Well I got up at 6 am which isn't too much earlier than the time I normally get up to go to work. But this day was going to be different. Instead of a pair of shorts and a golf shirt, which is what I typically wear into work during the summer, I was sporting a 3-piece suit. As I walked out the door, in my right hand I clutched a maroon folder with resumes and my writing samples and in the left hand, a bottle of Coca-Cola Blak to give me a morning pick-me-up. And I will never drink one again.
I drove to the West Chicago train station to board the 7:34 Metra commuter. I got into Chicago and walked over to Riverside Plaza on the west side of the river, which is maybe a 2 block walk or so. And with the sun shining, I almost wished the walk could have been a few more minutes. I was heading to a job interview.
It's complicated to explain but basically I've been talking with this guy for the last week about a creative/technical writer position for this comapny, Sogeti, which is an international consulting firm. He emphasized he wanted a young guy who could write and knew some technology. Now considering my hopes a few years ago were planted on marketing, this was a pretty radical change. But I decided I'd try. He gave me some incredible help with my resume and arranged an interview for Wednesday and he sent me an e-mail with the instructions. So I show up to one of these big office towers with the 30 story elevators. I didn't see Sogeti. So then I went to the electronic directory in the lobby and typed the name of the individual I was interviewing with. Her name wasn't there.
So I called the guy and after finally reaching him on my third call, he said I was supposed to go to Trans Union. He never mentioned that in the e-mail he sent me. All I had was an address and a name, but no company. So I showed up about 5 minutes late, but it was ok. I interviewed with Anne for about 50 minutes. It turns out I would be working for her. I'm not quite sure I still understand the whole Sogeti-Trans Union deal, but the job sounded better as it went along. And coming in, I wasn't too sure if this would be worth my time. So right now, I'm waiting for Friday when she calls to arrange a second interview. But I walked out of her office and onto the elevator feeling pretty good about how I handled myself.
Then I took the train back to West Chicago, which is an hour ride. Actually first, I stopped to get a Jamba Juice. Citrus squeeze with a protein boost. I took off my coat and tie, got tothe station at 11:45 and drove to Houghton Mifflin. I worked from 12-5 but by 4, I was ready to go. In that last hour, I really got nothing done, I was just buying time. Fortunately, just about everyone else was gone by then.
But my day wasn't over. I went to the Daily Herald to do some work over there. It gets better. On Tuesday or Wednesday, a virus got into the computer system. My computer was one of the worst infected in the office. So I tried to open my e-mail, but it immediately closed. This happened 4 or 5 times, even after I restarted the computer. So I went to my boss' computer and worked for a half hour over there. By the time I finally got home, it was 5:45. So I was out of the house for about 13 hours. I finally settled in the basement with a big burger with pickles, cheese, and Smith & Wollensky's sauce, along with pita chips and salsa.
PS It wasn't a total settling down. The picture tube on my TV in the basement just died so now we need a new TV down there! Man we had that Toshiba for 20 years! And there's nothing worse than turning a White Sox game on the TV when you can hear the announcers call the game but not see anything.
No comments:
Post a Comment