23:00 - 07.05.08
Reading
I had a curious dream the other night. I found myself in Paris in the company of the two British Princes - William and Harry - ,when they were much younger; grade school level. We were waiting to ascend the Eiffel Tower, but the elevator/platform had developed some mechanical problems. The two boys entertained themselves with some complicated game of jumping from that platform in various manners - sort of a Simon Says thing, I think. I seemed to be with them to mind them, but not to be engaged with them. I wasn't clear what role I played, being very aware that I was dreaming, but the boys seemed quite comfortable with that dream me, nonetheless. They seemed very close to each other, telling inside jokes and playing up a bit to some of the other people waiting to travel up the tower, as well. Happy, but also very much aware of their separateness from the rest of the world. Finally the mechanical problems were fixed and we boarded the elevator for the trip up into a sunny, clear blue sky. The dream seemed to shift, or maybe there was an allegory at work, since it seemed that on that trip up to the viewing deck, we - the three of us - would find ourselves detoured onto intervening platforms where various social functions and receptions were taking place. Each very different from the other in purpose, as well as with respect as to who was in attendance. There seemed to be people from every walk of life included. The boys accepted whatever circumstance they found themselves in with good humour, although again, they seemed to laugh uproariously over commonplace comments shared between them. Maybe they have their own secret codes, that wouldn't be appropriate for others to know, about their thoughts. Just odd, but quite entertaining. Not certain why I was included in the story.
When my youngest wandered upstairs in the wee hours of May 1st, he started to roar with laughter. Beltane/May Day and snow covering the ground. He commented that it seemed that anytime I scheduled a job interview there was a storm - unseasonable for the time of year it was. You see, I had two interviews and a piecework job planned for that day. Meant that, again, what to wear became an issue. The first interview had been scheduled late the afternoon previous - downtown location. The interviewer had picked up my resume from a specific job posting I had applied to on the Monday. I was early, but he was standing at reception almost as though he was waiting for me to arrive. He greeted me warmly, then escorted me to the waiting room located deeper into the office. When he brought me into his office a few minutes later, he stated upfront that the job I had applied for probably wouldn't work well for me, because it involved a fairly aggressive sales component. Not that any of that had been mentioned in the ad itself. Hmmmm. Still, I guess it was a compliment that he wanted to meet me. Maybe he liked my resume enough to want to do a pre-screen interview. That was all I could think of that fit. The interview itself was positive, although he was in a great deal of pain throughout. The Mom and hospital training instincts both kicked in so strongly that I had to fight off the urge to take on those roles. I managed to not offer any medical comments, but a few of the mom ones slipped out before I was aware they were coming. You know - "are you certain you don't need to take a break?" - when he looked about to pass out. He just looked embarrassed so I bit my tongue as hard as I could. His main interest seemed to be the election work - especially with respect to the more senior levels of Elections Canada and the way they think/operate. Biting my tongue two, since every HR newsletter I get in my inbox strongly recommends never saying anything negative about a previous employer. I did allow that structural changes that involved adding in another layer of middle management - the local rep, although I didn't mention them specifically - had made my work very difficult to do because of the interference, rather than the support intended in the change, it generated. He seemed more concerned about current actions of the senior staff, but since there has been a huge changeover in head office that occurred at the same time so many EDs, including mine were posted, I couldn't respond to the concerns raised. He would have to talk with the governing political party about that. An hour later, I was on my way with his final comments being that he didn't understand why I hadn't already found work in the industry I've been in for the past decade, given my experience. Nor can I. Sigh.
My next interview was half an hour away, so I took a walk on the island in the river that flows through downtown - one of my favorite places. It is one of the things I really miss about not working downtown, the nature walks so close to the hub of our city's centre. It was very calming to watch the workmen preparing the area for the summer crowds, as the police on bicycles cheerily interacted with those early walkers/runners who travel those pathways in all kinds of weather. Arrived in good time for my next interview all the same. It seemed to go well too, although it appears it is also piecework - whenever the company is assigned local contracts from the head office. None pending right now. The wage wasn't what I would normally expect, but some money coming in is better than nothing. The bonus would be the women I would be working with. I met some of them in the coffee area - just warm and friendly in keeping with the type of work that they do.
Went walking for another hour before the scheduled time for the piecework assignment. That was two hours of group discussion about webpage development. All the participants were from my quadrant of the city and ranged in skill level from beginning computer users to experts. Fascinating to see things from so many different perspectives. Two of the participants had recently been in accidents that had rendered them disabled, so there was also the unexpected additional lesson of how lucky I was. Both had been earning great wages before and both were now struggling on disability programs that don't even allow them to meet their basic needs. It is so embarrassing to live in such a wealthy province where those most in need are treated so badly. That said, both people were working hard to cope and rebuild their lives, each knowing they could never go back to the life they had been living before their injuries. Instead of being made to feel like beggars by the local welfare system, they should be held up as models of strength in our community. At least I think they should. Role models who should be rewarded for both their attitudes and their choices since their injuries. Won't happen under this government. They're too busy trying to hide the skeletons.
I spent the balance of the week and weekend doing some research on medical issues for some of the family, sending out more resumes, as well as searching for more support services for the one friend who helps women in crisis. Free things is what she wants, so that her women can still feel the community has a place for them. Inclusion works wonders in a way no other action can. Back to the dream's lesson - hence the way those young princes have been brought up; they're comfortable with people from all levels of society. A quality assurance assignment took up part of Saturday as well. Three hours of walking for 20 minutes of paid work. Yesterday, I had another interview for what was advertised as full time work. Again the hours and the pay don't support that, but again I enjoyed the woman I was interviewing with so much that it would be worth the difference just to be in an atmosphere where one is valued for the work one does. The work is with teams of people, all travelling from worksite to worksite together. That sounds interesting too. It didn't storm yesterday, so maybe that is an omen that the promise of work will happen. We'll see. Maybe the three jobs that are piecework could be cobbled together so I can make enough to live on. I didn't want to go back to carrying more than one job, because I don't want to have my health destroyed like it was last time, but I don't have a lot of other options to choose from. My financial situation has reached the dire stage, you see. As I headed home it did start to rain, but that didn't stop my youngest and I from heading off to our now-weekly walk to the library two communities away. After we chose our books, my youngest headed off to a meeting for his financial planning group. I walked home on my own a bit frustrated with the library system, but I also understand that funding for them is an issue too. You see, I had wanted books recently written by two local authors - long time residents of this city. I could find a lot of work by authors on their subjects from all over the world, but neither of their published works were available on site. I guess I could ask for an inter-library transfer, but even so the number of books of theirs available was minuscule. A few copies only if at all. Sigh.
Today I did another of the piecework assignments that involves quality control. Something the interviewer yesterday was quite fascinated to learn about. In fact, most of the interviewers are quite intrigued by that work. The problem I have is that I've signed confidentiality agreements with the QC companies that forbid me to disclose much about their operations. Tough balance to find when trying to respond to interviewer's questions, since it might seem to an interviewer that I'm trying to hide something. Also popped back downtown to pick up more books to read. This as a volunteer for one of the literary events in the city. Just book reviews requested so that attendees in the fall have some idea what is on offer from writers who are participating in the week of events. Some of the titles I picked out look to make for very enjoyable reads. We'll see. Time to go read now though; it's almost midnight. Good night dear diary.
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