Open Doors
I probably failed to mention the other day during my summation of life that I also work part-time as a pharmacy technician. So I'm doing that. It's not a bad gig, but lately I've just been so stressed with the constant flux. It's not too bad when I work on filling the prescriptions because I don't have to worry so much about interacting with potentially angry customers. It's not fair to stay there the entire workday though, so I try to switch it up and work the drop-off/input station, where the technicians receive prescriptions, scan them, input the necessary information from the prescription into our program, and send it all along to the pharmacist(s) on duty to double-check to make sure we did our jobs right before the prescriptions can be sent to fill. Things are easily bottlenecked in the drop-off/input area though, with people stepping up in line wanting to drop off their prescription before one has the opportunity to input the prescription of the previous person in line. Phones ringing off the hook. Ornery sales associates that think they're better than you wondering what the holdup is or why so-and-so's insurance wasn't applied to a $4 prescription. AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAH!
Yesterday was fine though. I spent most of the day filling, which made me a happy panda. I spent the last hour and a half or so inputting, which began to overwhelm me, but one of my co-workers saved the day by splitting the load with me, meaning I didn't have a meltdown yesterday.
That's probably incredibly boring to read. Anyway, while I was on my last break yesterevening, I checked my phone and saw that in addition to oodles of text messages from my home fries, I had a voice message. I checked it, and it was from a college about half an hour away from where AJ and I intend to move. I'd applied for a career counselor position last week, and the woman calling wanted to conduct a brief phone screening with me if I'd be so kind. I be so kind, so I returned her call, and I think the screening went well. It's a new position, with it previously being combined with general counseling services, but now they want to branch out. So she asked me how I would get the word out on campus about this new service. I rattled off numerous ideas, like utilizing list-servs, putting advertisements in the school newspaper, doing a brief introduction in classrooms at the beginning of semesters, and conversing with the faculty (I suppose that would have to happen before barging in one's classroom). She loved those answers. I'll find out if I get an interview the first week of August, when the committee is back from wherever they are (I suppose they're all on vacation at different points and won't all be in the same room before then). I have good chances of getting an interview because she made sure to tell me that even though 30 individuals applied for the position, she was only calling seven for screening purposes. So I already have a 1 in 7 chance of getting this gig.
As I was thanking the lady for this opportunity, a domestic abuse agency was beeping in, calling me to schedule an interview for a counseling position I serendipitously inquired upon the other week. Cue flashback: One of AJ's co-workers sent along the agency's contact information to me, and I called them explaining how we're relocating for my husband's work and asked if they had any counseling opportunities at their agency. I was expecting a no, as every time I called such an agency after moving out this way, it was almost laughable to ask the question. The woman on the other end of the line though seemed taken aback over the question. "Are you a counselor?" "I have a Master's degree in counseling." "...It's so strange that you ask... Our counselor just put in her notice, and we haven't had a chance to put the position in the paper yet!" I'd faxed my resume, confirmed receipt, and fast-forward, I got a call yesterday about an interview, which is scheduled for Wednesday at 10am. Excitement!
I'm not the best at interviews, so I'm trying to psych myself up for these opportunities. Odds are, I'll be asked to interview for the career counselor position, and I'm definitely being interviewed for the domestic abuse counselor position in less than a week. If I'm good enough to be asked to interview, then I'm good enough for either job. I obviously look the part on paper, so I just have to go in and prove that I know what I know. And I do know what I know. I did well at my internship at the domestic abuse center last year providing individual counseling and co-leading support groups. I did well co-facilitating the career development class at my practicum before that, meeting with college students one-on-one to discuss their goals. And Lawd knows I know how to write a cover letter, a resume, and a thank-you letter to potential employers. I got these.
And in other news, AJ and I are off to Hershey, PA tomorrow afternoon to meet up with his family for a few days. We went to Hershey for our honeymoon-- because we effin rock as human beings-- but we missed out on Hersheypark because it was raining for most of our trip. So now we get a chance to check out the park. I'm also going on a photographic expedition with the mah-in-law to Hershey Gardens, where I took hundreds of photos two years ago. I now have a better camera, so that means better pictures! Yeah? Well, maybe not, but they will be. Once I got this camera (which was an early birthday present from AJ, so that I could photograph a friend's wedding in 2009), I wondered how I ever made do with less. I'm sure I'll think the same thing whenever I upgrade again. Anyway, we'll be up there from Saturday to Tuesday evening. And then I'm off westward for an interview the following morning. And then I'll be back at work the next coupl'a days. And then some days after that, I take the national certification exam for pharmacy technicians in order to keep that as a backup (as there are pharmacy tech opportunities where we'll be moving, but I have to have all the paperwork in order to keep the job once I transfer-- whenever and if-ever that will be).
I have more thoughts, but this is plenty long.
Yesterday was fine though. I spent most of the day filling, which made me a happy panda. I spent the last hour and a half or so inputting, which began to overwhelm me, but one of my co-workers saved the day by splitting the load with me, meaning I didn't have a meltdown yesterday.
That's probably incredibly boring to read. Anyway, while I was on my last break yesterevening, I checked my phone and saw that in addition to oodles of text messages from my home fries, I had a voice message. I checked it, and it was from a college about half an hour away from where AJ and I intend to move. I'd applied for a career counselor position last week, and the woman calling wanted to conduct a brief phone screening with me if I'd be so kind. I be so kind, so I returned her call, and I think the screening went well. It's a new position, with it previously being combined with general counseling services, but now they want to branch out. So she asked me how I would get the word out on campus about this new service. I rattled off numerous ideas, like utilizing list-servs, putting advertisements in the school newspaper, doing a brief introduction in classrooms at the beginning of semesters, and conversing with the faculty (I suppose that would have to happen before barging in one's classroom). She loved those answers. I'll find out if I get an interview the first week of August, when the committee is back from wherever they are (I suppose they're all on vacation at different points and won't all be in the same room before then). I have good chances of getting an interview because she made sure to tell me that even though 30 individuals applied for the position, she was only calling seven for screening purposes. So I already have a 1 in 7 chance of getting this gig.
As I was thanking the lady for this opportunity, a domestic abuse agency was beeping in, calling me to schedule an interview for a counseling position I serendipitously inquired upon the other week. Cue flashback: One of AJ's co-workers sent along the agency's contact information to me, and I called them explaining how we're relocating for my husband's work and asked if they had any counseling opportunities at their agency. I was expecting a no, as every time I called such an agency after moving out this way, it was almost laughable to ask the question. The woman on the other end of the line though seemed taken aback over the question. "Are you a counselor?" "I have a Master's degree in counseling." "...It's so strange that you ask... Our counselor just put in her notice, and we haven't had a chance to put the position in the paper yet!" I'd faxed my resume, confirmed receipt, and fast-forward, I got a call yesterday about an interview, which is scheduled for Wednesday at 10am. Excitement!
I'm not the best at interviews, so I'm trying to psych myself up for these opportunities. Odds are, I'll be asked to interview for the career counselor position, and I'm definitely being interviewed for the domestic abuse counselor position in less than a week. If I'm good enough to be asked to interview, then I'm good enough for either job. I obviously look the part on paper, so I just have to go in and prove that I know what I know. And I do know what I know. I did well at my internship at the domestic abuse center last year providing individual counseling and co-leading support groups. I did well co-facilitating the career development class at my practicum before that, meeting with college students one-on-one to discuss their goals. And Lawd knows I know how to write a cover letter, a resume, and a thank-you letter to potential employers. I got these.
And in other news, AJ and I are off to Hershey, PA tomorrow afternoon to meet up with his family for a few days. We went to Hershey for our honeymoon-- because we effin rock as human beings-- but we missed out on Hersheypark because it was raining for most of our trip. So now we get a chance to check out the park. I'm also going on a photographic expedition with the mah-in-law to Hershey Gardens, where I took hundreds of photos two years ago. I now have a better camera, so that means better pictures! Yeah? Well, maybe not, but they will be. Once I got this camera (which was an early birthday present from AJ, so that I could photograph a friend's wedding in 2009), I wondered how I ever made do with less. I'm sure I'll think the same thing whenever I upgrade again. Anyway, we'll be up there from Saturday to Tuesday evening. And then I'm off westward for an interview the following morning. And then I'll be back at work the next coupl'a days. And then some days after that, I take the national certification exam for pharmacy technicians in order to keep that as a backup (as there are pharmacy tech opportunities where we'll be moving, but I have to have all the paperwork in order to keep the job once I transfer-- whenever and if-ever that will be).
I have more thoughts, but this is plenty long.