"Apply Now" (If You Can)

On Monday I found a job I was very interested in on an employment web site. In order to apply for the position, you had to go to the employer's corporate web site. I had applied for another position at this company a year or so ago and so I already had a user name and password to access their site.

My usual password did not work so I hit the button which would send a temporary password to my email. I then got an error message indicating there was . . . well . . an error . . . and I should contact the System Administrator. I tried this 3 more times with the same result and then decided to come back to it later.

I logged onto my email a little while later and I had 4 emails with 4 different temporary passwords. Oops! So I then tried all of those 4 passwords and I still was unable to log on. I waited until later that night and tried again and had no luck.

I sent an email to their Technical Support team asking for help. The next morning I got an email from a real-live person (a real oddity in the job search process) who offered to assist me if I would call her. I did and after a few attempts, we were able to get me logged on. I thanked her and we hung up.

I continued on the corporate web site and searched for the job I had found on the employment web site. The job was not there. I went back to the employment web site, found the job and clicked on "Apply Now" and it took me to the corporate web site and the job posting. Once again, I clicked on "Apply" and now I received a message saying this job was no longer available. According to the employment site posting, it had just been posted 2 days ago!

So frustrating. Once again, a lot of work with no positive result. The job search is not easy, it is not fun. It's a full time job that I can't quit.

It Has Come To This

I am doing the job search and saw the following in a posting:

"Exciting opportunity for the right individual."

What I thought it said was:

"Exciting opportunity for a right-handed individual."

Professional help? Anyone?

A Revelation

It is 90 degrees here in Eastern Pennsylvania today. I'm beginning to think this whole job search endeavor has been for naught as it seems the world just might be coming to an end. For it to be this temperature the first week of April is really an anomaly.

They say you should live each day as if it's your last and I think about these last few years and the time and energy I've put into not only the actual act of searching for a job but the hours I've spent worrying and thinking about it. It's the first thing I think about in the morning, before my eyes even open, and the thing I am thinking about as I fall asleep at night. I've tried not to let it overtake my life but I don't know how successful I've been with that particular goal. We all seem to live with the faith that we will be here tomorrow. It always comes back to faith, doesn't it?

If the world ends and I'm still not employed that is really going to aggravate me.

Be on the lookout for locusts . . .

Spring Has Sprung

I just finished doing the job search, the second one in less than 24 hours. Yesterday I found a few jobs I'm going to apply for and then there was another one today. I'm going to tackle those next.

It is almost 80 degrees here today which is crazy for it only being April 6th. I just made a bold move and packed away our gloves, scarves and winter hats, as well as our heaviest coats. I realize this is tempting fate but I was sweating as I was doing it so I can't be that far off the mark can I?

I know I've mentioned this before, but as I was packing up our winter things I just kept thinking how another season has come and gone (thankfully) and I am still searching for a job. I will not dwell on it but believe me I am fully aware.

I just paused to look out the window and the grass is so green where it was once nothing but white and the trees are blooming while there are still branches in all our yards from the heavy snow and ice. Although today is more like a summer day, I know that April will show her real self in the way of rain in the coming days and weeks.

I hope and pray that April showers bring May employment.

President & CEO As Well As Chief Bottle Washer

I spent the Easter weekend at the New Jersey shore with my Mom. We had a great time and we got home a few hours ago. As soon as the car was unpacked, I came straight to my office. Just like returning to a "real" job after a few days off, I almost didn't know where to start. I caught up on a few emails I couldn't handle from my BlackBerry and I started the job search.

I've always been a multi-tasker so while I was doing the job search I was doing a few other things. Thank God for Windows. I quickly realized I was back to work. My blog entry from Friday posted with Thursday's date. A text message I saved in draft on my BlackBerry so I could investigate a few things upon my return home won't open. The light bulb in my office is out.

This really is my full time job. The only difference is that at Sister Rain, Inc. there is no maintenance department to call about the light bulb and there is no MIS team to assist me with my technological difficulties.

I'm reminded of a t-shirt I saw this weekend on the boardwalk. It read "Reality Bites". Oh yes it does. Especially when you are the only employee in your company!

Easter Weekend

A new month of doing the job search yesterday and I kicked off April by doing my long search. Unfortunately, I found no positions to apply for. I'm not sure what's going on; I had a good run in March with more jobs than I've seen in a long time. The problem is, once again, I'm not hearing from anyone on the jobs I've applied for and now there has been nothing new.

This has pretty much been the case the entire time I've been searching for a job. There have been spurts of calls and interviews but most of my resumes and applications seemed to have fallen into the black hole of resumes, a place far scarier than the Bermuda Triangle. We are talking about hundreds of thousands of resumes never heard from again!

Today is Good Friday. A time of new beginnings and a miracle beyond all miracles. If that Easter miracle can happen, I can certainly get a job. It may not seem like a miracle to you, but it will to me.

Happy Easter!

An Oldie But A Goodie

Today's blog entry was going to be about how I was hired for the position of my dreams this morning and I start a week from Monday. And then, of course, I would end with APRIL FOOLS!

Well, I just can't do it. There's not much in life that I can't joke about, and the job search is something I HAVE to joke about so I don't lose my mind, but I couldn't take the joke this far. It's too important and would diminish the event when it eventually happens. No crying "job" here my friends.

Be careful out there today. Can you really believe anything anyone says to you? Think twice. And if you think you can do it with a straight face, look someone in the eye today and tell them their shoe lace is untied. Unlike jokes about payphones, this one never gets old.