Monday, January 31, 2011

I HATE Waiting!

I know patience is a virtue but waiting to hear about this job interview is really, really tough!  I guess I must really like the job.  :-)   Ah well, I shall continue to wait by the phone...worst thing is the on-line tracker changed my status from shortlisted to "final evaluation" and I don't know if that means they have made a decision or if it is a signal they have entered the final discussion/decision phase.  ARRRRRGH.  Last time I applied there it remained shortlisted until the day they called to say the had hired another.

I know I have no one reading this yet but if you hit this post by chance cross your fingers for me or send me some well wishes.  6 months unemployed is ENOUGH!  :-)

Sunday, January 30, 2011

Waiting with fingers crossed

Lord I hate waiting for someone else's decision!  Hopefully I will hear this week about the job in Banff that I interviewed for last Tuesday.  It would be a great job and I love living in the Bow Valley, it inspires me to be active andto be creative! 

I need a job so I can get my own home again, I have friends who have very graciously given me a place to rest my head these past few months while I search for a job in my field.  It has been awesome as it has allowed me to look and apply without having to take a job I know I would quit if I got something 'right'.  I hate doing that to an employer.  If this job falls through I am going to hit the temp agencies in Calgary to get admininstrative work in the short term as I can't be a leech anymore!  I will target ones that operate in Victoria as well so I can carry my cunning plan to move back home to the coast. 

Ah well, there is a chance of a job in Winnipeg in a few months so I just need to keep my hope and enthusiasm alive and believe that I will get the job I am best suited for.  Even if it takes a year...til then I am looking at projects to start that I can make to sell.  I have a cool idea for a spindle (as in hand spinning) keeper that would allow people to display and pack their spindles in 1 easy, beautiful package.  I have a friend with a growing business selling exotic fibres for spinning and we are colaborating on the idea and she will market them for me on her website - cool, eh?   I also have a webdoain that I plan to set a shop on that will sell ballet related items I plan to make. 

When I have a home again I am going to continue my efforts to live a more frugal lifestyle and to garden in some small way, even if it is pots of tomatoes on a balcony!  I believe in trying to be self-sufficient but that will have to wait until I have enough land to start that journey.

Tuesday, January 25, 2011

The interview is over!

I drove an hour and a half (each way) today for an interview at the Banff Centre and it went well.  The job is an admin assistant in the Film & Media Department but that title vastly underestimates the job duties - it would be an engaging and interesting position.   It was a relaxed and comfortable interview and I got a tour of the facility afterwards, that is always a good sign. 

It would be an amazing job to get but I can do nothing but wait and cross my fingers re the outcome.

On other fronts I have applied for a position at the Chemainus Theatre Festival on Vancouver Island, that would also be an amazing job but my qualifications are definitely on the low end of the scale they are looking for.  One thing I have found during my 6 month job search is that people with 5 or 10 years experience as Production Managers are applying for jobs a new entrant could have got 3 years ago.  The recession has hit the arts sector very hard!  Getting a position at that theatre would allow me to move home again after over 25 years of prairie life.

I had a Skype interview with the Royal Winnipeg Ballet School for a 6 month contract position last week but right now they need a tech with production management skills and I am a production manager with tech skills.  :-)  The hopeful side of that interview was that they hope to have a position that would fit me to a T and they want to speak with me again in a few months. 

So the job search continues.  If Banff doesn't come through for me I will likely move back to Victoria in February/March when the highways are in better shape.  The Transcanada highway has been closed several times this month due to avalanche hazards and that is really unusual.  I will definitely err on the side of caution if I do decide to make the trip.

I miss the ocean.  I miss real trees.  I miss having humidity and I miss my family...

Friday, January 21, 2011

Starting is the hardest part

I have had this blog set up and ready to go for weeks but I lacked the courage to make the first post.  Silly, eh?  Well I read a lot of blogs and finally today I thought "I am done being a tourist, I am going to join this online community!"

My hopes for this blog are to discuss food, ballet and theatrical costuming, my life in transition and probably more than a few comments on my cat and her control over my life.  :-)

So I will start with a thanks for all the amazing bloggers out there who have inspired me to go public and who have made me think about everything from cookies (thanks Bake at 350) to sustainable and frugal lifestyles.

Hopefully I will post again shortly.  I am spending this afternoon crafting the perfect cover letter to accompany my resume on a journey to apply for a Production Management job at a great theatre/festival in British Columbia.  I also am preparing for an interview on Tuesday for a position in the Film & Media Department at the Banff Centre in Banff, Alberta.

Yeah, those both good excuses for not posting again for a bit~!

Janet