The Hunt is On
Tuesday, Jul. 09, 2019 6:38 PM

With care and devotion... work is love made visible. - Elizabeth Lucas

The sprinkler guys came to dig my trench yesterday for the electrician to hook up my well, but they also started putting in my sprinkler system. The electrician told me to not let them do that for some reason I can't remember, but by the time I figured out they were putting all the pipes into the ground, it was too late. Now I fear that something is going to get screwed up and it will be more money out of my pocket, money that I don't have. I was also afraid that they'd hit something they shouldn't because when my nephew came over to mow the lawn on Sunday, his dad removed a bunch of the flags that were in the yard showing where gas lines, etc. were. I guess I'll find out Thursday when the electrician shows up if I'm pretty much screwed.

Yesterday, I had my interview with the church. It was my 6th interview, and perhaps the best interview, I have experienced. I took a lot of time getting ready for it, trying on a bunch of different outfits before settling on a white dress with black on the bottom and black and pink polka dots all over it. I almost wore a dress that was more fit for a date thanks to my mother, but I settled on a more conservative one. She had parked behind me on the driveway and when she went to move her car she forgot her keys. By this time, I was really pushing it time wise. By the time she finally moved her car out of my way, I had 10 minutes before my interview was to begin. Fortunately I live less than a mile from the church. When I got to the church, it had just finished raining so when I climbed out of the car, my glasses fogged over completely so I couldn't see. I took them off and made it into the building, wiping them off and hoping I wasn't late. I'm not sure if I was or not, but they didn't mention my tardiness or make weird eye contact towards the clock so... Anyhow, I made my way to the church office and rang the doorbell, which I found out I didn't have to ring. I sat down and the current receptionist, Amanda, put me at ease by talking to me about various things and I just kept saying under my breath, "the lord is my shepherd. There is nothing I shall want. He leadeth me to greener pastures" - which isn't even how the psalm goes. Ha!

As for the interview itself, I was prepared for most of the questions. I did my research and I thought thoroughly about what I wanted to say if they asked the questions most online sites stated they would ask. They asked me what my strengths were. I told them I was very friendly, and that I was very good with Microsoft Office, especially excel. I told them I was organized and stated how I love to make lists and prioritize tasks in order of importance. If two tasks are of the same importance, I always finish the shortest task first to get it out of the way. Then I told them that I also color code everything. I then told them that I was excellent at typing and could type 76 words per minute under pressure. I can type more than that when I'm not being tested. Then I told them that my weakness is being shy but you wouldn't know it by looking at me. They didn't even ask me for my weaknesses. I just volunteered that information! Never do that. Never never do that.

There were a few questions that threw me like, "what three words would your friends use to describe you?" I almost wanted to say, "what friends?" But then I thought about what my report cards in grade school always said about me so I said, "They have said to me that I always have a smile on my face so I guess that would go along with being friendly, that I'm extremely approachable, and that I have a high intellect - which I find is very nice to hear from your friends because I value intelligence."

Another question that threw me was "what is your biggest failure and how did you deal with it?" I had no idea how to answer that because I honestly can't remember any failures in my life when it comes to work. But of course everybody has failed at their job at least once, right? I was drawing a huge blank so I just said, "You have to understand that I have worked for my dad for years, and it's very hard to separate "dad" from "boss," so when I messed up on something, I went to him and asked him for guidance on how to fix it. And I know that he won't always be there to help guide me or fix things, but he has taught me over the years the skills I need to deal with mistakes." There was more to that answer, but it was the one answer I think I really screwed up on.

No, I take that back. They asked me some question that I can't even remember now, and I went off on a wild goose chase for the answer and lost track of my thoughts. Then I said, "I'm sorry. This is the first interview I've ever given (LIE!!)," and proceeded to turn bright red and blush. They told me I was doing a great job, but I wonder if they were just being kind since one was a priest and the other just an extremely nice lady. She repeated the question for me and I answered it, after fanning my face and saying, "See, I told you I was shy." UGH!

I did mention my background with Sociology which led to a discussion about Kent and his alcoholism and my divorce. I also mentioned why I hadn't been to church in decades, which brought up my brother being homosexual. It feels like I gave them too much personal information but with the questions they asked, it felt important to give them that information so they would have context to my answers. I'm sure I botched the interview compared to the other candidates, but you live and learn and figure out what and what not to say doing these things repeatedly, right?

Other than that, I was very good at answering the questions. They were very impressed with my resume and loved the fact that I had a lot of Sociology in my background. I feel I may be overqualified to be a church receptionist, but I also don't feel like I'm good enough at accounting to be more than one. There was one question where my answer was, "well, I'd take a deep breath, look to the sky and say, 'help me, God!'" I did make them laugh a lot so who knows? We shall see. I guess it depends on who I'm up against for the job.

Part of me feels like I'm going to get it just because I had thought, "the perfect job would be doing what Martha H., my old kindergarten teacher, was doing." And then that week in the church bulletin, they were looking for someone to fill that exact position. The other part of me feels like I completely tanked it. I have to keep reminding myself that if I don't get it, it's okay. Something will fall into place.

I put myself on indeed.com and another oil company expressed interest in me. I selected the button that I was interested, even though I don't think I am what they are looking for. They are seeking an accountant and the job description basically states they are wanting a controller. I don't have an accounting degree, and my controller experience isn't as in depth as what they are seeking. The way I figure it, I'll use this as a back-up to the interview I had yesterday, and, if it fails, use it as interview experience. Maybe they want a glorified bookkeeper who has basic knowledge of the oil and gas industry. If so, then the job might be perfect for me. I think it's funny how many people on indeed are interested in me based off of my resume, even though most of what I do is in QuickBooks.

Anyhow, I must get going. My mother just called looking for me. Deep sigh!