Where Do I Start?
First of all, I miss you ALL! I wish I was in Leeds, Vermont, Brooklyn, Rochester and Aurora all at once to see a familiar face! Why am I crying as I type this?
I am having so much trouble finding a job. Nothing screams me perfectly! In fact, I question my own ambitions in life, the goals I've had since the day I took home my first report card full of A's and B's, and showed that I'd accomplished the school game. It was second semester in 6th grade and somehow everything had just clicked: I knew how to learn and do well. It went up from there and I decided that my love of learning and horses and medicine would all be well suited with a career as an equine vet.
I wish I was still so ambitious and driven towards that career. College was brutally tough. I didn't have the same support as in high school. I finish college, earn a BA and I still feel empty and even further away from my ambition. How is that? Shouldn't I be closer?
I face four paths: one to go back to school to get extra pre-reqs for vet school, then apply.
two: get a career based on the knowledge I gained with a BA in history: there are several historian opportunities out there. Three: vet tech or even...Four: Go with whatever job will accept me in this depleted market and recession and let destiny follow it's course, sans any knowledge gained in my five years at Wells.
I tried one job this summer. It lasted three weeks. I was ready to quit the second week. They fired me the third week. I tell people the job wasn't right for me, the work environment was hostile, I was bullied by a co-worker and was working unpaid overtime and I didn't have time to take a lunch break. The work environment was beyond disorganized, and since it was a vet hospital, there were times people were injured. If just one person was off, all hell broke loose and the most necessary tasks were not done: animals were not medicated and isolation patients were not cared for.
It was very bad and I was more stressed, less energized, less efficient in my work and on top of that, everytime I saw the bully I tensed up, sometimes he made use of this and let it all out on me, sometimes he was helpful, depending on how stressed out HE was. It hurt, I cried every day, during work, after work, even before work. My family told me to quit, or suck it up and tell HR. The day I was ready to quit and report the bullying, HE had beat me to the punch, I was terminated, probably after he complained about me.
In retelling my tale to fellow animal lovers in my area, I hear that I worked at the worst animal hospital in the area, that they are not surprised at what happened. If only I'd known.
So, two weeks after this disaster, I am back hunting for jobs. As you may recall from my last post, I loved my internship last year and want to return to that lab. Every week I search on CPOL to see if I can find a civilian position that I can fill on post. I loved the work environment there: the support, the teamwork, the friendliness.
My parents are pushing me to take coursework at UTSA, a four year college in my new city. I want to take General Chemistry again. Starts 8/27, I'll need to meet with an advisor to decide what courses to take...its safe to be a student again, that's a role I know.
CPOL: new job posting as of 12AM EST. They want a historian with 18 credit hours history classes. No masters or PhD necessary. Knowledge of historeography, writing history. I meet those requirements (Took the coursework and wrote a thesis (a military one at that)after all): the task is to record oral and written history of OIF. They expect background knowledge of latin american cluture, that I do not have.
Three: the vet tech program at a community college is 2 years long, includes summer coursework and I missed the first "semester" from the summer classes. I'd need 180 hours of animal hosptial experience, I don't feel like going back to an animal hospital just yet, my last experience was excurciating. Vet tech could eventually lead to vet, as I would get better job opportunities with a lisence, followed by better vet experience for the school resume, followed by a better chance of acceptance to vet school.
Four: I spoke with someone in my apt building about my job search. She knows about what happened to me this summer and asked: So how's the job hunting?
I hadn't really put alot of effort into it this week. She suggested restuarants. Be a server. I immediately jumped in the car, drove down to 2 restaurants on a nearby busy road, and applied. One place I interviewed with the manager right away. She didn't seem optimistic: "If you dont hear from me by Sunday it means I don't have a position for you." When she told me her server positions were full I suggested I could be a hostess or dishwasher. Probably will fall through. Before interviewing at IHOP, I was discouraged with this whole summer mess and was near tears at the table. The kind server asked me what was wrong and I sobbed a little while telling her that I was just frusterated that I couldn't find a job after college. She suggested patience and a sugary meal. I took her advice and regrouped over Richard Preston's new book "Panic in Level 4" and cheese blintzes (my favorite). Then I filled out an application.
Crossing fingers. Dog sitting tomorrow (she asked me to name my price and I humbly asked for $25 for 3 days of sitting a mini yorkie who needs ear medicine). What would be more valuable is a letter of recommendation for vet school so that I can add it as small animal experience.
I need to return a book to my boss from last year. Cool book, accidently walked out with it. OMG will he be mad?
Home alone since Tuesday, pick my sister up at the airport tomorrow. We'll have the apartment to ourselves until Thursday. We are so different, will it work out? Will she eat the meals I make? All she'll want to talk about is all the boys in Boston. As you all know: my mom pushes her to spark an interest in boys with me, this strategy invovles bullying, or chiding, or encouragement, however you may call it, I turn a deaf ear to it. I need a job, a local peer, a routine before I can start dating.
Please may there be a job I enjoy. Please may the next employer be honest about my pay rate, supportive of the staff's needs and productive. Please may my dreams come true.
Sizzling in the South,
Hippo
PS for those of you wondering: I subscribe to monster.com, hotjobs@yahoo, craigslist and browse the local classifieds every day to hunt for jobs. Also drop off resumes at small animal hospitals and fill out apps at restaurants.
I am having so much trouble finding a job. Nothing screams me perfectly! In fact, I question my own ambitions in life, the goals I've had since the day I took home my first report card full of A's and B's, and showed that I'd accomplished the school game. It was second semester in 6th grade and somehow everything had just clicked: I knew how to learn and do well. It went up from there and I decided that my love of learning and horses and medicine would all be well suited with a career as an equine vet.
I wish I was still so ambitious and driven towards that career. College was brutally tough. I didn't have the same support as in high school. I finish college, earn a BA and I still feel empty and even further away from my ambition. How is that? Shouldn't I be closer?
I face four paths: one to go back to school to get extra pre-reqs for vet school, then apply.
two: get a career based on the knowledge I gained with a BA in history: there are several historian opportunities out there. Three: vet tech or even...Four: Go with whatever job will accept me in this depleted market and recession and let destiny follow it's course, sans any knowledge gained in my five years at Wells.
I tried one job this summer. It lasted three weeks. I was ready to quit the second week. They fired me the third week. I tell people the job wasn't right for me, the work environment was hostile, I was bullied by a co-worker and was working unpaid overtime and I didn't have time to take a lunch break. The work environment was beyond disorganized, and since it was a vet hospital, there were times people were injured. If just one person was off, all hell broke loose and the most necessary tasks were not done: animals were not medicated and isolation patients were not cared for.
It was very bad and I was more stressed, less energized, less efficient in my work and on top of that, everytime I saw the bully I tensed up, sometimes he made use of this and let it all out on me, sometimes he was helpful, depending on how stressed out HE was. It hurt, I cried every day, during work, after work, even before work. My family told me to quit, or suck it up and tell HR. The day I was ready to quit and report the bullying, HE had beat me to the punch, I was terminated, probably after he complained about me.
In retelling my tale to fellow animal lovers in my area, I hear that I worked at the worst animal hospital in the area, that they are not surprised at what happened. If only I'd known.
So, two weeks after this disaster, I am back hunting for jobs. As you may recall from my last post, I loved my internship last year and want to return to that lab. Every week I search on CPOL to see if I can find a civilian position that I can fill on post. I loved the work environment there: the support, the teamwork, the friendliness.
My parents are pushing me to take coursework at UTSA, a four year college in my new city. I want to take General Chemistry again. Starts 8/27, I'll need to meet with an advisor to decide what courses to take...its safe to be a student again, that's a role I know.
CPOL: new job posting as of 12AM EST. They want a historian with 18 credit hours history classes. No masters or PhD necessary. Knowledge of historeography, writing history. I meet those requirements (Took the coursework and wrote a thesis (a military one at that)after all): the task is to record oral and written history of OIF. They expect background knowledge of latin american cluture, that I do not have.
Three: the vet tech program at a community college is 2 years long, includes summer coursework and I missed the first "semester" from the summer classes. I'd need 180 hours of animal hosptial experience, I don't feel like going back to an animal hospital just yet, my last experience was excurciating. Vet tech could eventually lead to vet, as I would get better job opportunities with a lisence, followed by better vet experience for the school resume, followed by a better chance of acceptance to vet school.
Four: I spoke with someone in my apt building about my job search. She knows about what happened to me this summer and asked: So how's the job hunting?
I hadn't really put alot of effort into it this week. She suggested restuarants. Be a server. I immediately jumped in the car, drove down to 2 restaurants on a nearby busy road, and applied. One place I interviewed with the manager right away. She didn't seem optimistic: "If you dont hear from me by Sunday it means I don't have a position for you." When she told me her server positions were full I suggested I could be a hostess or dishwasher. Probably will fall through. Before interviewing at IHOP, I was discouraged with this whole summer mess and was near tears at the table. The kind server asked me what was wrong and I sobbed a little while telling her that I was just frusterated that I couldn't find a job after college. She suggested patience and a sugary meal. I took her advice and regrouped over Richard Preston's new book "Panic in Level 4" and cheese blintzes (my favorite). Then I filled out an application.
Crossing fingers. Dog sitting tomorrow (she asked me to name my price and I humbly asked for $25 for 3 days of sitting a mini yorkie who needs ear medicine). What would be more valuable is a letter of recommendation for vet school so that I can add it as small animal experience.
I need to return a book to my boss from last year. Cool book, accidently walked out with it. OMG will he be mad?
Home alone since Tuesday, pick my sister up at the airport tomorrow. We'll have the apartment to ourselves until Thursday. We are so different, will it work out? Will she eat the meals I make? All she'll want to talk about is all the boys in Boston. As you all know: my mom pushes her to spark an interest in boys with me, this strategy invovles bullying, or chiding, or encouragement, however you may call it, I turn a deaf ear to it. I need a job, a local peer, a routine before I can start dating.
Please may there be a job I enjoy. Please may the next employer be honest about my pay rate, supportive of the staff's needs and productive. Please may my dreams come true.
Sizzling in the South,
Hippo
PS for those of you wondering: I subscribe to monster.com, hotjobs@yahoo, craigslist and browse the local classifieds every day to hunt for jobs. Also drop off resumes at small animal hospitals and fill out apps at restaurants.