/likely job as well.
After that it was off to the comic shop to meet up with Scott. Stacy and the kids were along for the ride, as they’re down to one vehicle.
Due to Thanksgiving, the new comics won’t be in until tomorrow, so we all just went to eat at the Mexican restaurant. After dinner we got to see Santa riding around in a horse-drawn carriage.
(Some lady in the restaurant had spotted him going by the window and came over to let us know for the kids’ sake. The kids were thrilled. Vicki said, “I can’t believe I got to see him!”)
Yesterday morning I went over to the eye doctor to make an eye appointment and let them know that I’m interested in the Gentle Molding procedure, as I have the money for it in my Flex account and need to use it before the year’s end.
Longtime Threshold readers know that a few years back I attempted to date the office manager from the eye doctor’s Ashburn office. Things didn’t work out that well, and we really only went on one date. Though she was always friendly, and full of excuses for why she never returned my calls every time I saw her, after a while it became clear that there was a message I should be getting, and when you try too hard to date someone without getting any sort of cooperation they call that stalking, so I gave up trying.
In any case, while I was making my appointment with the girl at the desk, the office manager of the Leesburg office was on the phone, not paying any attention, until she heard me say my name, at which point her ears pricked up and she turned to look at me. After she got off the phone she said hello and was suspiciously friendly. I have to wonder if I’d ever been the topic of conversation between her and the Ashburn office manager (whom I refer to as Stone Face, given that she was the most inscrutable and unreadable human being I’d ever met and her face, which was still gorgeous, was as inexpressive as stone).
I know that my one real date with Stone Face was a point of contention between the two office managers, as Stone Face had blown off her own office holiday party to accompany me to the AOL party.
Given the spectacularly embarrassing manner in which, coasting on pure adrenaline, I had burst in and asked Stone Face out – in front of several patients and the eye doctor – I’m sure that, at the time, I was also fodder for inter-and intra-office gossip, so I can’t help but wonder if, after I left yesterday, the Leesburg office manager placed a call to the Ashburn office that started off with something like, “Guess who was just in the office?”
Of course, I don’t know if Stone Face still works in the Ashburn office, or is even still around. The last time I saw her, which was quite a long time ago, she was wearing a ring. While she was fairly friendly, in her stone-faced and expressionless manner, I wasn’t there long enough for us to actually have a conversation.
Anyway, I just thought that the reaction my name elicited from the Leesburg office manager was kind of funny and worth mentioning.
Showing posts with label interviewing. Show all posts
Showing posts with label interviewing. Show all posts
Wednesday, November 28, 2007
Thursday, November 15, 2007
NOC NOC! Who's There? Not Me, Apparently.
So today was the day of my job interview.
Yesterday, in comparing their relative awkwardness, I mentioned that I have a lot more experience with job interviews than I do with first dates, but on my way in to the interview it occurred to me that, oddly enough, it’s been longer since I’ve had a job interview than it has been since I’ve had a first date.
So technically I’m actually a little more rusty with the interview skills than with the dating, even though my interview skills are stronger.
Overall, I think the interview went well, but I found that it was very hard to get a read on the guy interviewing me. The recruiter, whom I met with after the interview for a sort of “debriefing,” wasn’t quite so cagey, and seemed genuinely impressed by my skills and experience, but I have no idea how much input she has in the decision-making process.
The job itself is one that I think I’m ideally suited for, but again, I can’t really gauge how well I did in getting that idea across.
If I did get the job, I probably wouldn’t start until January, which would mean that I would still get my severance package despite the fact that I’d be back in the employ of the same corporate entity, though that would mean that the severance wouldn’t really be “extra” money in the way it would be if I were to get a job with another company and start immediately.
One advantage, though, would be that I would be sort of “grandfathered in” as far as my benefits go, so I wouldn’t, for example, have to start all over again for things like accrual rate for vacation time. I would have to accrue the time again, but the rate at which I would do so would be the same as if I’d been working there for six years.
Evidently the employee-contribution for insurance is much lower than it is at AOL, which is also a plus.
Anyway, at this point it’s back to the “wait and see” posture.
To be on the safe side, I’ve dialed down the level of hope to 1.5%.
(For the record, when it comes to my – excuse me, I just burst into a fit of painful, choking laughter over the thought of using this term in reference to me – love life, the level of hope is much lower than 1%. It’s not even .1%, or .00001%. How many decimal points has Pi been calculated out to? However many that is, the one would go three decimal points beyond that.)
Yesterday I ended up spending a bit more at the comic shop than I’d planned on. For one thing there was a bigger than usual pile in my subscription box this week, as a lot of book shipped this week. Beyond that, there were a couple of “if you like x, you might be interested in y” books that the shop throws in subscription boxes, much like TiVo automatically records other TV shows using the shows that you actively record as a basis.
I also opted to buy a few bags and boards, and when I was being rung up I noticed that Alan Moore’s League of Extraordinary Gentlemen: The Black Dossier has finally been released, so I decided to grab that, too.
If worse comes to worst, the comic shop is hiring. Sure, it’s unlikely that I would make enough there to even make a mortgage payment, let alone pay my mortgage and my other bills, but at least I’d have ready access to comics, and probably some sort of employee discount.
(Just got a call from one of the recruiting companies letting me know that yet another prospective employer has decided that I’m not a match for one of the positions they have an “urgent” need to fill. Apparently spending five years working in a NOC doesn’t provide sufficient experience for an entry level NOC position. Not really sure how that works, particularly given that, depending on the specific duties, 50-90% of the requirements for a NOC job consist entirely of simply showing up. Oh well.)
Yesterday, in comparing their relative awkwardness, I mentioned that I have a lot more experience with job interviews than I do with first dates, but on my way in to the interview it occurred to me that, oddly enough, it’s been longer since I’ve had a job interview than it has been since I’ve had a first date.
So technically I’m actually a little more rusty with the interview skills than with the dating, even though my interview skills are stronger.
Overall, I think the interview went well, but I found that it was very hard to get a read on the guy interviewing me. The recruiter, whom I met with after the interview for a sort of “debriefing,” wasn’t quite so cagey, and seemed genuinely impressed by my skills and experience, but I have no idea how much input she has in the decision-making process.
The job itself is one that I think I’m ideally suited for, but again, I can’t really gauge how well I did in getting that idea across.
If I did get the job, I probably wouldn’t start until January, which would mean that I would still get my severance package despite the fact that I’d be back in the employ of the same corporate entity, though that would mean that the severance wouldn’t really be “extra” money in the way it would be if I were to get a job with another company and start immediately.
One advantage, though, would be that I would be sort of “grandfathered in” as far as my benefits go, so I wouldn’t, for example, have to start all over again for things like accrual rate for vacation time. I would have to accrue the time again, but the rate at which I would do so would be the same as if I’d been working there for six years.
Evidently the employee-contribution for insurance is much lower than it is at AOL, which is also a plus.
Anyway, at this point it’s back to the “wait and see” posture.
To be on the safe side, I’ve dialed down the level of hope to 1.5%.
(For the record, when it comes to my – excuse me, I just burst into a fit of painful, choking laughter over the thought of using this term in reference to me – love life, the level of hope is much lower than 1%. It’s not even .1%, or .00001%. How many decimal points has Pi been calculated out to? However many that is, the one would go three decimal points beyond that.)
Yesterday I ended up spending a bit more at the comic shop than I’d planned on. For one thing there was a bigger than usual pile in my subscription box this week, as a lot of book shipped this week. Beyond that, there were a couple of “if you like x, you might be interested in y” books that the shop throws in subscription boxes, much like TiVo automatically records other TV shows using the shows that you actively record as a basis.
I also opted to buy a few bags and boards, and when I was being rung up I noticed that Alan Moore’s League of Extraordinary Gentlemen: The Black Dossier has finally been released, so I decided to grab that, too.
If worse comes to worst, the comic shop is hiring. Sure, it’s unlikely that I would make enough there to even make a mortgage payment, let alone pay my mortgage and my other bills, but at least I’d have ready access to comics, and probably some sort of employee discount.
(Just got a call from one of the recruiting companies letting me know that yet another prospective employer has decided that I’m not a match for one of the positions they have an “urgent” need to fill. Apparently spending five years working in a NOC doesn’t provide sufficient experience for an entry level NOC position. Not really sure how that works, particularly given that, depending on the specific duties, 50-90% of the requirements for a NOC job consist entirely of simply showing up. Oh well.)
Wednesday, November 14, 2007
The 1% Gambit
Lots of people have various superstitious rituals that they make use of every day, assorted methods for attempting to bargain with the Universe (or Fate, or God, or whatever you want to call it) in an attempt to get the things that they want out of life.
Last week I mentioned my own attempt at striking a bargain with the Universe, and mentioned how it did not appear to work.
In light of that apparent failure, I fell back on a ritual that I have come to call The 1% Gambit, or, as it can alternatively be called, Giving Up Hope.
Or rather, Giving Up 99% Of Hope.
Last week when I didn’t hear back about the job I’m really interested in, I gave up hope, or at least gave up most of it, holding on to just 1% of it, The idea is to trick the Universe into thinking that I’ve given up so that it will decide that I’ve suffered enough, move on, and cut me a break.
Of course I know that you can’t actually bargain with, cajole, or trick the Universe into doing what you want it to do, but the fact remains that this morning I got a call and tomorrow I go in for an interview.
So now I’m at about 2% hope. We’ll have to wait and see whether or not the hope grows.
I really hate job interviews. A job interview is worse than a first date. After all, the whole “Do I move in for a kiss?” thing tends to be even more awkward.
Still, it does feel good to finally get called in for one, and honestly, I have a lot more experience with job interviews than I do with first dates.
One annoying thing about this one was that I had to fill out an application to bring with me. The application (and authorization for a background check) asked for all kinds of information that I don’t really have about previous jobs, like former supervisors. It’s been over six years since I worked for anyone other than AOL. Who knows if any of them are even still at the companies I worked for?
It also asked for my previous addresses for the past seven years. I don’t remember that kind of crap, or keep records. I had to leave one place out because the only thing I could remember was the name of the street.
Anyway, shouldn’t it be the job of the people doing the background check to find that information?
But whatever. I’m not too concerned, as I passed a background check to get into AOL six years ago, and this new job is with a company that’s a different branch on the same corporate tree.
After doing my laundry today – I had absolutely no clean socks or underwear – I headed out into the world briefly to get a haircut, buy some batteries for my new garbage can (which will now freak me out every time I move past it to get something from the cabinet near it and the lid automatically opens), and stop at the comic shop. Scott didn’t join me today, as he’s got the 1st and 15th Blues.
(Because he’s on salary, he gets paid semi-monthly, on the 1st and the 15th, so he’s short on his comic book budget this week.)
Apparently while frolicking in the “enchanted forest,” the squirrel told one of its woodland friends about what a great attic I have, and so it decided to venture forth and see it for itself.
This morning I’d looked out my kitchen window and had a “No fucking way” moment as I saw a squirrel running along my fence. For a moment I thought I was seeing a ghost, though that was, of course, impossible, as it’s not like I killed the squirrel or anything. *Cough*
Later in the day I heard the pitter-patter of squirrel feet up in the attic, and so I’ve set the trap once more.
Without a ladder I can’t really find the spot where the squirrels are getting in, and I can’t spare the money to hire someone to check for me, so I guess I’m going to have to keep relying on the trap.
In addition to being called about the interview, I received some other good news in the form of a letter informing me that I’ve won $70,000! All I have to do is send a check for $2,890 to cover “administrative costs.”
“But Jon,” you say, “do you have that kind of money to spare right now?”
Sadly, no, I don’t, but luckily the people awarding the prize were kind enough to send me a check for $2,990 which I can use to pay those costs! Hurray!
Obviously I realize this is a scam, but I have to say that it was kind of novel to receive a scam letter via snail-mail rather than a scam e-mail.
I’m sort of unclear about how the included check aspect works. Do they wait for me to deposit it and then get my account number from the returned check somehow? Are they just willing to make a risky investment in the hopes that it’ll pay off? What would happen if I were to bring the check to a check cashing place?
The check itself was issued from a Teacher’s Credit Union in Colorado (though the company awarding the “prize” is in Canada).
I couldn’t find much information online about the specifics of the scam.
Anyone out there have any details on exactly how this scam works? I mean, I can see the obvious way of running it: get me to give them all of my account information so that they can “deposit my prize,” but what purpose does the check serve?
Just curious. Obviously I’m not going to try cashing it or depositing it (depositing it anywhere other than my shredder, that is).
Last week I mentioned my own attempt at striking a bargain with the Universe, and mentioned how it did not appear to work.
In light of that apparent failure, I fell back on a ritual that I have come to call The 1% Gambit, or, as it can alternatively be called, Giving Up Hope.
Or rather, Giving Up 99% Of Hope.
Last week when I didn’t hear back about the job I’m really interested in, I gave up hope, or at least gave up most of it, holding on to just 1% of it, The idea is to trick the Universe into thinking that I’ve given up so that it will decide that I’ve suffered enough, move on, and cut me a break.
Of course I know that you can’t actually bargain with, cajole, or trick the Universe into doing what you want it to do, but the fact remains that this morning I got a call and tomorrow I go in for an interview.
So now I’m at about 2% hope. We’ll have to wait and see whether or not the hope grows.
I really hate job interviews. A job interview is worse than a first date. After all, the whole “Do I move in for a kiss?” thing tends to be even more awkward.
Still, it does feel good to finally get called in for one, and honestly, I have a lot more experience with job interviews than I do with first dates.
One annoying thing about this one was that I had to fill out an application to bring with me. The application (and authorization for a background check) asked for all kinds of information that I don’t really have about previous jobs, like former supervisors. It’s been over six years since I worked for anyone other than AOL. Who knows if any of them are even still at the companies I worked for?
It also asked for my previous addresses for the past seven years. I don’t remember that kind of crap, or keep records. I had to leave one place out because the only thing I could remember was the name of the street.
Anyway, shouldn’t it be the job of the people doing the background check to find that information?
But whatever. I’m not too concerned, as I passed a background check to get into AOL six years ago, and this new job is with a company that’s a different branch on the same corporate tree.
After doing my laundry today – I had absolutely no clean socks or underwear – I headed out into the world briefly to get a haircut, buy some batteries for my new garbage can (which will now freak me out every time I move past it to get something from the cabinet near it and the lid automatically opens), and stop at the comic shop. Scott didn’t join me today, as he’s got the 1st and 15th Blues.
(Because he’s on salary, he gets paid semi-monthly, on the 1st and the 15th, so he’s short on his comic book budget this week.)
Apparently while frolicking in the “enchanted forest,” the squirrel told one of its woodland friends about what a great attic I have, and so it decided to venture forth and see it for itself.
This morning I’d looked out my kitchen window and had a “No fucking way” moment as I saw a squirrel running along my fence. For a moment I thought I was seeing a ghost, though that was, of course, impossible, as it’s not like I killed the squirrel or anything. *Cough*
Later in the day I heard the pitter-patter of squirrel feet up in the attic, and so I’ve set the trap once more.
Without a ladder I can’t really find the spot where the squirrels are getting in, and I can’t spare the money to hire someone to check for me, so I guess I’m going to have to keep relying on the trap.
In addition to being called about the interview, I received some other good news in the form of a letter informing me that I’ve won $70,000! All I have to do is send a check for $2,890 to cover “administrative costs.”
“But Jon,” you say, “do you have that kind of money to spare right now?”
Sadly, no, I don’t, but luckily the people awarding the prize were kind enough to send me a check for $2,990 which I can use to pay those costs! Hurray!
Obviously I realize this is a scam, but I have to say that it was kind of novel to receive a scam letter via snail-mail rather than a scam e-mail.
I’m sort of unclear about how the included check aspect works. Do they wait for me to deposit it and then get my account number from the returned check somehow? Are they just willing to make a risky investment in the hopes that it’ll pay off? What would happen if I were to bring the check to a check cashing place?
The check itself was issued from a Teacher’s Credit Union in Colorado (though the company awarding the “prize” is in Canada).
I couldn’t find much information online about the specifics of the scam.
Anyone out there have any details on exactly how this scam works? I mean, I can see the obvious way of running it: get me to give them all of my account information so that they can “deposit my prize,” but what purpose does the check serve?
Just curious. Obviously I’m not going to try cashing it or depositing it (depositing it anywhere other than my shredder, that is).
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