Job Hunting & Interviewing

The interviews on Monday when pretty well. The first was for an IT Staffing agency in Downtown Pittsburgh. I met with the other recruiter and was very impressed. The compensation plan is phenomenal. Nice base and really good commission. Low expectation of placing a minimum of 2 a month and average commission on a new start is around $2000. So the chance is there to make over $80k a year. I then met with the Sales Manager. Who actually works out of a different office, but until this office is up and running (just hired a new sales manager is looking for another) is commuting to the PGH office about 3 times a month. We had a good interview, but I felt he was high pressure/high expectations. He was hard to read. Sometimes I felt my responses were dead on, sometimes I couldn't tell. The position would be a lot of work, especially to begin with just building up my portfolio. The expectations that the sales manager has is different than what the recruiter and recruiting manager has talked about.

The second interview on Monday went really well and I think I have a greater chance getting this position. It's a contract position going 3 to 5 months with a great chance for it to extend. It's for a manufacturing company hiring only their assemblers. Low pay, very regulated restrictions, high turnover. It's more flexible with time and hours. Ability to schedule yourself, lower pressure, high expectations, can do some work from home. The person who had the job before is recruiting for this position and he said he would come in some days at 10 and work to 4 and then go home to work a few hours on his own schedule. This is what I like about it. It's professional but without being so strict. It's flexible, but you can still schedule yourself to work 40 hours. It's hourly and the pay rate would be about $25 an hour. The HR Manager is trying to push this for a permanent position but corporate has been waffling about it. James, the former recruiter, was hired to work 3 months and actually worked 9. I think it would be a great transition for me because I'm just getting back into the work environment. I don't really know how it's going to work.

So I have a call back to another company who I sent my resume to and left me a voice mail yesterday to call back today.

Still Job Hunting

job search is still going on...I'm really looking for something to do at home, that makes more money than what I get now....and my inlaws said they'd watch the kids, so I can find something outside the home too, so I've been looking at both.

my a-hole "boss" pissed me off today...I've been emailing them and leaving them messages about this one client and job opportunity for 2 weeks, and he leaves me a message about his frustration on the lack of communication on everyone's part including mine...he said he asked me for feedback on my candidate and so I called him and left him another message asking when he communicated with me because the last time I spoke to him was weeks ago and he never asked me for anything about my candidate and I told him I was looking for other employment due to the lack of anything substantial coming out of his company directed my way. I told him I was tired of wasting my time, effort and money, just spinning my wheels while he wasn't producing anything on his end.

The Graduate

Here's our little pre-school graduate!!! Last night was graduation. They sang songs and then they each donned their cap and received their diploma. I can't believe she's be in kindergarten in the fall!

More pics:

AND Dylan's reaction to the whole thing:
More pictures here: http://www.kodakgallery.com/Slideshow.jsp?mode=fromshare&Uc=1558p3sp.bjxuyhc9&Uy=-tpy8as&Ux=1

Money, That's All I Want

A whole lotta Money! That's What I Want! That's All I Want!

We seem to have gotten ourselves into a hole again...money is tight, unexpected bills have come in...do we dip into our meager savings to pay some or do we make payment arrangements? Eat bread and water for a month? Well it's not really that dire, but DAMN! I'd love to get ahead and stay ahead for once.

The bills:
an unexpected tax bill of over $3000 for last year. Seems when we refinanced and started escrowing, the mortgage company only escrowed going forward and not taxes due. So we recently got that bill.

a mortgage payment that never arrived at the mortgage company even though we have it in our checkbook that it was made and mailed (no payment stub) it was never received and oops...I used some of the funds. so we have a double mortgage payment.

medical bills from my father from his recent stay at the hospital (twice) and rehab and nursing home...seems he has a $500 deductible, so we have to cover THAT, plus R&C charges that the insurance company has paid, but the facilities are charging over and bills for phones and TV!

so I really need to get that job because that will solve so much of our monetary problems...plus if I'm working all day, I won't have time to shop :D

some short term solutions: selling clothes and baby items on line (garage sale & ebay), Larry selling more computer stuff on ebay and craigslist, we also have almost $200 coming to us for a multi-meter he just sold on ebay, I have $175 coming from Lia Sophia as reimbursement from my manager on a bridal show that I'm signed-up for...

Busy, Busy, Busy

My kids are a little older, but it still seems to be as busy at my house. Dylan still likes to be held way to much. I know there will come a time when I miss his clinginess, but right now, at this age it's over the top. He always wants to be held when I'm in the middle of other things and does not understand that right now Mommy can't but that doesn't mean she will never.

Oh well, busy days ahead for me:
Today
Kindergarten Orientation w/Marissa
Shopping for food and Larry's birthday present
House cleaning
visit my dad in St. Barnabas
dinner
soccer for Marissa
celebrate Larry's birthday

Tomorrow
Haircut for Marissa (which I think I'll cancel)
Nails
Open House @ Legacy (Cheer)
House cleaning
friends over

Sunday
preparing food for get together for Larry
Meetup at Panera's
pick up cake
Larry's birthday party

in the weekend somewhere maybe pick up my dad

Sometimes I Wonder

I really, really do about people in this world.

I mean, when you apply for a job and give references, why would you give people who can barely form a sentence, can't think, and are not intelligent? I mean, in my job, I come up with at least one or two references a day where they answer questions like "I don't know", "I guess so" and the questions are "how would you rate YOUR FRIEND on his/her reliability?" or "How does YOUR FRIEND get along with others?" Sometimes the answers are "yeah he's reliable" that's not what I asked, I asked to rate him/her!

When I furnish references, I choose people that are going to be a good representative of ME! Someone who is well spoken, can think on the their feet, can communicate and aren't annoyed that they have to do something nice for ME, their friend.

Messed Up Sleeping Habits this week GRRRR!

So the kids are having a bad sleep week.

Yesterday, Dylan was suffering from allergies (I think) and when Father-in-law was watching him while I got my hair done, he fell asleep in FIL's car and napped all the way home and on our couch until about 1 or 1:30. Then he had itchy eyes and around 3:30 I gave him benedryl and he fell asleep about 4:30 to 7:30...soooo he wasn't going to bed a regular bedtime. He stayed up and watched the Pirate game (overtime at that) with Daddy and finally came to bed around 11ish. He slept to 6:30am.

Marissa stayed over at inlaws house yesterday and FIL ratted her out and said that she was still up when he got home from work last night at 1:30am! WTF were they thinking??? She slept until 8ish this morning, but right now, at 6:47pm est, she's zonked out in her bed and she won't stay up...soooo that means another late night for one of my kids, because I just know she won't sleep through til morning.