Sunday, January 17, 2010

The Unemployment Chronicles: Week 4

This was what I will consider a good week. In the world of job hunting I filled out about 15 applications. I also made a phone call to a local staffing agency who I thought was an aerospace heat treating company and while it was kind of vague I am pretty sure they invited me in for an interview. (I realized that staffing agencies may also be hurting because fewer companies are hiring.) I think that this coming week I will make a lot more calls to several companies. People seem a lot more accommodating on the phone than in an email. However, I have not yet hit up the big three aerospace companies yet this year because I am waiting for two people to return my resume critiqued. I want to make sure that when I make the first or second impression (depending on the person and the company) that they like me!

I checked for local part time jobs in town a little but there really isn't much available. It seems that here there are lots of people that work those "part time" jobs as a career. Perhaps it is to go to the mountains more or to have less responsibility. Whatever the case it is a more competitive market than I anticipated.

Job hunting is like persistence hunting. That is hunting when you physically run down an animal. You head out looking for an animal. Then you see a heard and decide you want one specific animal. So you (and your friends) chase after it. However it might not be the right animal or easiest to catch so you set off after another animal. Eventually you figure out which one you want and keep chasing it. The problem is that when you start you don't know how long you are going to have to run. It could be ten miles, it could be a marathon it could be longer than a marathon. It is the same with job hunting: you take a few steps forward but you don't know how long until you get a job.

On the financial side of things: I bought two books and a new pair of running shoes. I also went grocery shopping and bought a mocha one morning. I did not go out to eat, which is good, and I did not buy any gear despite going to the REI flagship store in Denver. So the week was a loss but not terribly so. This coming week I have bills to pay so it will be a bigger loss.

On the "leisure time" side of thing: I ran 102 miles. 28 miles at 5000 ft the rest at 7400-8400 feet. I also had two good workouts. So in terms of running it was a good week. But running does not pay my bills. I also played too many hours of video games. What counts as too many? More than three hours in a week.

Since coming to Colorado last Sunday I have not yet climbed a mountain, gone rock or ice climbing, gone skiing, gone biking, or met up with any of my Colorado friends from 2008 and before. Kind of strange. I come here for the mountains yet I just run circles around them instead of climb up them.

2 comments:

  1. Want Randy's WPI-DSST scholarship mentor's name? He is on the DSST High School Board as well as WPI's board of directors. WE should have taken you sking this weekend. Want to go President's day weekend? (13-15 Feb). Dennis and a friend of his did some bushwacking/trail breaking across from Winter Park in Jim ?, or Jeff's? or somebody's gulch. Crazy Aunt Cheryn

    ReplyDelete
  2. Yes, I would absolutely like to go skiing with you! Also, I called him at work and got his voicemail and left a message a few days ago. I haven't heard back from him.

    ReplyDelete

Note: Only a member of this blog may post a comment.