Okay, the moment you have all been waiting for...
I passed the test!

It was ugly and I was kinda worried about it..but I passed. I am about to start taking live calls.

And I'm ready to chuck the whole thing!

I've changed my mind. I don't WANT to do this. Who am *I* to tell people how to make their modems work? I don't know my ADSL from my ADNT! (ADSL - the line in your house; ADNT - the test we do to check if you have a connection...okay, so I do know the difference theoretically...gimme a break, I'm freakin' out here!)

Maybe I'm just road weary and it's effecting my ability to think straight. Or maybe it's the voice screaming in my head "Get out -- Get out NOW!", but I spent the better part of today searching job ads and updating my resume (needed to put the new address on there anyway). And wouldn't you know it, I found TEN jobs that were perfect for me. So I am going to apply to those jobs and see what happens.

As for the job I already have...I don't know WHAT I'm going to do. I passed the exam by the skin on my teeth (you needed an 80, I got an 81). I spent most of last week completely lost and confused...and when I sat in with agents taking calls, I just felt completely out of place and filled with a "this is not right for me...I need to get out of here" attitude. I have the option of asking to be moved to another project, but there are no guarantees there are openings. I could stay with the project and see if I do catch on...but I'm not holding out much hope for that.

So, am I admitting defeat? Not yet. Do I think that I might be admitting it soon? Probably. Will I at least try it and see what happens? I guess so...even though the idea makes me nauseaous. But I've spent two weeks in a training class...guess I should find out what I know..or don't know...

Advice...PLEASE?!?


- posted by Kim @ 2:20 AM

 
Anyone who does not believe that life can turn on a dime...
has NOT been reading my blog, and most likely is leading a VERY boring life.

No, not because they aren't reading my blog. Well, I guess that would count..but that's not what I'm saying.

Ahem...let's try this again.

Life can turn on a dime. Remember my less-than-positive post yesterday? Well, the scripture itself was positive, but the reasoning behind the post was not...

Geesh...I really need to stop talking in circles...

Anyway.

Yesterday, it looked like we were out of money, there was going to be NO relocation fund for our move, and that things were an eyelash from falling apart.

Enter the "turn on a dime".

Not only are we getting relocation help, it's twice what we needed...which means we have a little wiggle room for Lou to find a job he likes and that pays well.

Now, here's is a little "funny" and "rant" on how we came to get this assistance.

West Virginia has a program called West Virginia Works. Basically it's welfare with a bunch of othe benefits thrown in, such as eye and dental care (for people who need glasses and dental work to help them be more employable), car purchasing assistance, and clothing vouchers. The program would be be a great thing, 'cept for this one problem:

There are STILL very few jobs that pay a liviable wage, so people get on the program and remain there, because...

There is NO funding for education for people who need it. So...the state will pay you a check...and they will make you "earn it off" by folding clothes at Goodwill or serviing meals at the homeless shelter..but they can't help you improve your education so you can get a better job, they can't help you get to work if you already have a job, and they can't help you keep the car they help you buy (the cap is $1000), on the road once you buy it. So, it becomes a viscious cycle of getting a check, volunteering at Goodwill, getting a check, still not being able to find a decent job, continuing to volunteer..)

You get the picture.

Now, for the "funny" and where we fit into it...

Although the state won't pay for you to improve your education or to get to a paying job, they WILL pay you to relocate to another state. If you can prove you have a job in the new state AND you still qualify for benefits in the state of WV, THEN they will give you money for relocation.

By now, you all know my scenario: I quit my job here to take the job in Columbus..and Lou's job ended in April. So, for all intents and purposes, I am unemployed in the state of WV, and therefore eligible for benefits here. Since I am eligible for benefits here, AND I have a job in another state for which I need to relocate, we qualifed for the relocation benefit.

So, let's summarize: The state of West Virginia is PAYING us to leave! Happily. And I am happily taking them up on their offer. I figure, I paid more than they are giving me into the system, and if I can get back some of that money to make a better life, then so be it.

So, as of Wednesday of next week, we will be in our new place in Columbus! Everything will be paid for, and we will be ready to have the satellite and DSL lines turned on!

Now, all I gotta do it pass my final tomorrow and not screw up!

Think I can handle it? :-)
- posted by Kim @ 11:04 AM

 
There's only one thing I can say about things right now...
"Faith is the assured expectation of things hoped for, through the evident demonstration of reality though not beheld" Hebrews 11:1 (NWT)

At this point, it's all I've got left. If you are the praying, meditating kind, if you can make room for me, I'd appreciate it.

Gotta go...

:-)
- posted by Kim @ 12:23 PM

 
Posting again from work...
I'm 2/3rd of the way through the "classroom" portion of the training...and I am ready to change my mind about the whole thing.

This crap is hard! I've never had to remember so many passwords, logins, shortcuts, web addresses and "tools" in my life. Rocket science would be easier...

But I *will* hang in there, and I *will* get through this class. I will...yes..I will...

But I could have a job where all I have to remember is how my boss likes his coffee...or where I filed last week's status report...

Or I could be a managing editor for one of the myriad of mags here in the area..of course I would have to apply...and of course find them...

OH well, I'm stuck here at least for the time being. I could be worse...I could be callig people offering the latest in credit card services or asking what movie they just saw.

It could be worse...right?

OH well, back to class...wish me luck that my brain doesn't melt and drain out my ears...bleh! :-)
- posted by Kim @ 9:48 PM

 
Okay, so I just re-read
my last post..

Pity-party over.

Actually, it really wasn't a pity party...it was me being frustrated with the situation and having NO PATIENCE for my husband who is merely voicing the same fears I have. The only difference is that he gets to sit here and ponder them, while I am out trying to live it.

That sounded pretty resentful. Gee, maybe because I am resentful?

Oh hell, I know I am. I resent that I had to give up MY job so that HIS chances of getting permanent employment would be better but that I am the one who is making the commute! Yes, I know its not his fault that his job fell through...but still, it always seems like I am the one making the sacrifices..

Okay, I'm whining again...I'll quit.

Had a nice conversation with my sister today. She asked me how the commute was going, knowing full well what I was going to say. She told me that I was right...that we need to stay the course and see how it ends. It was good to hear someone else say it.

In other news
I forgot to mention how I did on my test. It was 55 questions, open book, covering things we went over in class and other things that we either could have figured out on our own or knew from past customer service experiences. Going in, I had decided that I was only going to use the web tools that we had..I wasn't going to use my notes or handouts. This was going to tell me if this was a job that I could do naturally or if I was going to need to study to succeed.

So, I get the test, and I take it. First I went through and answered all the questions I knew without using the web tools. Then I answered the questions that I needed to use the tools to complete. Then I looked over my test to make sure I answered everything. There were six questions that I had NO IDEA how to answer, and even if I would have used my notes, I STILL couldn't have answered them. So I turned in my test...at 5:30...we started the test at 5pm.

When I turned it in, my instructor looked at me, looked at the test and said, "you realize it is open book, right?"

"Yep." I said.

"You know you have two hours to take it, right?" Again, I said yes. So she shrugged and took the test from me.

It was another 25 minutes before someone else finished. At this point, I was getting nervous. Did I miss a page or twelve? Was I so full of myself that I really didn't read the questions and blew it? All kinds of thoughts (mostly negative) were churning through my head. Finally, after everyone finished and we went to lunch, we got our tests back...but not before the instructor gave us the breakdown of the test results. Of the 30 people who took the test, the average missed was 15. The most missed were 30, the least missed were 5 1/2. Anyone who missed 12 or more might want to think about taking better notes, paying better attention or studying with someone who is doing better in the class. When she made the '23 or more" remark, she was looking in my direction. At ths point, I was sure I had blown it.

then she starts to hand back the tests, making a few comments here or there, "not bad" to a girl who missed nine, and "you might want to take better notes" to a guy who missed 17. Then she handed the guy who sits next to me, his test.

"Good job, you tied for the highest grade," she said to him. Now, this guy had been sweating through the whole test, mumbling to himself that he didn't remember this or that being covered. He was also the second person to finish the test. He leaned over to me and said "I wonder who else got the highest grade?" I shrugged.

Then she handed me my test. "You tied for highest grade, but since you finished so much earlier than everyone else, I consider your test the best in class. I also noticed that you didn't open your notebook and only used the web tool. Why?"

"Well..." I began, "I wanted to know what I knew on my own and what I could find by using the tools I would have on a call. The ones I did miss, I knew I didn't have in my notes, and I didn't have the first clue where to look in web tools, so I just left them blank."

She nodded her approval. "Excellent. Good job."

The guy next to me said "suckup!" and stuck his tongue out at me. He was joking...I think.

Anyway, all that to say I missed 5 1/2 questions out of 55, and tied for best score. Not bad for a girl, eh?

:-)


- posted by Kim @ 8:38 PM

 
This is a pure stream of consciousness post, so...
If it meanders all over the place, consider yourself warned. :-)

It's early Sunday evening, and I feel like I've been hit by one of the trucks I share the highway with everyday. Things were fine when I was still in the cycle of getting up driving to work, working, driving home, going to bed and doing it all over again the next day. But, just as soon as Saturday hit and I didn't have to get on the road, the fatigue set in...and it is showing NO SIGNS of going away.

So, I'm a bit road weary. Then I'm sore from playing mini-golf and bowling last night. I've been looking around this disaster area that is supposed to pass as my house, and the idea of cleaning makes me hurt more. It also ticks me off, cuz since Lou is here ALL DAY (his job fell through, and won't start for another 2 weeks), there is no reason it should look this bad..then again, because he IS here all day is one reason why it looks this bad.

So, I'm tired, I'm sore, I'm road weary, and I'm a bit miffed that my house that I spend no time in anymore is a wreck.

Enter the "maybe we should rethink this whole relocation" conversation I just had with my husband.

Yes, once again, he thinks moving is a mistake and that I should quit my job and find one here. Once again, I remind him that I quit a good job to take this one, and that there was no way I would find a job around here that would pay what this job pays (it pays several dollars more an hour than what I was making at my old job, and that job paid several dollars more an hour than what I would make working anywhere else). He reminds me that we don't have the cash to keep me on the road indefintely, and that since I'm the only one working at the moment, it will take an indefinite amount of time before we can afford to move into our townhome.

Last time he went down this path, I wowed him with a speech. This time, however, I am too tired, too cranky and too wrapped up in the current situation to deal with his less-than-productive paintings of the painfully obvious...so I simply told him to shut the hell up, that I was tired of his whining, we were sticking with the plan and that if he wasn't part of the solution, then he was part of the problem and frankly, I don't have room for anymore problems. He got quiet for a bit...then asked me if I was sure this was what I wanted to do.

UGH...yes, please, nothing makes me happier than a long commute to work 8 hours and another long commute home, all the while wondering how I'm going to pay for it all. I'm thrilled with the anticipation of living out of a hotel for several weeks or months til he finds a job and we can afford to move into a townhome (housing is plentiful..if we have to pass on this townhome, there are plenty of others to choose from). And please, oh PLEASE can I completely uproot my family and move somewhere that, although offers plenty of opportunities, takes me away from the home, family and state that I love.

Yeah, I'm tingling with anticipation.

So, I tell him, "and what choice do we have?"

That ended the conversation. And thus ends this post. I have to go fix dinner...I'll be back in a bit.



- posted by Kim @ 5:04 PM

 
Ya know I really don't get parents who...
just shove their responsibilities onto other people. As you all know, I am a mother and I take that role seriously. But I really wish others would do the same, cuz it would make my life so much simpler.

Wondering what I'm talking about? Here's the story:

Taylor was going to a skateboarding demo today. There was going to be semi-pro skateboarders there showing kids how to do different tricks both on the ground (freestyle) and on the quarter and half-tube (I think that's what it's called.)

Anyway, a parent or guardian had to sign a waiver for each child, releasing the city, the organizations, etc. from all liability in the event of injury or worse. So I was going to take Taylor to the demo (she was also being sponsored by a local skate shop..pretty cool, sign the waiver and head back home and get some sleep...

This is where the "other parents" come in..hang with me...I'm almost to the point of this rant/post...

One of Taylor's friend's parents dropped her off at our house this morning so she could go with Taylor to the demo. This would have been fine, 'cept for the waiver that needed to be signed. When I aksed Taylor's friend about it, she said "my mom said that it would be okay for you to sign for me."

Oh. Hell. NO!

So, the girl calls her house, and her mother answers. the girl explains that she needs to sign a waiver for her daughter to participate and that I didn't think it was a good idea for me to sign a waiver for another person's kid (nor did I think they would LET me...but that was a moot point to me, I wasn't going to do it anyway).

Know what the mother said. Go ahead...try and guess...I'll wait...

She told her "well, I've got things I need to do and I can't be bothered with worrying about that right now." (click)

Yes, the "click" was the woman hanging up on her daughter.

WTF?!?

So, I did the only thing I could do...I took the girl home.

Can someone explain to me how it seems like a good idea to pawn off parental responsibilities onto other people? Now, if MY child would have called and said that to me, I either would have cleared my schedule and made sure I signed the waiver, or I would have said, "stay where you are, I'll come pick up my kid", or I might have asked if they could bring my child home. But never EVER would I have just said "I can't be bothered" and hung up on my kid!

UGH!

When I went back to pick Taylor up several hours later, the girl was there with Taylor...her parents no where to be found. Taylor asked if I could drop her off at the plaza where her father would pick her up "later"....whatever that meant. I would have had the kid come home with us, but Lou and I were going out, and although we don't mind leaving Taylor home by herself for a time, we don't like to do that with other people's kids (that whole responsility thing).

The whole thing just left a bad taste in my mouth. I cannot believe that parents could be that blasé about their child.

In other news
Lou and I, along with several other friends we miniature golfing and bowling today. It was fun...and it was nice to get together with friends, a couple of whom we hadn't seen in ages. With the impending move and my schedule at work, it's hard to know when we will be able to get together like that again, so we took pictures and had a grand old time. I'll most likely post some pictures on my website and link to them later on.

Well, that's about it. I'm wiped, so I think I'm going to play a few games and head for bed. I'm going to be back to making that commute before I know it. Bleh...just one more week...I hope!

:-)

- posted by Kim @ 10:21 PM

 
Well, how's this for an update...
I'm blogging from WORK! Pretty nifty, eh?

We just finished our first test....and since I've got time to kill til everyone else is finished...

yes..I finished first...overachiever that I am...

Anyway

While I wait for the others to finish...I figured I'd post something.

The commute still isn't too terribly bad...just a bit boring. I've got CD's and books on tape..but after a while you just want the journey to end. I'd do the "are we there yet" thing, but then I would just have to smack myself and threaten to pull the car over...and then it would just take me longer to get home.

Okay, that was an attempt at a joke folks..sorry..I'll leave the humor to the professionals...

Uh huh...never mind. :-)

Anyway, training hasn't been too difficult either...the class is a pretty cool mix of techies and "normal" people, and the material is interesting. Getting on the floor will be a challenge...but I am looking forward to it.

Speaking of jobs, I went to my old job to pick up my final paycheck...and they "forgot" to pay me for my accumulated vacation time. Forgot my ass. They were ticked that I quit, and this was their way of getting back at me. So, I'm short around $200. Stupid, petty people. Oh well..nothing I can really do about it, 'cept keep doing my new job...and maybe borrow some cash from my parents...bleh.

Well, that's about it. We hope to be moved up here completely by the middle of next month. I really need to get packing and decide what stays, what goes and what gets tossed. At this point, I'm ready to sell everything and start all over again. I like the idea of a completely clean slate. Of course, the computers and electronic equipment would come with us. I said I wanted a clean slate...not a quiet, empty one. :-)

Take care all...I'll check in again later!

- posted by Kim @ 5:11 PM

 
Day Two - Commute to the Big City
So, I've been home from work for about 2 hours...just completing the second day. Allow me to go back a day and move forward...

Yesterday I arrive at work, 20 minutes early. I've got all the materials I was told to bring: Driver's License, Social Security card (you know, it amazes me that people don't ALWAYS have those things with them. I've always carried both in my purse), a notebook (as a writer, I have those lying around) and a pen. I felt like I was beginning the first day of school, which was actually true since it WAS the first day of training.

There were 25 of us in the room (yes, I counted). Of those 25, there were three females, and only three people were over the age of...25!

Ugh...talk about feeling OLD.

The first thing we did was sign up for all our benefits. I'm carrying myself and Taylor for medical, and all three of us for vision and dental. It's such a refreshing change of pace to have all THREE again. Haven't had that since I quit teaching almost 10 years ago. Even though I'm going to lose a quarter of each of my pays for the privilege.

Next we got a general lecture on what our jobs would entail.Basically, if you have problems with your DSL connection on your home computer with a Windows platform...you'll call me, and I'll walk you through fixing it. That's it. Seemed pretty cut and dry to me.

But judging from the others in the room, you would have thought we would decide who lived and died. People were panicked and convinced that they couldn't do it. Now, they all took the same test I took...they all knew what the project was...why are they so shocked at the job description?

Anyway.

Our instructor...who is all of 21 (see the "old" reference)proceeds to show us the screens, websites, and help guides that we will be using. Again, no biggie for me...I'm used to flipping from one screen to another for troubleshooting. But, again, several people swore they wouldn't be able to give the customer that information they need. It's the first day of class...and it is painfully obvious that I am in a class of a. overachievers and b. people who have things come to them easily. Should be interesting to see how they all adapt.

I was getting a bit annoyed with the class..but then I remembered that a. I am older and therefore not as impatient and b. I had a HORRIBLE headache. So, I ignored them as best I could...(remarks about that action later) and got through the day...dreading the 2 1/2 hour commute I still had to make back home.

By the time the training day was over, it was 11:45pm, and there was a RAGING thunderstorm taking place. It rained ALL THE WAY HOME! Not just rain, but downpours...high wind..thunder...lightning. Just what my already throbbing head needed. When I got home, I took two Excedrin Migraines and fell into bed, already composing how I was going to quit the job.

I got up the next morning (later that day) and since my headache was gone, decided I would go back.

Today (second day) was much better. No headache, people had decided that perhaps they should at least complete a couple of days of training before deciding they couldn't do the job, and for some reason, the guys in the class like me. (no, I don't mean "like" as in like, as one of them said, they find me "interesting"). When I went outside to have a cigarette during break, five of the guys in my class were surrounding me, before I even took my third drag. They peppered me with questions (as a class ice breaker, we played "two truths and a lie", you had to list two true things about yourself, and one lie, and the class had to decide which was the lie. My three things were "I am a published writer, I used to be a radio disc jockey and I don't like animals." (For those of you in the dark, the third in the list was the lie.) Anyway, the writer and dj careers were of interest to the guys, so I told them a bit of what I did. I also told them about my old techie job, and reassured them that this wouldn't be nearly as hard as the training class will make it seem to be.

Oh, and as for my ignoring them the day before...one of the guys said (and I quote) "wow...you're much friendlier today than you were yesterday!" Apparently, they all thought I was being standoffish and didn't want to "hang out". But once I explained that I had a horrible headache the day before, they gave me a collective "oh" and "glad you made it home safely"...which I thought was pretty cool.

Anyway, I made it through day two of training...and got to drive 2 1/2 hours home, minus a headache...but with even more rain than the day before. But I think God was making a point when I had to drive home on Monday with the headache and the rain...

The commute will be a piece of cake once the weather improves.

I'll keep you posted on the goings on...I'm going to head for bed.



- posted by Kim @ 3:21 AM

 
So, I've updated you on the saga of the last few weeks..
Now to update you on everything else.

Taylor's party was okay. A couple of her friends lied to her, saying that one of the girls needed to go home, when actually, she and another girl wanted to have a sleepover of their own, and even tried to get some of the girls at Taylor's party to go with them. this ticked off Taylor, but the rest of her friends told them to go home and ruin some else's evening. The rest of the slubmer party was spent watching DVD's, eating pizza, cake, chips and ice cream and generally doing the "girl thing".

We got her a DVd player, and a couple of DVD's. We had already bought her a computer chair and some software for her computer...and a couple of other things that are escaping me right now. she got cash from her friends, and her grandfather took her shopping for skater stuff. So, she made out..as usual.

Everything else that went on during the week you read about...up til yesterday. Friday was my last day at work. I didn't think people would be that sad to see me go, but I spent more time saying goodbye to people than I did actually working. I got dozens of phone numbers and email addresses...I guess you never know how many friends you've made til you are about to leave them. It was harder to walk those front doors than I thought it would be...I almost got teary eyed. And wow...I couldn't believe how much stuff I had accumulated in not quite 2 years of working there. It took three trips to take it all to the car.

Now, here I sit, late Saturday night/ early Sunday morning trying to stay calm about starting the new job on Monday. It's not like I'm going to be taking calls Monday...I start my three week training...but its always nerve-wracking when you start a new job. I'll let you know how it goes.

Well, that's about it. You're all caught up with what's going on with me. I'll probably post again before the weekend's over. But for now, I'm outta here!


- posted by Kim @ 11:55 PM

 
We stopped at Taylor new school...
On the way to lunch. She didn't want to go in...she just wanted to see the outside up close. It's a nice looking school..and from the school's website it looks like they have a lot to offer. I'll check them out in more detail once we're up there permanently. There is abother middle school in the area that she could attend if I think she would like it better.

One of the issues I have with schools in that area is that they don't seem all that "culturally diverse". Taylor is a mixed race kid, and I would prefer that she were in an enviornment where she wasn't the "odd one". Not that I think she's odd, but more than once I have had to deal with people who just had to know "what Taylor was". GRRR...she's a 12 year old kid, that's what she is!

Anyway, I'll post more about that later...back to the topic at hand...

We left the school and headed for lunch, cuz both Lou and Taylor were "starving". I however had NO appetitie, something that always happens before I have an interview. So I watched them eat (and tried not to throw up...another thing that happens to me before an interview, and sipped a Sprite.

Then it was time for the interview. I went in, talked to another HR person who was hard to read...couldn't tell whether she was for or against me working there or not...til she offered me the job. Finally, I was gainfully employed. Good money, great benefits, and I had a short commute from the complex. I filled out some paperwork, and they gave me my start date: May 17th...exactly a week from that day.

Oy! I had a job, but NO WHERE to live! That was a problem.

I run out to the car, and Taylor was there, (the doors were locked and she was alert to what was going on around her, and we were parked in front of the HR depatment front doors but I was a bit annoyed that he had left her in the car by herself) but Lou was nowhere to be found. I asked Taylor where her dad had went and she said "he went where you were." So, I shrugged and got in the car.

Forty-five minutes later, Lou comes back. They had hired him too. Not a big surprise since much of what I know about tech support I learned from listening, talking and watching him. His start date was the same.

So now, we both had jobs...and nowhere to stay. This was going to be a problem...and one not easily solved.We could stay in a hotel, but that would be a pricey endeavor, and take away from the money we needed to actually move, or we could commute, but that would be exhausting. We debated the decision all the way home and for the next four days. At one point, Lou even suggested we give up the idea of relocating and just stay put. Of course he made this suggestion AFTER I had put in my notice at work.

UGH...

So, Thursday, after examining all our options, and the day before my last day at work, Lou and I had a talk. Well, I talked, he listened. I told him:

In our 8 years together things have never been easy. Everything we've accomplished as human beings, a couple and a family has been a struggle and hard fight. Nothing has been handed to us, and for the most part, we have had to fight like hell to keep what we did have. Several times one of us had walked away from the marriage, only to come back a few days later, because when faced with going it alone, we realized we would rather go it together. We love and trust each other, and we always knew that one day, things would work themselves out, and that we would be able to make the life for Taylor and ourselves that we always wanted.

Now, we have that chance...and the only thing in our way is a place to stay for a couple of weeks. Considering the things we have faced in the past, this was not a big deal. I think we should make the commute for a few weeks til we both have paychecks, and then we just move into the townhome and start our new life in Columbus. Yeah, the commute will be a pain in the ass, and we're both going to be tired and cranky...but it's a temporary situation...that is going to lead to a better life once this hurdle is cleared.

Sure, we could just chuck the whole idea, pass on the jobs and stay here...but why and for what? You can't find a job here, and my job is ending in a few weeks. There is nothing here for us, and we are both tired of the struggle. We've taken several leaps of faith in the last few weeks...so now we just need to make one more. We can do this. We have to do this. We both want a life where we have a nice home, a decent car and some money in the bank...we have that chance. if we pass on it, we may never have the chance again. So, no more looking back...it's time to look forward, take a deep breath and leap. We are so close to having our dream...we can't throw it all away now.

Once I finished my missive, Lou stared at me for a few seconds, sighed, and said "That was pretty eloquent. Did you practice that speech?" Before I could reply, he said "But you're right. This is our chance. We can't blow it."

So, it was decided...we would commute for a few weeks, then move in June. Here's hoping that this final leap will be the last hurdle. I'm trusting that God will continue t show us the way.


- posted by Kim @ 4:59 PM

 
Part four - It's do or die time or "Okay, so NOW what do we do?"
So, we had an apartment (which we took just until a townhome became available), and we both had interviews for really good jobs on Monday. the only obstacle was that I was supposed to work Monday, and it was going to be difficult to get the day off, since historically, Mondays are very busy days for tech support, and it was even worse for us since we were working with a skeleton crew.

*deep breath*

However, there was NO WAY we were going to miss our interviews, especially since we had just put down a chunk of money on an apartment. So, it was decided that I would take the day off and deal with the consequences on Tuesday. But I would try and get the day off or find someone to switch shifts with me. If need be, I would work the midnight shift after coming back from Columbus..but that was a last-ditch scenario.

So. I go to work on Friday and request the day off. I wsa told no decision could be made until after 11pm. To cover my bases, I asked one person if they would be willing to take my shift on Monday (she has Mondays off), and I asked another midnight worker if she would be willing to trade me shifts for Monday IF I couldn't couldn't get the day off or the woman I asked to work for me couldn't do it (she needed to make sure her husband didn't have plans for them on Monday before she could give me a definite answer). The modnight worker said, yes, she would trade with me, but only if it was absolutely necessary.

So, I had covered the bases...and it was only 7pm. All I could do at that point was do my job, worry about the interviews and wait. I said a silent prayer that I had been saying for over a week, "God, it's in your hands now, you know where we are supposed to be and what we are supposed to do. I trust that you will make our path clear."

Now, I'm not an overly religious person, but even I recognize when I need to call on my Higher Power. And I do it more than most people realize... and I know when he makes His will known.

That occured about 2 hours later, when I was granted the day off...something that seldom happens for anyone on Monday.

Okay, I'm going to skip ahead a bit, cuz I want to get this saga completed. There are other things that happened over the weekend (like Taylor's party and some interesting conversations..but I will post about them later). Anyway..Monday rolls around...

And we head back to Columbus..with Taylor in tow this time. She hasn't been all too fond of the idea of moving, so we thought that if she saw where were going to live and got a sneak peak of her school she might feel a bit better about it.

Lou's intervew was first, so we dropped him off and Taylor and I drove around the city a bit, making note of where museums, arenas and parks were. About 45 minutes later, we went back and picked up Lou. The interview went well...and he would hear in a week or two.

Now we had about three hours to kill before my interview, so we headed over to the apartment complex to show Taylor where we would be living. She said it was "nice", but that the pool was nothing more than a "hole in the ground".

Those of you who are familiar with Taylor's "humor" recognize that she was being a smart alleck, and not a space cadet. Of course, I had to comment that most pools were a "hole in the ground", which got me a "Mother, you *know* what I mean!"

Then we got some good news: the townhome that we were waiting for would be available sooner than we thought...and that if we wanted to wait the extra week, we could just move into it. Then the manager showed us a townhome, and Taylor suddenly was interested...might have something to do with having a whole floor to herself. It's a 2-bedroom, 2.5 bath townhome with a 2-car garage and finished basement. We figured Taylor could have the basement as "her domain", only sharing it when we have guests (we're going to put a sofa bed down there), and when I do laundry.

We told the Manager we would get back to her about the townhome, and asked if she knew how much our deposit for living in the complex was going to be. (We had paid the application fees but were waiting for the head mananger to determine our exact deposit...which was based on our rental history (nonexistant) and our credit report (ugly). We were told that the deposit could be as high as two month's rent..or almost $1500. We were prepared to paty whatever we had to, since we just REALLY wanted to live in that complex. So, when the manager sighed before giving us her answer, I was fully expacting to have to sell everything I own to pay the $1500 deposit.

Then she uttered the words "You'd have to come up with $500, but the first month's rent would still be waived."

I could have done backflips. Lou looked at her and said between laughs "you mean that's IT?" so we made arrangement to move into the complex on the 9th of June...found out who our utilities would be through and all that fun stuff. I was so stoked. I love that place. It's the best place we've found and I am greatful that we were able to get in there.

But there was still one hurdle left...we needed jobs to pay for it.

Next post -- "We can either stay here and suffer, or take another leap and hope we hit the other side" or "What do you mean you changed your mind?"
- posted by Kim @ 4:19 PM

 
part three - Leap of Faith or "Couldn't you have asked me that BEFORE I left?"
It's too late for Lou to make his 2pm interview (they were sympathetic and let him reschedule for the following Monday), so we head to the place where I wanted to apply. When I walk into the HR office, people are everywhere putting in applications for jobs. I fill out my application and return to the desk (this after my cell phone has rang twice...you'd think people had never heard the Road Runner Theme belted from a cell phone before.), and the HR guy asks if I have time to take a couple of tests. I say "sure", take the test forms and head to the "testing area".

So, I'm looking at the test, and the first question makes my eyes glaze over:

"Nancy drove 30 miles in 28 minutes. How fast was she traveling?"

MATH? I hate Math! Fortunately, the rest of the questions were more applicable to what I would be doing..questions like:

1. What does DOS stand for?

2. IE is a
a. browser
b. word processing program
c. operating system
d. none of the above

3. WIN is a
a. spreadsheet program
b. browser
c. operating system
d. none of the above

Fifty questions just like that. I breezed through the test, so quickly that I suprised the HR guy. He looked at my test paper twice to make sure I answered everything, then told me, "they'd look over my application, resume and test results, and if I was what they were looking for, they would give me a call." Not what I wanted to hear, but better than laughing me out of the place.

So, I return to the car, and Lou and I head over to the complex I had found online. Took us a while to find it, cuz the directions were backwards. (Someone at mapquest really needs their heads examined...cuz their directions have been really screwed up).

Anyway, we get there, and it's better than all the other complexes combined. We wanted a townhome...but there weren't any available at the time, so we looked at a garden apartment. It was nice, but there was a glitch: there was only one and someone else was interested in it. Whoever put down their deposit first got it.

Lou and I looked at each other and shrugged. Did we really want to put down a deposit and application fee on an apartment when neither of us had jobs yet? It was a difinite leap of faith...if we didn't get jobs quickly, we were doomed, but if we didn't put down the deposit, there was a good chance we couldn't get into the complex. So we took a deep breath and leapt....

While we were filling out the forms, the Manager told us that she could not take cash for payment, so we would have to go to Kroger's and get a money order. So, we finished filling out the application then headed to Kroger's, about 2 miles from the complex. On our way back, my cell phone rang: the HR guy wanted to set up an interview. So, I set it up for Monday afternoon.

On our way home, Lou and I begin to think that things were coming together for us. Maybe this move was a really good thing for us...

Next time - part four - It's do or die time or "Okay, so NOW what do we do?"
- posted by Kim @ 2:59 AM

 
In our last episode...
Lou and I were comtemplating whether we should go back to Columbus on Thrusday. We debated the whole trip back home, and by the time we pulled into our driveway, we knew we *had* to go back.

Thursday -- Day two

We left a bit later than the day before, since Lou's interview was at 2:30 and I was just going to apply to a call center I had heard about from a friend. (I posted about this earlier).

The trip started out smoothly enough...we even remembered the right maps. I had even found another complex that seemed to have all the amenities that we wanted including the right neighborhood.

Forty miles outside of Columbus, we blew a tire. It wasn't a bad blow physically...the tire just gave way..which wa a blessing considering I was going about 70 at the time (yeah, I have a lead foot..I admit it!)...but by the time I got the car to the side of the hiway, there was NO tire left.

So..out came the cell phones again...Lou called the place where he was to have an interview and told them the situation, and they located a towing service for us. But for some reason that til this day I cannot fathom, Lou didn't tell the guy to bring a spare tire. I mean, we knew what was wrong...but we were both dressed up and didn't want to get dirty changing a tire (which was only a donut anyway...not great for highway driving).

A side -- if you ever get stuck on the side of the road in central-Ohio, you'd best be prepared to fend for yourself, cuz no one slowed down to help, and two state workers walked past our car TWICE (not once, but TWICE) and never once asked if we needed assistance. And there was NO SIGN of a cop anywhere. Just thought I'd share that.

Anyway

So, half an hour later...the tow truck arrives. On the side it said "Bob"s Towing and Repair". Bob was the driver. Bob was strange...

Bob also ran his garage out of his house...in the sticks...WAY out in the sticks...while we were on the third dirt road, Bob begins to tell us about a young girl whose car had quit. He showed up to tow her, and she's was on her cell phone with her mother. The girl proceeds to describe where Bob is taking her and her car...and Bob said the girl kept repeating, "no mom, I'm fine. No mom, he's not taking me to the second location. No MOM, he's not going to kill me and dump my body somewhere..."

As Bob is regaling us with that story, I'm digging my nails into Lou's arm. He still has indentation marks. Bob then went on to tell us about all the charity work he does, that he accepted Jesus as his personal Lord and Savior, how he thinks both Bush and Clinton have sold us down the river, and how cement highway partitions have helped improve his business.

O K.

We get to Bob's garage (which is the garage of his house) and he tells us to make ourselves comfortable while he fixes our tire.

Bob lives on a farm. He has chickens, a rooster, peacocks (yeah, PEACOCKS!), ducks, swans, and a german shepherd who gets a kick out of chasing the above mentioned creatures all over the place. He laso has two ponds, both stocked with fish, and several paddle boats. Bob has quite a spread. I might have enjoyed it more, if I weren't so worried about getting chopped up and fed to the fish and fowl.

An hour later, (Bob's not very quick) there is a new tire on the car, which has been baptized in one of the ponds. We pay Bob and we get back on the road.

Next time - part three - Leap of Faith or "Couldn't you have asked me that BEFORE I left?"



- posted by Kim @ 10:20 PM

 
TA DAH!
Okay, the report youÂ?ve all been waiting for: The Francis Family Job Hunt aka National LampoonÂ?s Interviews In Ohio...aka...Kim and LouÂ?s Job Hunting Adventure.

Ahem...Can ya tell that this might be quite the yarn?

I'm going to break this up into several posts, since itÂ?s a rather long story, so check back for updates.

Now..let the story begin...

Wednesday, May 5th, 2004 - Let the adventure begin!

We left the house at 10:30am. I had an interview at 1:30 and Lou had one at 2, so that gave us plenty of time to figure out where we were going. The trip up was uneventful, until we got just outside of downtown Columbus. That's when we discovered we had brought the wrong map. If we wanted to go to Six Flags, we were in great shape, but since we needed to go to Columbus, we were kinda screwed.

Thank God for cell phones. We pulled into a gas station (we are safe cell phone users!) and called our respective interviewers and asked for directions.

Ten minutes later, we were back on the road and we knew where we were going. Always a good thing.

At least it should have been.

We found Lou's location with no problem. Finding mine, however was rather problematic. The woman I spoke to told me that they were in a brick building with a green awning. Easy enough to find right?

The problem: Every building in downtown Columbus is a brick building, and at least six of them have green awnings, and none of them had addresses on them. Great for esthetics, lousy for a search.

I dropped Lou off at his interview with 40 minutes to spare. That left me with 10 minutes to find out where I needed to be. Two more calls to the office (one of which was a conference call between me and two other people), and almost an HOUR later, I arrived at my interview. Fortunately, since the whole office knew I was wandering the downtown Columbus area in search of the place, no one was upset that I was late. Remember that lesson folks, if there is the slightest chance you are going to be late, call.

The testing and interview went well, and the people (3) I interviewed with said that a decision would be made in less than a week, and that if they neinterviewnterivew me again, they would call. Read: you are one of 250 applicants. We have one job, and I kinda promised it to my brother's son. He's a dork and can't string two words together without getting lost in thought, but he's family.

As I was leaving my interview, Lou was coming into the building. He had managed to find my location without any difficulty. I coulda slapped him. I refrained however, when he gave me his news: he had an interview with a prestigious law firm.

We got back in the car and headed out on our next adventure: finding one of the apartment complexes we had found online. After going through parts of Columbus I had only heard about (police reports and the evening news) we made our way to the location. Nice complex, awesome townhome...but no pool or fitness center. Those were deal breakers, so we began the trek home.

If I would have judged the outcome from the first day, I would have had to say it wasn't a positive one. We toyed with not bothering to come back the next day, but something told me that we needed to.

Next post: Thursday - If I hear banjo music, I'm taking off...with or without you!
- posted by Kim @ 1:28 PM

 
Ugh...
I just had one of the most frustrating conversations ever. I was talking to "a relative" earlier, letting them know of our impending move, and what does she tell me?

"There are jobs here. You just aren't looking hard enough."

GRRR!

If I am willing to drive two hours west for a job INTERVIEW, don't you think I've already completed an exhaustive search of my own hometown?

But she made me think -- perhaps I wasn't looking hard enough. Therefore, I just completed perusing the help wanted ads and all the area job sites that I know of. Here is a small sampling of the jobs available:

http://regionalhelpwanted.com/BrowseAds/index.cfm?D=long&RP=datedesc&SN=151&M=25&R=26

Here is what Monster.com had to offer: Nothing..unless you want to sell insurance or work from home in a "proven method with guaranteed results".

Yeah, right.

So, for those of you who might be wondering, there are no REAL jobs in my hometown. I really wish there were. That way, my family and I would not have to go through all this.

Okay, that's my rant for the day. I'm going back to refereeing the celebratory activities. I'll give you an update on the party later.

:-)

- posted by Kim @ 2:08 AM

 
I got a whole lot of stuff
going through my head, so if this post seems all over the place..welcome to the grey matter that make me who I am.

First, a funny: I belong to a network called Ryze (check out the link AFTER you read this post. ) and on a writing "tribe", I replied to a topic about writing prompts. This is what I wrote:

The most important writing prompts for me (in no particular order)

1. "Mom, I need summer clothes!"

2. "Honey, the microwave is sparking...should I turn it off?"

3. My mother: "Dear, we're thinking of taking a family vacation to (insert destination here).

4. "...if the balance isn't paid, you will be scheduled for termination on..."

5. "We really liked your last article. We have another assignment for you..."

Any of those will get the seratonin and edrenaline pumping!

Kim

---------

No less than 10 people PMd me to tell me they thought it was the funniest thing they had ever read. Although I'm glad they got a chuckle out of it, I was SERIOUS! Nothing'll get you writing like a cut-off notice from the electric company!

In other news...
My "baby" is 12 today. TWELVE! I cannot believe that 12 years ago today I gave birth to a screaming baby girl. Now that "baby" is half an inch shorter than me, steals my shoes and sweatshirts and *gasp* has a mind of her own and *double gasp* tells me EVERYTHING! I know more about tween angst than I ever thought I wanted to know. But I am also proud that she feels me worthy of her confidence. I see commercials on TV about how to talk to your kids about drugs, smoking, drinking and sex, and I find myself wondering "why do you need a phamplet? I didn't need a video! I just talked to her...how hard can it be?"

But then I am reminded that my relationship with Taylor is special.

When Taylor tells me that her friends envy us, I am reminded. When Taylor blows off hanging out with her friends to stay home with me because I'm sick, I'm reminded. When she comes to me and kisses me hello or goodbye and tells me she loves me in front of her friends and DARES them to say anything about it, I am reminded.

Yep, 12 years ago today, the best thing ever happened to me. She was worth it..even the c-section scar that STILL hurts when it rains.

About this whole moving saga

I have news...but I'm going to hold off posting about it til I have an ending for the saga...so look for a post on that Tuesday or Wednesday...

I guess that's it for now. I need to go get some sleep...it's going to be a long day...I have to get everything for Taylor's slumber party together, and prepare myself to play hostess, referee, and MC til six tweens and teens are ready to pass out...probably this time tomorrow. Say a prayer that I make it that far.

:-)

- posted by Kim @ 4:57 AM

 
I really should be...
sleeping right about now, but I am a nervous wreck. Tomorrow Lou and I head to Columbus for the first of two long days of interviews, house and apartment hunting. If things work out, this time next week I'll be up to my eyeballs in packing materials, change of address forms, and scrambling to put back together what was once a kicka@@ business wardrobe.

My mind is spinning and my stomach is queasy...but that could be from the doughnuts I inhaled. When I get nervous, I eat. I know, that's bad...gimme a break! I'm on the verge of a major life change.

Wish us luck, say some prayers and / or send some good vibes, juju, whatever our way. This could finally be it for us.

I'll let you know how things go!

Namaste!


- posted by Kim @ 2:17 AM

 
Ya know, I really do have things to..



blog about, but I just never seem to have the time or the energy to do it. A blog entry a week isn't really much a reason to have one, but here I am, making another entry almost a week after the last one. I am a lousy blogger. Bad blogger! BAD!

Of course, there are other reasons I don't post as often as I should. I have a hard time believing that you all really give a fig about our upcoming move, or the fact that Lou, Taylor and I all got new cell phones, or that Taylor ended up getting the shoes she tried on at PacSun originally. Not that I don't think you all don't care about what's going on in my life, I mean, that's one of the points of having a blog, right? It just all seems so blah to me, I can't understand how interesting it can be to all of you. Am I over-thinking the issue? Most likely.

Right now I am trying to decide whether I should go back to work for two weeks, or just quit tomorrow after my shift. I have to be in Columbus by 10:30am Wednesday morning, bright-eyed, bushy-tailed and lucid enough to take several job placement tests and be interviewed for a couple of jobs I applied for. Lou also has an interview on Wednesday, and two others on Thursday. I know there is no way I will be able to get those days off from my current "day job" free and clear, (Tuesday, since there is no way I could work til 2:30am, get home at 3:30 am and be up by 7:00 am to get ready and make the 2 hour trip and be all I mentioned above and Thursday, since Lou's last interview is at 3pm and I wouldn't make it back home in time to get to work) which means disiplinary action would be taken, which can look worse that just quitting without giving notice.

*deep breath*

But on the flip side, I don't want to quit my job until I have another one and I hate not giving notice. But I can't get another job unless I am available to interview for it, which I am not because of my current job.

AAARRRRGGGHHHHH!

Any suggestion from all you out there would be greatly appreciated.

Well, I am off to continue my job search in the Columbus, OH area. Take care, and I will try and update this thing more often. I know, I know...promises promises...


- posted by Kim @ 4:06 PM