Today is Wednesday, November 18, 2009. Only 27 days ago, I was broke and practically living in my mom's basement. Well, I am still living in my mom's basement but I am broke no more.
I currently hold two jobs, one as a seasonal worker at Yankee Candle and I am working a ridiculous number of hours, which is just fine with me. The job originally called for me to work 2-10pm but ever since I started working, they've been mandating people to stay one extra hour everyday for overtime to catch up on work. I asked if I could stay until midnight because if I'm going to work 2-11pm, I might as well put in another hour, right? I was granted the request. Now I find myself working 2 to midnight everyday this week with a mandatory overtime work day this Saturday. That comes down to a grand total of 58 hours for this week. 40 hours will be regular pay and 18 will be overtime pay. Not bad buddy!
Now, the second job. Remember how I missed the Old Navy call and that they said that they would "call back" the next time they are hiring. Fat chance of landing a job right? Wrong. I got a call from them last week and this time, I was home to answer the phone! They said they were ready to hire again and asked if I might come in the following Tuesday for NEO (New Employee Orientation). Without really thinking, I said yes and hung up. I then realized the situation I put myself in. With the overbearing number of hours Yankee Candle was giving me, could I handle a part time job with Old Navy?
I pondered it for awhile and seriously considered calling Old Navy to rescind my commitment to working for them but I decided to give it a go. I would only work Tuesdays and Thursdays (Wednesdays also if they are busy) from 8 to 12 at 8 dollars per hour. That's about $60 extra per week if you take away taxes. I know that's meager but eh, money is money and time is what I have.
Here's a bad day of the week for me.
Mon 12:25am - arrive home from Yankee Candle
12:45am - completely asleep
7:30am - wake up (roughly 7 hours of sleep)
8:00am to 12:00pm - Old Navy
12:10pm - arrive home for lunch, rest
1:25pm - drive to Yankee Candle (rested for 1 hour)
2:00pm to Tues 12:00am - Yankee Candle
12:25am - arrive home from Yankee Candle
12:45am - completely asleep
SLEEP IN!
With this schedule in mind, I thought I would have to rough it out for the next few months. However, after attending NEO at Old Navy yesterday, it is going to be a breeze. You see, Old Navy is really, contrary to what people might think, a fun place to work at. I thought working as a shipper would be rather similar to Yankee Candle in the job duties I have to do but there is so much more personal interaction and because of that, the atmosphere that Old Navy stresses is a fun atmosphere. At the risk of sounding corny, they go by the core values of EASE, (Efficiency, Accountable, Simple, Energetic) that allow you to have fun while at work. The dress code is very flexible and you ought to wear what you like to wear. My supervisor was extremely upbeat and at times, I forgot I was actually at work. Granted it was orientation and all we did was sit in a group and discuss what a work environment should look like but it felt like I was at a social setting with a bunch of friends.
The litmus test of how fun the people are at a workplace is the break room. At Yankee Candle, there are tables, chairs, a million microwaves, refrigerators, and signs all over the room that promotes Yankee Candle and safety. "Why is there not enough time to double check but all the time in the world to do it again?" That kinda crap. At Old Navy, there is a couch, a TV with several DVDs (Spiderman, Mr. and Mrs. Smith), magazines, Dunkin Donuts boxes for all, and best of all, friendly faces.
I have to admit, I bought into their concept because if you're going to have a positive attitude towards work, it's going to be fun and easy. Old Navy promotes that to a tee. It was so influential that I actually went into Yankee Candle later that day upbeat and ready to work! Right now, they are figuring out the schedule for all the workers and I'm calling back on Friday to get my schedule for next week.
Well Alex, that's grand you got the temporary jobs all squared away but what about the big turkey, the piece de resistance, the Holy Grail, the environmental engineering job? Good news on many fronts. I have a phone interview tomorrow with a rather big firm. The DC job fair was a raging success as I have contacts of several government agencies and am expecting to hear from them soon.
Unfortunately, I will not be divulging much information about these job possibilities since I should respect the privacy of each company and agency. However, if you are interested in seeing if I will ever launch myself from my mother's basement, you still should check back in. All I can say right now is, I'm feeling hopeful!
Wednesday, November 18, 2009
Sunday, November 8, 2009
Crazy Overtime
After working 8am to 6pm today, I will have worked a grand total of 66 hours since last Monday.
Whew. Maybe it's a good thing I didn't get the Old Navy job. Remember how I got the interview last week to work as a shipper? The guy said that I was good to go and that a woman would call me shortly to set up an appointment for the New Employment Orientation (NEO) that would take place the following week. The interview was on Friday, she called me back on Saturday. Problem was, I was away at work and when I got home, my mom said that Old Navy called. I went downstairs to check the videophone but I saw no missed calls and no received calls from Old Navy. I asked my mom if she was talking about the call the previous week (she did call me to set up the interview with the guy on Friday) and she said she didn't remember. I assumed it was the week before and left it at that.
On Monday, I decided to call Old Navy back since I thought the woman was going to call back shortly. Before I made the call though, I decided to check out the new video option on the videophone and there was her message. My mom saw the video so it wasn't "new" anymore, which is why I must have overlooked it. I watched the message and DANG IT, she was trying to reach me. And I could've called her back later that Saturday.
So I made the call on Monday but she was out of the office until Thursday. Not good. I waited till Thursday and called again. Sure enough, I missed the NEO and they are not going to do an orientation just for one person. I'm guessing they hired a bunch of people at the same time as me and had everybody to go to one session. She said that she would reconsider me the next time they were hiring. In other words, sod off.
I was bummed but maybe it turned out for the best. I'm working so much overtime that maybe it's a good idea to relax?
Actually I've got to get going to work.
Whew. Maybe it's a good thing I didn't get the Old Navy job. Remember how I got the interview last week to work as a shipper? The guy said that I was good to go and that a woman would call me shortly to set up an appointment for the New Employment Orientation (NEO) that would take place the following week. The interview was on Friday, she called me back on Saturday. Problem was, I was away at work and when I got home, my mom said that Old Navy called. I went downstairs to check the videophone but I saw no missed calls and no received calls from Old Navy. I asked my mom if she was talking about the call the previous week (she did call me to set up the interview with the guy on Friday) and she said she didn't remember. I assumed it was the week before and left it at that.
On Monday, I decided to call Old Navy back since I thought the woman was going to call back shortly. Before I made the call though, I decided to check out the new video option on the videophone and there was her message. My mom saw the video so it wasn't "new" anymore, which is why I must have overlooked it. I watched the message and DANG IT, she was trying to reach me. And I could've called her back later that Saturday.
So I made the call on Monday but she was out of the office until Thursday. Not good. I waited till Thursday and called again. Sure enough, I missed the NEO and they are not going to do an orientation just for one person. I'm guessing they hired a bunch of people at the same time as me and had everybody to go to one session. She said that she would reconsider me the next time they were hiring. In other words, sod off.
I was bummed but maybe it turned out for the best. I'm working so much overtime that maybe it's a good idea to relax?
Actually I've got to get going to work.
Thursday, November 5, 2009
Payday
Today I remembered why I was doing warehouse work 40 hours a week plus an absurd amount of overtime. One word: MONEY. Checking my bank account online and finding a bigger dollar amount next to my name was worth getting through my first week and a half at work.
I won't bore you with the details of the daily grind since Alex has already done so but here's a few things I have to say. My hands are sore, and I have a bone to pick with Yankee Candle and their extremely short breaks. If I work overtime, my shift gets extended to 9 hours (10 if your name is Alex B) but I get a grand total of 32 minutes of break time. Sure, Yankee Candle will argue that they give you a total of 40 minutes for break (2-20 minute sit downs). I disagree with them and here's why...
4:30pm - Bell rings for break time. Run!
4:32pm - Sitting down in the break room.
4:48pm - Warning bell rings. Run back to work!
4:50pm - We have to be working or we'll be frowned upon.
That leaves Alex and I a grand total of 16 minutes to sit back and talk about our co-workers while shoving food down our throats. We'll repeat that same cycle at 7:30pm and hustle back out to the floor to do the group exercise (we'll save that story for another day). 32 minutes out of 9 or 10 hours of work? That doesn't really sit well with me! Does anybody know if this is against labor laws or anything?
Lastly, I'm tired of my bosses telling me to break down boxes when at any moment, I might need to re-make those same boxes to stuff candles and other products in. Talk about being inefficient!
I won't bore you with the details of the daily grind since Alex has already done so but here's a few things I have to say. My hands are sore, and I have a bone to pick with Yankee Candle and their extremely short breaks. If I work overtime, my shift gets extended to 9 hours (10 if your name is Alex B) but I get a grand total of 32 minutes of break time. Sure, Yankee Candle will argue that they give you a total of 40 minutes for break (2-20 minute sit downs). I disagree with them and here's why...
4:30pm - Bell rings for break time. Run!
4:32pm - Sitting down in the break room.
4:48pm - Warning bell rings. Run back to work!
4:50pm - We have to be working or we'll be frowned upon.
That leaves Alex and I a grand total of 16 minutes to sit back and talk about our co-workers while shoving food down our throats. We'll repeat that same cycle at 7:30pm and hustle back out to the floor to do the group exercise (we'll save that story for another day). 32 minutes out of 9 or 10 hours of work? That doesn't really sit well with me! Does anybody know if this is against labor laws or anything?
Lastly, I'm tired of my bosses telling me to break down boxes when at any moment, I might need to re-make those same boxes to stuff candles and other products in. Talk about being inefficient!
Monday, November 2, 2009
First Week, Check
I'm on my second week of work. It's been an interesting first week to say at the least. I worked 9 hours of overtime on top of 40 hours, packed a kajillion boxes of Yankee Candle products, broke down a million cardboard boxes, assembled billions of boxes, used 1.4 miles of tape, and almost got fired.
Well I might be exaggerating on the last one (and everything else) but a most interesting issue came up last Wednesday in the morning. I was packing boxes with cardboard paper and closing them before sending them off to the shipping department when my supervisor came up to me with these following words. "Hi Alex. An issue has been brought to my attention just now. It appears that it is a requirement for all employees in this facility to be able to respond to pages. Since you are (points to ears), we might have to transfer you over to another facility down the road where it is not a requirement for employees to respond or make a page. I am meeting with my supervisor this morning and we will discuss this. I will keep you posted."
Alright. I didn't say anything after that and as she walked away, I told Steve what she just told me and continued working. A little while later, I realized that I was definitely being discriminated at the workplace. Sweet! I knew that there was no way I would ever transfer over to the other facility, which is where they make the actual candles because of the following reasons,
1. The reason for having me transferred was BS. I can't respond to a page? Well maybe one of the 5 people that I always find myself surrounded with can let me know that someone at the other end of the factory needs help with counting candles. Reasonable adjustments can be made for this "issue."
2. I interviewed for the job, I'm on my 3rd day of training, I'm in a routine, and I requested this position. A few days later, they realize I'm not allowed to work there?
3. I'm going to stand up for myself. If I'm transferred, then it is essentially agreeing with them that deaf people are incapable of doing this kind of work.
I was going to have to be fired before I get transferred. I thought of reasons why they would make this paging issue such a big deal and came up with a few. Maybe they need more workers in the other facility but didn't want to "offend" me by taking away my preferred position and relocating me. That actually would have been okay with me. If they needed extra workers in the other place then sure, relocate me. Not because I can't answer a page.
Steve and I discussed the various ways we would bring up this issue and how we would address it (we hoped to whip out this statement, "the problem is not us, it's YOU!") but the entire thing was resolved in a couple days. My supervisor came up to me and told me that if I needed to page someone, I'd ask someone. And if I got paged, someone would let me know. Ah brilliant idea. However, I have to give them credit. They did resolve this issue within themselves and made the smart decision.
Other than that, everyday has been the same. I worked about 9 hours of overtime, one hour extra three times a week and 6 hours on Saturday. I can't complain, the money is rolling in! I'm scheduled to work 13 hours of overtime this week on top of 40 hours AND I got a call back from Old Navy about working as a shipper. Basically I would be responsible for unloading boxes from delivery trucks into the store and possibly some stocking in the backroom. It's a great second job- I work 4 hours in the morning from 8 to 12 three times a week. I had an interview last Friday with my potential supervisor and it all worked out great. They did ask me why I wanted to work at Old Navy. The honest response would be "Well bub, I just need some frigging money eh?" But of course I gave them the "oh I've come here since I was a Clearasil-using teenager and it was a dream of mine to hold a job here."
I'm expecting a call back soon this week about the training start date. It's all happening, except for that famed desk job I am seeking in DC! The job fair is only 10 days away, better start looking for the proper suit!
I now bid you adieu for I must travel to Yankee Candle to provide exceptional fragrances to people of all around the world.
Well I might be exaggerating on the last one (and everything else) but a most interesting issue came up last Wednesday in the morning. I was packing boxes with cardboard paper and closing them before sending them off to the shipping department when my supervisor came up to me with these following words. "Hi Alex. An issue has been brought to my attention just now. It appears that it is a requirement for all employees in this facility to be able to respond to pages. Since you are (points to ears), we might have to transfer you over to another facility down the road where it is not a requirement for employees to respond or make a page. I am meeting with my supervisor this morning and we will discuss this. I will keep you posted."
Alright. I didn't say anything after that and as she walked away, I told Steve what she just told me and continued working. A little while later, I realized that I was definitely being discriminated at the workplace. Sweet! I knew that there was no way I would ever transfer over to the other facility, which is where they make the actual candles because of the following reasons,
1. The reason for having me transferred was BS. I can't respond to a page? Well maybe one of the 5 people that I always find myself surrounded with can let me know that someone at the other end of the factory needs help with counting candles. Reasonable adjustments can be made for this "issue."
2. I interviewed for the job, I'm on my 3rd day of training, I'm in a routine, and I requested this position. A few days later, they realize I'm not allowed to work there?
3. I'm going to stand up for myself. If I'm transferred, then it is essentially agreeing with them that deaf people are incapable of doing this kind of work.
I was going to have to be fired before I get transferred. I thought of reasons why they would make this paging issue such a big deal and came up with a few. Maybe they need more workers in the other facility but didn't want to "offend" me by taking away my preferred position and relocating me. That actually would have been okay with me. If they needed extra workers in the other place then sure, relocate me. Not because I can't answer a page.
Steve and I discussed the various ways we would bring up this issue and how we would address it (we hoped to whip out this statement, "the problem is not us, it's YOU!") but the entire thing was resolved in a couple days. My supervisor came up to me and told me that if I needed to page someone, I'd ask someone. And if I got paged, someone would let me know. Ah brilliant idea. However, I have to give them credit. They did resolve this issue within themselves and made the smart decision.
Other than that, everyday has been the same. I worked about 9 hours of overtime, one hour extra three times a week and 6 hours on Saturday. I can't complain, the money is rolling in! I'm scheduled to work 13 hours of overtime this week on top of 40 hours AND I got a call back from Old Navy about working as a shipper. Basically I would be responsible for unloading boxes from delivery trucks into the store and possibly some stocking in the backroom. It's a great second job- I work 4 hours in the morning from 8 to 12 three times a week. I had an interview last Friday with my potential supervisor and it all worked out great. They did ask me why I wanted to work at Old Navy. The honest response would be "Well bub, I just need some frigging money eh?" But of course I gave them the "oh I've come here since I was a Clearasil-using teenager and it was a dream of mine to hold a job here."
I'm expecting a call back soon this week about the training start date. It's all happening, except for that famed desk job I am seeking in DC! The job fair is only 10 days away, better start looking for the proper suit!
I now bid you adieu for I must travel to Yankee Candle to provide exceptional fragrances to people of all around the world.
Tuesday, October 27, 2009
First Day on the Job!
Ah look at us, bright and energetic and ready to start the first day yesterday!
One word to describe the first day of work- exhausting. Sure, we only did 2 activities which were packing boxes with paper to keep the items from moving during shipping and putting labels on the boxes. But when you do it for 7 hours and 20 minutes (we have 2 20-minute breaks, the second break which I use the entire 20 minutes to consume a huge dinner meal), it really wears you out. There's a lot of bending over for the labeling of the boxes located at the bottom of the pallet. Then there's the lifting and putting them on the conveyor belt.
Work is kinda like mowing the lawn. Everything is so repetitive that the work you're doing becomes automatic and your mind is 3,000 miles away from where you are. I think I had a song stuck in my head for a good 2 hours, another time I thought about the Celtics season opener (WHICH I WILL MISS TONIGHT!!!!!!!) but mostly thinking about the fact that I was actually a factory worker. You see this stuff in movies (8 Miles with Eminem) and you figure you'd never do that kind of work but there you are.
I'm going to another building today at 12:15 to receive my picture for my badge ID and then I start working at 2. We're also working 1 hour overtime tonight and tomorrow night so we're working 2-11 both days. Hey, it's extra money.
Ladies and gentlemen, if you're working at a menial job, get a friend to do it with you. That's what friends are for huh?
Friday, October 23, 2009
Hot Off the Press
I, Alexander B, likewise got a job with Yankee Candle today. As it turned out, the call back to United Personnel was not doomed as I thought it would be. The lady on the phone said that a position might be open for me and that she would call me back later in the day.
This afternoon after enjoying a nice lunch of ham and cheese, I got the call back. I was offered an order processing position for $9.75 per hour. I'll be working 40 hours a week plus overtime.
Two months of searching and I have this job! Not too shabby since I'll be working alongside Steve and will actually be contributing something to the world, even if it is packaging candles and Santa Clauses.
The website will continue to run, as Steve and I still have our eyes on the prize- a desk job where we can update this website at any moment in the day.
Thank you all for your support!
This afternoon after enjoying a nice lunch of ham and cheese, I got the call back. I was offered an order processing position for $9.75 per hour. I'll be working 40 hours a week plus overtime.
Two months of searching and I have this job! Not too shabby since I'll be working alongside Steve and will actually be contributing something to the world, even if it is packaging candles and Santa Clauses.
The website will continue to run, as Steve and I still have our eyes on the prize- a desk job where we can update this website at any moment in the day.
Thank you all for your support!
Breaking News
Today at 3:00pm ET, I got a job.
If you order anything from Yankee Candle for the holidays, chances are that I am the one that will be putting together your order.
That's right. Steven R: Yankee Candle Order Processor.
I think I took a class at Northeastern that will help me excel in this position, whew.
If you order anything from Yankee Candle for the holidays, chances are that I am the one that will be putting together your order.
That's right. Steven R: Yankee Candle Order Processor.
I think I took a class at Northeastern that will help me excel in this position, whew.
Please Hire Me
Thank you for applying with _____,
I wanted to get in touch with you regarding your recent application. We had the hiring manager review your resume and we have identified a few other candidates for the position that we feel are a closer match for what we are looking for at this point in time. If you are interested in exploring other current opportunities, please visit our website.
Everybody knows the story here. Man finds a job he loves. Job doesn't love him back. I am not the first, and I won't be the last person to receive rejection E-mails but lately they have been coming in bunches. Aren't I due for some good news?
My name is Steven Roth and I am a recent graduate of Northeastern University (Go Huskies!) with a BS in Economics. Yep, I see the humor in it too. People have been known to share a chuckle or two at my expense because I entered the job market with an Economics degree at almost the exact same time the U.S. Economy tripped and fell flat on its face. It wasn't my fault, I swear!
Some days I try to submit at least one application but more often then not I'm too discouraged to even do that. There have been days though where I sit in a trance at my computer and send applications and E-mails for hours on end. Some businesses and companies are very professional and prompt in their responses but most of the times I don't even hear anything back. Hello? Did you get my resume? Did the internet connection break down? What's so hard about saying "Mr. Roth, I want to thank you for your resume. We will call you very soon." I don't care if it's a false promise. I really don't. I just want to feel exhilarated once in a while. I want to sit back knowing I made some progress.
I recently found a job that suits me perfectly at ESPN, Inc. I spent nearly a week writing and touching up a cover letter before submitting an application online. Did I get a response back? Actually, I did but it was one of those automated responses. There's nothing personal about that. I followed up a few days later and have yet to hear anything back. Discouraging.
My most promising job lead occurred back in the beginning of August. I applied for a government job working with Social Security knowing that they had an agenda to hire people with disabilities. I had a hearing loss that allowed me to use a Schedule A in my application. Boom. I went from the back of the line to the front of the line for this job. I got a callback and set up an interview with the office in Roxbury, MA. I woke up at the crack of dawn and drove two hours for my morning appointment. It went as well as I thought it could have gone. The interview lasted over an hour and I don't recall having a hard time with any of the questions they asked me. My resume looked great for the position and left feeling confident. I was told I would hear back from them in four weeks and I went on my way. Looking back, that four weeks was a red flag. Four weeks? I should have known that "we'll call you in four weeks" was the equivalent of saying "okay how do we end this nicely?" The next four weeks I impatiently waited for a callback, a letter or an E-mail. Four weeks turned into five weeks then into six weeks. I don't know exactly when I gave up hope.
It's been five months and twenty-three days since I walked in a clustered group of fellow graduates, had a microphone shoved in my face, hastily grabbed my diploma and posed for a picture with a Northeastern faculty member that I had never met before. Thank you H1N1 for taking away the traditional method of receiving my diploma on stage. Anyway, I digress. I apologize. Almost six months now that I have been sitting in the unemployed section of life. Six months! Sure having no job over the summer wasn't such a bad thing. I often found myself out on the golf course and as someone that regularly shoots in the mid-90's, I used my free time to practice and brought my career low score down to 82. Now that it is too cold for golf, I have turned to bowling with Alex. Half a dozen trips later to the bowling alley I've gone from bowling scores of 100-130 to peaking at 190. While it's an accomplishment, it also means I have too much time on my hands.
I need a job. My name needs to get put out there. Filling in applications and using various employment websites isn't doing the trick. Hopefully someone will stumble across this blog and get me on the right track.
Things to do today:
- Call United Personnel and hopefully grab a seasonal job at Yankee Candle. I might be overqualified to put candles in a box but hey, it pays money.
- Carve a pumpkin.
- Watch my beloved Northeastern Huskies play hockey against New Hampshire at 7pm on NESN.
That's it for this week. Monday is a fresh start.
Everybody knows the story here. Man finds a job he loves. Job doesn't love him back. I am not the first, and I won't be the last person to receive rejection E-mails but lately they have been coming in bunches. Aren't I due for some good news?
My name is Steven Roth and I am a recent graduate of Northeastern University (Go Huskies!) with a BS in Economics. Yep, I see the humor in it too. People have been known to share a chuckle or two at my expense because I entered the job market with an Economics degree at almost the exact same time the U.S. Economy tripped and fell flat on its face. It wasn't my fault, I swear!
Some days I try to submit at least one application but more often then not I'm too discouraged to even do that. There have been days though where I sit in a trance at my computer and send applications and E-mails for hours on end. Some businesses and companies are very professional and prompt in their responses but most of the times I don't even hear anything back. Hello? Did you get my resume? Did the internet connection break down? What's so hard about saying "Mr. Roth, I want to thank you for your resume. We will call you very soon." I don't care if it's a false promise. I really don't. I just want to feel exhilarated once in a while. I want to sit back knowing I made some progress.
I recently found a job that suits me perfectly at ESPN, Inc. I spent nearly a week writing and touching up a cover letter before submitting an application online. Did I get a response back? Actually, I did but it was one of those automated responses. There's nothing personal about that. I followed up a few days later and have yet to hear anything back. Discouraging.
My most promising job lead occurred back in the beginning of August. I applied for a government job working with Social Security knowing that they had an agenda to hire people with disabilities. I had a hearing loss that allowed me to use a Schedule A in my application. Boom. I went from the back of the line to the front of the line for this job. I got a callback and set up an interview with the office in Roxbury, MA. I woke up at the crack of dawn and drove two hours for my morning appointment. It went as well as I thought it could have gone. The interview lasted over an hour and I don't recall having a hard time with any of the questions they asked me. My resume looked great for the position and left feeling confident. I was told I would hear back from them in four weeks and I went on my way. Looking back, that four weeks was a red flag. Four weeks? I should have known that "we'll call you in four weeks" was the equivalent of saying "okay how do we end this nicely?" The next four weeks I impatiently waited for a callback, a letter or an E-mail. Four weeks turned into five weeks then into six weeks. I don't know exactly when I gave up hope.
It's been five months and twenty-three days since I walked in a clustered group of fellow graduates, had a microphone shoved in my face, hastily grabbed my diploma and posed for a picture with a Northeastern faculty member that I had never met before. Thank you H1N1 for taking away the traditional method of receiving my diploma on stage. Anyway, I digress. I apologize. Almost six months now that I have been sitting in the unemployed section of life. Six months! Sure having no job over the summer wasn't such a bad thing. I often found myself out on the golf course and as someone that regularly shoots in the mid-90's, I used my free time to practice and brought my career low score down to 82. Now that it is too cold for golf, I have turned to bowling with Alex. Half a dozen trips later to the bowling alley I've gone from bowling scores of 100-130 to peaking at 190. While it's an accomplishment, it also means I have too much time on my hands.
I need a job. My name needs to get put out there. Filling in applications and using various employment websites isn't doing the trick. Hopefully someone will stumble across this blog and get me on the right track.
Things to do today:
- Call United Personnel and hopefully grab a seasonal job at Yankee Candle. I might be overqualified to put candles in a box but hey, it pays money.
- Carve a pumpkin.
- Watch my beloved Northeastern Huskies play hockey against New Hampshire at 7pm on NESN.
That's it for this week. Monday is a fresh start.
The Idea
It was conceived on a surprisingly warm evening of October 22, 2009 at 1:22 AM. Steve and I bowled all night long until midnight when the alley closed down. We were kicked out to the curb so we used the opportunity to catch up with each other and to vent about the recent close call we had with a job.
Yankee Candle, the famous candle making factory that we all enjoy (ahh, the Clean Sheets scent), were looking to hire seasonal workers to help with their increased production for the upcoming holidays. I found the job posting on Craigslist.com and I called immediately to inquire of the position. They were still looking for people to hire so I quickly set myself up with an interview. I e-mailed Steve the link to the ad. He called later in the day and got himself an interview the day after mine. Hopes were high. We had been looking for any kind of a job for 2 months.
I was to interview with United Personnel, a staffing consultant firm that does all the hiring for Yankee Candle. Since the job is rather blue collar, I showed up to the interview with blue jeans and a polo shirt. Brimming with confidence, I walked into a simple office with 4 desks and a lady stationed at each. I went up to the one on the far right and introduced myself. "Hi, I'm Alexander B. I have an interview this morning at 10:30." I was immediately handed a form to fill out. Name, address, driver's license number, job history, referrals, such and such. The form was rather interesting as it had me do several math problems. There were multiplication problems (82x35), division problems (3578/14) and word problems (Tom is interested in a $150 stereo system. It was on sale for 10% off and if sales tax was 6.5%, what is the amount Tom would pay?). No calculators were to be used. After it was done, the woman beckoned me out to the back of the room and handed me a cup for the drug test.
"What do I do with this after I'm done?"
"Leave it out on the file cabinet."
With that done, I finally got my interview. It was with a pleasant woman whose name I already forget. It went as well as it could have. She asked me about my job history and I said nothing of my previous engineering internships because why would you embarrass yourself when they call your previous employers of your credentials? For instance, I worked at a very prestigious civil engineering firm in Los Angeles for 6 months. I worked directly under my supervisor who is kind of a big deal in the region. I can't imagine if this conversation could ever take place.
My real reference: "Hello?"
Lady from UP: "Hello, is this Greg? My name is ________ and I am from United Personnel in Easthampton, Massachusetts. I'm calling to check if Alexander B would be a good fit with the Yankee Candle company."
My real reference: "Alex? Oh he's a great kid, we loved him here. He was a fine worker with us but I don't think I've ever heard of Yankee Candle. Is it some kind of an engineering company out east?"
Lady from UP: "No it's a company that makes candles. Alex is very interested in working here."
Look, I graduated from a 5 year college with a degree in environmental engineering. I worked at 3 different internships. I still have my dignity and I'm not going to dole out my references like candy. They're for my real jobs.
I talked to the lady of my experiences as a counselor at the summer camp and how I learned a lot about teamwork (no, really!). I mostly discussed my duties as a mailman at Northeastern University. She seemed to be satisfied with my answers. After a few more questions, she had me fill out additional paperwork except they were direct deposit information, agreements and my preferences for positions within the company. Did I get the job already? She even gave me a paper that listed the orientation start time and location.
Excited, I texted Steve and told him that we might be working together for the next 2 1/2 months. He went through the whole process the next day and ended up with the same orientation time and location.
We attended orientation at the Yankee Candle factory with 12 others and watched 2 safety videos. Jennifer from United Personnel gave each one of us a packet that described the company's policies and discussed the length of breaks and how long our lunch hours were going to be. WE GOT THE JOB RIGHT?? At the end of the session, she went around the room and asked us which shift and position we were interested in. Steve and I quietly collaborated together and decided to do order processing/stocking during the 2nd shift. It's a great way to pass the time working side by side right? We ended orientation with a tour of the facility we were to work at. At the end of it all, Jennifer said she would give us a call the following Monday or Tuesday to let us know of a start time.
You can guess where this is going now. We never got the call. I called them and they said all shifts currently closed and that they would call us when one opens up. Um, I peed in a cup!!!
Now back to the bowling alley scene last night. We talked about our job hunt as a whole and how miserable it is. We came to some conclusions.
1. The world doesn't really need us.
2. We need to market ourselves better.
3. Launch a website.
So this is the beginning. I am writing this from my own mother's basement and I am sure Steve is over in his mother's basement watching NESN and reading ESPN.com at the same time. Quite frankly, we need a life and that begins with a job. Journey with us as we step out of the darkness of the basement and into the daylight.
I'm not sure what we hope to get out of this blog. Maybe this would help you to realize how fortunate you are to be in a nice job situation you may be in right now. Maybe you'll laugh at us in our failings. Maybe you can drop some advice and tips. Maybe you can lead us to the right places. Maybe you are in a similar boat and want to vent your frustrations.
To do today:
-Call United Personnel and receive my doom
-Follow up on my engineering job inquiries
-Prepare resume for career fair in Washington DC on Nov. 13th
Yankee Candle, the famous candle making factory that we all enjoy (ahh, the Clean Sheets scent), were looking to hire seasonal workers to help with their increased production for the upcoming holidays. I found the job posting on Craigslist.com and I called immediately to inquire of the position. They were still looking for people to hire so I quickly set myself up with an interview. I e-mailed Steve the link to the ad. He called later in the day and got himself an interview the day after mine. Hopes were high. We had been looking for any kind of a job for 2 months.
I was to interview with United Personnel, a staffing consultant firm that does all the hiring for Yankee Candle. Since the job is rather blue collar, I showed up to the interview with blue jeans and a polo shirt. Brimming with confidence, I walked into a simple office with 4 desks and a lady stationed at each. I went up to the one on the far right and introduced myself. "Hi, I'm Alexander B. I have an interview this morning at 10:30." I was immediately handed a form to fill out. Name, address, driver's license number, job history, referrals, such and such. The form was rather interesting as it had me do several math problems. There were multiplication problems (82x35), division problems (3578/14) and word problems (Tom is interested in a $150 stereo system. It was on sale for 10% off and if sales tax was 6.5%, what is the amount Tom would pay?). No calculators were to be used. After it was done, the woman beckoned me out to the back of the room and handed me a cup for the drug test.
"What do I do with this after I'm done?"
"Leave it out on the file cabinet."
With that done, I finally got my interview. It was with a pleasant woman whose name I already forget. It went as well as it could have. She asked me about my job history and I said nothing of my previous engineering internships because why would you embarrass yourself when they call your previous employers of your credentials? For instance, I worked at a very prestigious civil engineering firm in Los Angeles for 6 months. I worked directly under my supervisor who is kind of a big deal in the region. I can't imagine if this conversation could ever take place.
My real reference: "Hello?"
Lady from UP: "Hello, is this Greg? My name is ________ and I am from United Personnel in Easthampton, Massachusetts. I'm calling to check if Alexander B would be a good fit with the Yankee Candle company."
My real reference: "Alex? Oh he's a great kid, we loved him here. He was a fine worker with us but I don't think I've ever heard of Yankee Candle. Is it some kind of an engineering company out east?"
Lady from UP: "No it's a company that makes candles. Alex is very interested in working here."
Look, I graduated from a 5 year college with a degree in environmental engineering. I worked at 3 different internships. I still have my dignity and I'm not going to dole out my references like candy. They're for my real jobs.
I talked to the lady of my experiences as a counselor at the summer camp and how I learned a lot about teamwork (no, really!). I mostly discussed my duties as a mailman at Northeastern University. She seemed to be satisfied with my answers. After a few more questions, she had me fill out additional paperwork except they were direct deposit information, agreements and my preferences for positions within the company. Did I get the job already? She even gave me a paper that listed the orientation start time and location.
Excited, I texted Steve and told him that we might be working together for the next 2 1/2 months. He went through the whole process the next day and ended up with the same orientation time and location.
We attended orientation at the Yankee Candle factory with 12 others and watched 2 safety videos. Jennifer from United Personnel gave each one of us a packet that described the company's policies and discussed the length of breaks and how long our lunch hours were going to be. WE GOT THE JOB RIGHT?? At the end of the session, she went around the room and asked us which shift and position we were interested in. Steve and I quietly collaborated together and decided to do order processing/stocking during the 2nd shift. It's a great way to pass the time working side by side right? We ended orientation with a tour of the facility we were to work at. At the end of it all, Jennifer said she would give us a call the following Monday or Tuesday to let us know of a start time.
You can guess where this is going now. We never got the call. I called them and they said all shifts currently closed and that they would call us when one opens up. Um, I peed in a cup!!!
Now back to the bowling alley scene last night. We talked about our job hunt as a whole and how miserable it is. We came to some conclusions.
1. The world doesn't really need us.
2. We need to market ourselves better.
3. Launch a website.
So this is the beginning. I am writing this from my own mother's basement and I am sure Steve is over in his mother's basement watching NESN and reading ESPN.com at the same time. Quite frankly, we need a life and that begins with a job. Journey with us as we step out of the darkness of the basement and into the daylight.
I'm not sure what we hope to get out of this blog. Maybe this would help you to realize how fortunate you are to be in a nice job situation you may be in right now. Maybe you'll laugh at us in our failings. Maybe you can drop some advice and tips. Maybe you can lead us to the right places. Maybe you are in a similar boat and want to vent your frustrations.
To do today:
-Call United Personnel and receive my doom
-Follow up on my engineering job inquiries
-Prepare resume for career fair in Washington DC on Nov. 13th
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