[Willow]

Heya Greg. I am thinking about you tonight and saying some prayers. How's the job hunting going?

Life is not a journey to the grave with the intention of arriving safely in one pretty and well preserved piece...but to skid in broadside, thoroughly used up, worn out and defiantly shouting "Wow! What a ride!"

[bptoo]

Hi Willow, sorry about not responding sooner.

Ummm, I'm doing my daily checking of all the job sites, and there are many. Actually, most of them allow me to set up a search based on my skills, and then they email me with openings based on those and a few keywords that I put in. You may be familiar with that. I was cautiously optomistic (and still am to a degree) the first few months of this year. There were more openings coming out in my fields than I had seen in quite awhile. But the last few weeks, there's been absolutely nothing. The whole market has slowed up though. I'm thinking that maybe the market is stopping to take a breather after running so hot and heavy so the employers can take a look at where they're at. Hopefully it will pick back up soon. 2004 is supposed to be a rebound year.

I am concerned about a trend I see though. This job mixing practice. I had a call about 10 days ago from a recruiter for a position that she described as a combination of Doc Control/Mechanical Drafter/Technical Writer, and said it looked like I was perfect for it. I've done all those things, but never at the same time. Then she says that the employer wants the candidate to have a Master's in either Science or Business. My resume (which she was looking at) says I have an Associate's in Design Drafting. I could get my BA by going back to college for two more years, but I have no desire at almost 49 to persue a Masters.

I have been toying with the idea of looking outside California for another job. But even if I found one, my wife just got a long overdue promotion, my daughter just started her first job, and my son starts his first job next month. I couldn't expect them to give up their jobs so I could have one. Besides, I'm still working dilligently to put myself in the position of opening my own business toward the end of this year. I do have the job as a contractor for now. At least it pays the bills. It's just besides not having any benefits, the person I work for is rude, insulting, and bemeaning. When he isn't insulting me or my work ethic, he's talking about the other employees in the same way. He's a very talented engineer, but he has absolutely no management skills, and has no business being a Lead.

Oh well, that's about it Willow. I guess you weren't expecting a mini-novel. I'll be sure to keep you up to date as things progress. I appreciate you thinking about me. Let me know how you're doing too, OK?

Much love to you,
Greg

[dexter]

Well I was expecting a mini-novel.

Thanks for the update. Keep us posted.

And good luck!

I've also been interested in following your business idea so be sure to update us when your are ready.

-- The world is what we make of it --
-- Dave
-- <A target="_blank" HREF=http://www.idexter.com>http://www.idexter.com</A>

[LadyDragus]

I was hoping for better news.. but I am glad you at least have a job that can get you through till you find a better one.. I know the job market is tough,, trust me I know..

keep us posted ok..
We caer a great deal Greg.. okies

one of my frnieds is looking for work and she has been looking for almost a year now.. Still no job.. But she only has a certificate for her job market.. so it is a little harder..

<font color=purple>
world.. You are no longer going to rule me.. "I" I am going to rule myself"

[Rapunzel]

Thanks for the update, Greg. Your employer doesn't sound like someone I would enjoy working for either. Don't worry - I'm sure that the ideal job for you is waiting right around the corner. And I'm glad that you are able to maintain your good attitude about all of this in the mean time. You are truly a keeper.
Wendy

<font color=orange>"They accused us of suppressing freedom of expression. This was a lie and we could not let them publish it." ... from the Director of Censorship...

</font color=orange>

[Willow]

Actually... I was hoping for a mini novel. I was hoping for a little more good information, but at least it's not bad information. I do think about you and send prayers your way. Me? Well... I have a boyfriend. That's my big news for the millenium! He's a really gentle person. 13 years older than me, but I think that is part of his gentleness. He's lived through some stuff. Everything else is a blur. My therapy has increased to twice a week due to the new romance stuff. I'm tellin ya... it's good, but it's difficult! Sure is good to hear from you, Greg. Keep your chin up!

Here's a pic of my new boyfriend:

HUGS
AMY

Life is not a journey to the grave with the intention of arriving safely in one pretty and well preserved piece...but to skid in broadside, thoroughly used up, worn out and defiantly shouting "Wow! What a ride!"

[dexter]

Seems like some good news is travelling around the board of late.

Willow congrats. Your boyfriend looks like a deer! Or, wait, well, yea! Much happiness and good fortune for you in the future together.

-- The world is what we make of it --
-- Dave
-- <A target="_blank" HREF=http://www.idexter.com>http://www.idexter.com</A>

[bptoo]

Hi Dex!

Ask and ye shall receive? It's really exciting to think about having my own business, but it's very frightening too. I have a couple of people willing to invest, but my gameplan for now is to work out of my home office and keep my overhead costs down as low as I can. Once I can see the business starting to become profitable, then I can bring in the investors (sounds important, huh? ) and look at leasing a small office. My oldest daughter followed in Dad's footsteps and got her degree in design drafting too, so I hope at some point in the near future to bring her into the business with me. That would be so cool!

I will keep you updated for sure, and thanks for pulling for me! I can use all the good karma I can get !

Greg

[bptoo]

Hey Trish!

It's been so tough in the job market for such a long time. I know people from my last company who are still looking for work, and that's been 2 1/2 years. And they're some incredibly talented folks too. I hope for everyone's sake that this crunch (for lack of a better word) starts to ease up soon. So many people are suffering because of it. Despite my job having some shortcomings, I am grateful that I have one. If you're going to be looking soon, let me know. I've made some contacts with recruiters all over the US that I didn't even know existed. I'll be glad to send their names, phone numbers, and emails your way.

Thanks for your support Trish, it's appreciated more than you'll ever know!

Hugs,
Greg

[bptoo]

Hi Wendy,

I could write a novel about this man who is my Lead. I would call it "How NOT to manage people". One day about two months ago I was talking to him and a few engineers. I said that he really projects a negative attitude towards us, and that it affects our productivity. I told him that it had been proven that a supervisor that maintains a positive atmosphere, compliments his employees on their work, encourages then to offer their ideas, etc, have much happier and more productive workers. He started laughing so hard, I thought he was going to fall out of his chair. I just shook my head and walked away. But enough about that subject.

I know that there's got to be several jobs that I would be a real good fit for, but right now they're just really hard to get. Employers want people with high degrees from well known colleges. They're combining many jobs together. And unfortunetly, the salaries nave come down considerably, at least here in my area of California. I know if I can ride this out, something will come up that I'll be a perfect fit for. I'm thinking my best shot is going to be a start-up who wants someone with a lot of experience.

I'm not giving up Wendy. Believe me, I have my days when I want to. Some days my attitude is absolutely horrible. But y'all here and my wife and kids keep me on my game. I'll find that job one of these days and come here real happy, babbling like a freaking idiot! Wow, that's not much different from what I do now...

Thanks for the good thoughts and support Wendy! I hope everything is going OK with you, and that you're winning the battle with life. I'll tell you something dear, if I'm a keeper, that makes you first prize!

Love ya,
Greg

[bptoo]

Amy's got a boyfriend, Amy's got a boyfriend....

Acting like an adult now. This is very cool news dear, and I'm so happy for you! I could almost see the smile on your face when I read this . Just take things slow and easy, get to know each other. I'm sure he already knows how lucky he is! So, unless it's personal, how did you meet, where did you meet, you know, all that good stuff. Of course, you don't have to tell, that OK too.

You are so very deserving of this Amy. I hope so much that this continues to be a wonderful thing for you. It's good to be able to talk about it in therapy. Having someone new in your life is a really big step. What you say about him makes him sound like he'll be a very supportive person for you. And for us, support is critical. My wife's support means the world to me, and I'm sure his will to you too.

I look forward to hearing more from you. Enjoy this new time in your life sweetheart, it's always special!

All my love,
Greg

[dexter]

Ha! You should save up the stories and submit them to the Dilbert newsletter as an exemplary in-DUH-vidual.

I sent in some from my boss but never made the newsletter. Haven't gotten one in a while, wonder if Scott Adams stopped doing them?

-- The world is what we make of it --
-- Dave
-- <A target="_blank" HREF=http://www.idexter.com>http://www.idexter.com</A>

[LadyDragus]

I will not be looking for about another year or so..

I am in to my second year at school and have one more to go..
But I will keep you in mind when I start getting ready to go..

<font color=purple>
world.. You are no longer going to rule me.. "I" I am going to rule myself"

[Willow]

((((HUGS))))) Greg

Thanks for the kind words and encouragement along the way. I sure do appreciate you

Life is not a journey to the grave with the intention of arriving safely in one pretty and well preserved piece...but to skid in broadside, thoroughly used up, worn out and defiantly shouting "Wow! What a ride!"