Is the Suspense Killing You?

So what did I decide?  Well, as I was continuing to pray about whether or not I should accept the job, I had a phone interview for a different company, this one a consulting firm.  I thought it might help to lend some clarity on the issue.  Ian suggested that I tell the interviewer that I already had an offer to urge them to make me one as well.  I decided to do this, but only after the interview was done so that the person on the other side of the phone could first see what I had to offer.  If they knew I had an offer somewhere else, they may not want to even conduct the interview.

Anyway, when I told the interviewer that I had an offer, she asked which company had made the offer.  When I told her that it was RJM, she told me that not only had she heard of them but that she had heard very positive things.  Then she said that in her twenty years working as a recruiter, she's enjoyed working for engineering firms more than IT or consulting firms.  She told me that she thought that I should take the offer from RJM, but she also asked for my contact information on LinkedIn so that she could stay in contact with me and find out how I actually like working for the firm.  Crap-in-a-hat, that's a good endorsement!

I walked back to my cubicle with a huge grin on my face and, after offering a final prayer, emailed my contact at RJM to accept the job offer (and I got a confirmation of my acceptance from her yesterday).  As much as I wish I had gotten an answer to my prayer right away, I can see why waiting was beneficial: I got a strong endorsement for the company; I got a chance to think about working elsewhere, even if I never got a second offer; and I had to wait for the answer instead of getting instant gratification, thus making the answer all the more meaningful (and I knew it wasn't from me because I wanted to accept from the beginning).  I really like the idea of working at an engineering firm and that we, as a company, will improve the world in which we live.

Needless to say, I'm super excited - not just to work as a technical writer, but to work as a technical writer for RJM Engineering.  I've worked hard to get to this point and now a whole new kind of hard work begins.  Here's to the future!

Job Update

Remember RJM Engineer?  I wrote back an email this week to check in and see how the decision-making process was going.  The response that I got back was less-than-encouraging:

Thanks for your email.  In our more recent discussions on this position, it was agreed that a mid-level candidate with some direct experience would be the best option if we can find that type of person.  If not, we would follow-up with an entry-level candidate such as yourself.  I think that process will take a few more weeks.

Having read her reply to my email, I was understandably crestfallen.  However, I saw chance to still get hired, albeit a small one.  After telling me that they want someone with more experience, she asked me why I would be a good fit.  Since I am a trained technical writer, I would be a fool not try to argue my qualifications.

So I replied back with as professional a letter as I've ever written, arguing three skills that I would offer the company (I learn new things quickly, I'm good at organizing information, and I approach problems logically and analytically), backing up each point with actual experience from work or my internship.  I hoped to at least be the top candidate if a more experienced applicant could not be found.

Her reply was surprising:

Thanks for your email.  You must be a good writer because you convinced us that hiring you would be a good idea!  Therefore, I’d like to offer you the position of Technical Proposal Writer.

An actual job offer!  Holy crap!  She goes on to mention my salary and benefits package, as well as a start date of May 13th (which means that I wouldn't even need to give notice at my temp job).  After reading that, my jaw dropped open and I couldn't close it for what seemed like several minutes.

Now, while I am super-excited, I haven't gotten confirmation from the Holy Ghost yet that I should accept.  I am probably 98.7% sure that I'll take it, but I'm trying to wait patiently.  I replied back that I would have my answer by this afternoon (I was prompted by the Spirit to set that deadline), so I guess I'll know some time before then.

Even if I don't take this job (which I'll be surprised if I don't), I want to thank everyone that offered prayers on my behalf.  Also, Ian and Amanda for inviting me into their home to allow me even look for work in this area in the first place.  And, of course, our Heavenly Father who blessed me with the revelation to move here.  It took a lot of faith to move here and now, after a little over a month later, I have my first job offer in my professional field.  Wow.

I'll let you know what I decided by Monday, but don't be surprised if I accept.

Local Style

As I was driving to my temp job the other morning, I saw a sign for a business that I hadn't seen before.  According to the sign, this particular business specializes in yacht insurance.  That struck me with some impact.  Yachts and their particular form of insurance is so far removed from my life and experience that I didn't know what to think of it.  I remember thinking, That is something that I am unable to relate to.  That really shouldn't be surprising (that I can't relate to it), but yachts are not apart of my life to the point that I had never even thought about them having owners or needing insurance.

Since then, I've noticed that there are a lot of sailing themed businesses and shopping centers.  For example, I saw a bank yesterday that the building was designed to look like a sailboat: it had a three large, completely useless triangles coming out of the roof in such a way that they looked like sails.  Apparently, people in Annapolis like sailing and boating (which includes yachting).

This is not so different from other places I've lived.  In Stillwater there were a lot of cowboy themed businesses (Cowboy Laundry comes to mind) and in So Cal there were a lot of surfing themed businesses (Longboarder Cafe, anyone?), so having lots of sailing themed places is just the style here.

Interestingly, just like seeing cowboy stuff everywhere did nothing to increase my school spirit, seeing sailboating stuff all over the place does not suddenly make me want to go sailing.

Time Keeps on Slippin', Slippin', Slippin' ...

As mentioned before, I enjoy going for a run around the neighborhood.  While I'm out running, I usually pass by several other people walking, running, and cycling.  When I get close, I'll casually wave and give them a tight-lipped smile, just to be polite.  In almost every case, the other person responds similarly (though I've noticed that women are more likely to actually say "hi," while men tend do a head nod or hand wave).  Except for teenagers.

Anyway, the reason I bring this up is because I notice who is traveling nearby and on my latest run I passed by a teenage girl wearing a Nirvana shirt.  I realized as I was continuing on my way that this girl was wearing a classic rock tee, similar to if I had been wearing a Rolling Stones or Black Sabbath shirt when I was in high school.  Now, I should mention that while I was too young to appreciate Nirvana when they were a band, I do remember being aware of them enough that when Kurt Cobain died, I knew who he was, even as an eleven-year-old.

Even though Nirvana hasn't been a band for nearly twenty years, it still feels weird to have a band that was around during my lifetime be considered "classic."  The easiest way to describe it is to say that it makes me feel old, but it's more complex than that.  I was alive during Nirvana's existence, but I was too young to be considered their demographic.  When bands like Interpol or The White Stripes are considered classic rock, I'll feel old, but this isn't quite that.

What this feels like is a step in that direction, and while we aren't there yet, it feels like a reminder of how close we're getting ("Just another ten years!").  That, in many ways, is an odder feeling.  I think we've all had a moment where we feel old, even when we aren't really (I remember saying "I feel so old!" several times during my senior year of high school).  But feeling like you aren't really old, just getting closer to being old, is a bit creepier.  Time hasn't suddenly crept up you without warning, it's walking slowly toward you, unrelenting and unstoppable.  Sounds like a horror movie, right?  But growing older isn't scary, it's just a part of life.  Change is scary, and growing older is a very strong reminder that life isn't the same anymore.

However, this coming from a man who's moved to a place he's never been before just over a month ago and working a job that's unlike anything he's ever done before.  Aging just doesn't seem that daunting right now.

Limitations of the Written Word

I recently wrote an email to someone close to me suggesting that we chat.  I wrote the letter in a playful way, teasing the person and suggesting that they were selfish for not speaking to me sooner.  However, my sarcasm was not properly conveyed and this person's feelings were hurt.  We were able to hash things out and I explained that I was joking and that I meant no offense (there was a winking emoticon, after all) and they accepted my apology and we agreed that I should not use sarcasm in emails.

This is just another example of the limitations of the written word.  Tone, facial expression, body language, and even cadence convey so much information that's lost when everything is written down.  I remember reading script after script while on my high school's speech team, looking for something funny to perform in the Humorous Interpretation (HI) category.  I was frustrated that so many comedies just weren't that funny.  One of the other members on my team chose one of the scripts that I had passed over and won the State finals.  So much of the humor came from how he performed the piece and he really did deserve the State title (one of the local newspapers even said that he was California's funniest high schooler).  When I wrote the email, I thought that the joke would be obvious because of how blatantly I praised myself, but it came across as me being obnoxious.

I have thought before that English needs a symbol to convey sarcasm (and I'm not the only one) but still we lack one.  Perhaps this is because writing is more formal than speaking.  We don't have to worry about punctuation or spelling while speaking and we don't even have to pay attention to where one sentence ends and another begins.  Due to this formality, maybe allowing sarcasm (or at least making it easier to use) in writing would add a crassness that it's better to not have.  Maybe it forces the author to be more creative when joking, since sarcasm is a very basic form of humor.  Or maybe future generations will find a way to more easily convey sarcasm and employ it.  Punctuation is a fairly new invention, after all.

Take What You Can Get

I have a job.

Not the one I wrote about earlier, but a different one working for the Maryland Department of Information Technology.  Also, it's temporary, so I may still work for RJM after all.  But since the folks at RJM have to think it over, it makes sense to take a temp job in the interim.

While I'm excited to be working again, my manager is super weird and he spent two hours explaining what my job was and he did it in such a way that I didn't really know what he wanted me to do.  After fiddling with the files I was assigned, I knew enough about it to go back and ask questions.  He didn't really do any better the second time at telling me what to do, but this time I had figured out enough on my own that I actually understood what he was saying.  Still, his second explanation took more than an hour.  That's nearly half the day wasted by my boss.  To be fair, as weird as he is, I've had worse supervisors.

Even with the annoyances that come with it - and the fact that I've been assigned a super boring project (and that's saying something coming from a technical writer) - I'm still super happy to be working.  It can definitely bring a guy down when he has to spend all his time applying to jobs, so even after one day, I feel much, much better.

Fun Uncle Jordan

One thing that I do from time to time, is keep my niece and nephew occupied while their mom and dad are busy.  Often this means that I'll play with them.  I've downloaded some appropriate games on my tablet that we've played, but with the weather warming up, we've been playing outside more lately.

One game that they liked a lot was simply a game of catch, except that we use dodge balls and we bounce them to each other instead of simply tossing them.  Yesterday we were playing this and Henry came up with the variation that instead of me tossing the ball so that he could catch it, I should make the ball bounce gently off his head.  After the first bounce off his head, his response was, "Cool!"  Clara must have thought so too, since she joined in.

After that, they ran up to where their swing set is and asked me to push them on the swings.  I obliged.  Their response was lots of giggling and shouts of "I'm in the sky!"  Since Clara's older, she has more experience on swings and was able to pump her legs which helped to stabilize her and that meant that I could push her a little higher.  Henry, being a year younger, had trouble with the timing and every time he started to get a little height, started drifting to one side and I started worrying that he would smash into Clara.  I did coach him, but his coordination is still developing so the timing was too much for him.  Still, both kids loved it and I think the only reason they ever got down was because they were called in for dinner.

Playing not only kept the kids busy while their parents were fixing dinner, it also helped to work up their appetites.  Henry usually has trouble eating much of his dinner, but having been outside for a while, he ate everything and asked for more (mind you, he still needed reminding to eat, but he still finished everything).

It's super enjoyable to be the "fun uncle" since I get to play with the kids without having to dish out discipline when they act out.  I could totally get used to this.

Maryland of Opportunity Indeed

As many of you know (because I texted you), I had my first interview for a real job since I got here and it even happened yesterday, one month to the day since I moved here.  If I was superstitious, I'd be freaking out right now.

I interviewed at RJM Engineering, a small engineering firm that mostly works on public works projects (roads, sewer drainage ponds, etc.).  I interviewed with the Vice President first (like I said, it's a small company) and she seemed to be impressed with how I said I approach new problems (research) and with my willingness to learn a new field.  After her, I interviewed with the head Administrator and she mentioned that liked that I have experience in organizing data and that I don't have to necessarily have to write everything fresh.  Finally, I spoke to the lead Engineer who kept asking me the same question, apparently not aware that I had answered it a couple of times already (I finally just repeated myself and that seemed to be enough).  Throughout, all three women asked me questions about my skills as a writer and what attracted me to technical writing over some other form (for the record, my answers were "top notch" and "I love to help create documents that can be plainly understood," respectively).

Part of the reason that I interviewed with so many people is that the position I interviewed for is brand new and hasn't existed at the company before.  The role of Technical Proposal Writer requires a lot technical writing, yes, but also a lot of marketing (since the proposals are presented to clients to convince them why they should hire RJM) and engineering understanding.  (I thought it was funny that the additional disciplines I'll be using represent the careers of my three brothers-in-law - Jason and Eugene are engineers, though different kinds, and Bryan just finished his MBA in marketing.)  The reason for the new position is that laws have changed recently and RJM can expand their business while still taking advantage of their old tax brakes, and they decided that it was time to bring in someone that had a writing background to replace the role that had usually been filled by administrative personnel, which is great news for me.

Now the bad news: I have to wait two to three weeks (!) before they'll make a decision.  The Vice President met with me at the end again and told me that she's impressed with me and thinks that I would fit the role pretty well, but that she has other candidates to met with before she makes a decision.  I still feel super-pumped about it and I think that it was one of the best interviews I've ever had.

Extra prayers on my behalf would be appreciated.  If I didn't answer all of your questions, ask them in the comments so that everyone can be apart of the discussion.

The Weather Never, Ever Does a Thing for Me

I made a mistake when I tried to post this, and it didn't post at the time I intended.  I apologize for its' lateness.
 
When I first started going on my runs here, I had to wear long pants, a hoodie, gloves, and a hat.  It was cold and I had to adjust to it.

Yesterday when I ran, it was in high 70s.  I actually got dehydrated (not terribly so, but enough that I was significantly slower than I should have been).  It was less-than-fun.

However, that run was the only time I left the house.  I may not be an outdoorsy-type, but I also recognize that staying inside all day will make a person crazy (or in some cases, crazier).

On the bright side, my feet have been cold since I got here, so it's nice to know that that won't be an issue for a while.

(10 points if your recognized where today's title came from.)

Renewed

Life is hard.  While I feel that this phrase can be applied to just about anyone regardless of age or circumstances, it rings particularly true for me right now.  Some days I'm working to increase my light, while others I'm simply fighting to keep the darkness back.  Throughout the course of my life I've discovered some useful tactics that are good to keep in mind when life is more positive and absolutely essential when life is more of a struggle.

Take out the trash.
Just like a house that is full of refuse is difficult to live in, going through life with mental garbage will make an already challenging life even harder.  How you get rid of your mental waste will probably differ, but for me, I need a good run.  There's a road near the house that is a complete loop which, when including the short distance from the house, is 3.7 miles (according to Google maps).  I've been running this loop two or three times a week for the last two weeks.  I've improved my time gradually (39 minutes to begin with and down to 32.5 minutes Saturday), but what's most important about these runs is that my it clears my head.  It's amazing how moderate physical activity can have such a profound impact on your mental and emotional well-being.

Refill your lamp.
As important as my trips around the neighborhood are, reading the scriptures is more important.  Some days I only need to read my three chapters and I'm okay, but other days I need extra help.  On days like this, I'll open a church manual or read part of an Ensign article.  The point is that the Savior commanded us to "Let your light so shine ...", but how can we if we have no oil in our metaphorical lamps?  That's why it's always nice to have General Conference roll around to help uplift us.  I especially enjoyed all of the talks that focused on the life of Christ and how we need to increase faith in him.  It was also nice to see more than a few talks that were directed at the youth and primary-aged children.  And did you notice the emphasis on missionary work?  All of it was helpful to me in helping to increase my light.

As mentioned at the beginning, using these tactics won't make life easier, but they will make living through the trials possible and help you feel renewed.

Davey and the Dragon

“Davey, wake up!” his mother called from down the hall.  As he slowly sat up in bed and rubbed his eyes he thought about how much he was looking forward to the day.  A smile came across his face as he thought about the picnic at the park.  Even though he was eagerly anticipating the events of the day, waking up was never fun.  Nevertheless, it wasn’t long before he was up and dressed (he decided on shorts and a t-shirt with a dragon picture on it).

Davey moved into the living room where his mom was tying Janie’s shoes.  “Good to see you up, Davey,” she said looking up at him.  “Why don’t you go into the kitchen to see if your dad needs any help with the food.”  She then turned and looked at his little brother, who was in the act of sneaking up on the sleeping cat.  “Barry, what have you been told about bothering Sprinkles?”  Davey left without hearing his brother’s response.  In the kitchen, his dad was packing the cooler with food for the trip to the park.

“Hey there, kiddo,” his dad said with a smile.  “Ready for a fun Labor Day barbeque?”

“Oh, yeah,” Davey said with a broad grin.  “I’m going to eat more hotdogs than anyone else!”

“Really?  Even more than Janie?”

Davey scoffed at the very idea.  “Dad, she’s three.  She’ll have one.”

“Okay.  So, do you think you’ll have more than Barry?”

Davey was seeing where his dad was going with this conversation and decided to jump to the conclusion.  “Yup, I’ll even eat more than you.”  As he said this, he looked wryly his father, waiting for him to be shocked at his challenge.

“Oh, my!  Well, I’ll need to pack extra pickles to go with all the hotdogs you’ll be eating.”  Davey’s face twisted into a mask of disgust.  “Alright, more pickles for me then.  Can you grab the hotdog buns over on the table?”

As Davey obeyed the request, he heard his mom call from the living room.  “Walt, are you finished in there?”

“Just about,” was the response from Davey’s dad as he finished packing the cooler by placing the blue plastic ice pack in it and shutting the lid.  Having finished with the cooler, he packed the non-food items like plates and napkins, as well as a bag of potato chips and the buns that Davey had brought over, into a red plastic basket.  With both containers packed, Davey’s dad pick up the cooler and asked Davey to grab the basket and follow him out to the car.

As they walked out of the kitchen and into the garage, Davey thought about how much he liked helping his dad.  It made him feel like the big kid that he knew he was, but it also seemed like his dad enjoyed his help as well.  By the time the cooler and basket were in the trunk next to a bag of charcoal and Davey’s dad had closed the trunk with a THUNK, Davey spoke up.

“Dad, I was thinking about today and how you are going to cook the hotdogs.”

“Yeah,” his dad said with enthusiasm, “I know that you said you were going to eat more than anyone else.”

“Uh-huh.  Well, I was thinking about it, and I think that I should help you cook them.”

“Whoa,” Davey’s dad said.  He crouched down to better look Davey in the eye.  “I know that you want to help, but the grill can be very dangerous.  I don’t want you to have an accident and hurt yourself.  I think the best way that you can help me is by playing with your brother and sister and keeping them away from the grill.”

“No, Dad,” Davey said with conviction.  “I’m a big kid.  I can handle it.  You should let me help.”

“Yes, you are a big kid, but you still aren’t a grown-up.  Only grown-ups can work the grill.”

Davey could feel himself changing.  This had happened before when things wouldn’t go the way he expected them to.  He felt … hot inside.  And he would make his hands into fists without thinking about it.  His mouth felt tight and he would clench his teeth.  He knew that the feeling was called anger, but it was different for him than other people.  When Davey got angry, it was like he was a different person.

With his dad still looking at him, Davey started to argue.

“Bobby Templeton’s dad let him cook on their grill and he’s only six-and-a-half,” Davey said defiantly.

“Bobby Templeton’s dad is not your dad.  You mother and I don’t want to take the risk of you hurting yourself.  It’s better to be cautious than sorry.  We’re only looking out for you.”

“Dad, you’re being so mean!” Davey was raising his voice now.  “I’m seven-and-three-quarters and I’m old enough to help you!”

Davey’s dad stood up and looked at him sternly.  “You do not raise your voice in the house; you know better than that.  Now, I’ve explained to you why it won’t work and you need to accept it.  Come inside and wait while we finish getting ready.”  Davey, getting angrier by the moment stomped his feet loudly as he went inside.  His dad called after him, “Stop stomping, Davey.”  Davey didn’t care what his dad said.  He was old enough to help!  His dad was just being mean for no reason.

When Davey got inside, Barry was crawling on the floor of the living room, pushing a toy car and making engine noises with his mouth.  Davey was so mad at his dad that when he saw Barry having fun, it just made him angrier.  Before he could even think about what he was doing, Davey stepped on Barry’s hand that was controlling the toy and then twisted his foot.  Barry screamed and started crying.  The boys’ mother rushed in and started shouting.

“Davey!  What are you doing?!”  She quickly picked up Barry and looked at his injured hand.  “Why would you do that, Davey?”  Before Davey could answer, she immediately sent him to his room.

Davey’s change was complete.  He stomped off to his room, angry at everything.  He was angry at his dad for not letting him help cook, he was angry at Barry for having fun (for some reason), and he was also angry at himself for losing control again.  When he got to his room, he slammed the door closed and sat on his bed breathing heavily.

He could hear Barry still crying and his mom and dad talking about how Davey was out of control again and what would they do about him.  He wanted to take it back or at least say he was sorry, but he knew that he couldn’t do that.  He didn’t know why he couldn’t, but he knew that apologizing wasn’t an option.  He just didn’t want to be there anymore.  Davey got up from his bed and opened his closet door, went inside, and closed the door behind him.  He wished that he could be somewhere else because he had caused so much trouble and he didn’t even know why.

After a few minutes, Davey noticed that he couldn’t hear his mom and dad talking or Barry crying anymore.  That probably meant that his punishment was going to start now.  Probably no TV for a week and he would have to do all of Barry's chores, too.  But his dad (who always laid out the punishments) never came in.  Davey started to worry that maybe they left for the park without him.  His anger now panic, Davey threw open the door to his closet and was about to run in to the living room when he saw that his room was different.  His bed and desk and other furniture were gone, as were the walls and the ceiling and even the floor.  It looked like he was in some sort of cave that was filled with gold.  The only light came from some torches on the walls of the cave that was bigger than his whole house.  Not knowing what else to do, he walked toward the gold, which was made up of coins and armor and scepters and dishes and was all heaped in a big pile, and called out: “Hello?”

Suddenly, the pile started shifting and Davey could hear a muffled voice speaking from beneath it.  “Whffs drre?” the muffled voice said as the pile continued to move.  Suddenly, the gold erupted with the head of large, red dragon.  The dragon had a long, serpentine neck and was covered in scales with two large, bony horns coming out of the top of its head before curling around the sides (the horns reminded Davey of a bighorn ram’s).  Its mouth was filled with long white teeth that poked out of the sides of its mouth even when it was closed.  As the dragon’s head finished emerging, it blinked its heavy eyelids and yawned with its massive jaws (which sent out a small fireball towards the ceiling).  While seeing all of this, Davey wasn’t afraid; he was awestruck.

“Cool!” Davey exclaimed.

The dragon looked over at Davey with its large yellow eyes and spoke with a deep voice.  “Who are you and what are you doing in my cave?  You haven’t come for my gold, have you?”

“My name is David Walter Greene with an E at the end, but I go by Davey.  I don’t know how I got here and I don’t want your gold.  Are you really a dragon?”  Davey could barely contain his excitement.

“Of course I’m a dragon,” said the dragon, a little annoyed.  “My name is Granpaugh and I was enjoying a nap buried under my gold until you came in.”

“Your name is Grandpa?” Davey asked.  “That’s weird.”

“Really?” Granpaugh asked with one big eyebrow raised.  “How many other dragons have you met?”

“Um, none others,” Davey said lamely.  “I mean, you’re the first one I’ve met.”

“So, if you’ve never met any other dragons, how do you know that Granpaugh is a ‘weird’ name?”

“Uh, I guess I don’t.”

“As a matter of fact,” the dragon said smugly, “Granpaugh is a perfectly good dragon name.”

“Sorry, sir,” Davey said, wanting to make friends with the very first dragon he had ever met.

“Anyway,” Granpaugh said, changing the subject, “if you’re not here to steal my gold then what are you doing here?”

“Actually,” Davey said, “I don’t know how I got here.  I was in my closet and when I came out, I was here.”

“That explains why there’s a closet here now.”  Davey turned to look and saw that his closet was sitting in the cave, unconnected to the house where it belonged.  The dragon continued: “I think what happened was that some magical energy got near you while you were in the closet.  Did you make any wishes while you were in there?”

Davey thought for a moment.  “Yeah, I wished that I was not at my home.”

Granpaugh nodded.  “Magic tends to be attracted to strong emotions.  Had you recently done anything that made you feel especially happy or sad?”

Davey suddenly remembered his argument with his dad and the following tantrum.  He looked at the floor of the cave, feeling ashamed.  “Yeah, I was just sent to my room for hurting my brother, Barry, and I just wanted to get away.”

“I think that’s it.  You feeling bad about being sent to your room, combined with your wish, brought you here.  Well, Davey, the energy that brought you here needs a few minutes to reset before it can take you back.  Why did you hurt your brother?  Did he steal your gold?”

 “No,” Davey said, feeling bad for what he had done.  “He didn’t do anything to me.”

“So, why did you hurt him?” asked Granpaugh.

“I don’t know.  I was mad at my dad for not letting me help cook the hotdogs for the picnic and when I saw Barry having fun it made me even more mad.  I don’t know why I get angry like that.  I just do.”

Granpaugh looked at Davey thoughtfully.  After a moment he spoke.  “I think I know why.  My sister used to hurt me when she was mad so that I would feel just as bad as her.  I was too small to fight back, so I would hide in our clan’s pile of gold.”  Davey nodded.  He would get angry and would just lash out so that other people would feel bad, too.  Something else that the dragon said made Davey think.

“Is that why you like gold so much, because you used to hide in it?”

“Maybe,” Granpaugh said, looking bashful.  “Girl dragons are bigger than boy dragons, so hiding was easier than facing her.  The world can be scary, but you always know what to expect with gold.”

Davey saw how similar his experience was to Granpaugh’s, though Davey was more like Granpaugh’s sister.  “Maybe,” Davey said, “she feels just as bad about what happened as you do, but she’s afraid to say anything.  Maybe if you talked to her, she’ll say that she’s sorry.”

Grandpaugh looked uncertain.  “I don’t know.  I don’t want her to hurt me again.”

“Well, I feel bad about hurting my brother and I want to say sorry when I see him again.  Maybe your sister feels the same way.”

“Maybe ...” Granpaugh said, his voice sounding more optimistic.

Suddenly, Davey noticed a bright light coming from behind him.  He turned to look and saw that his closet had a bright blue glow surrounding it.

“Quickly,” Granpaugh said sternly, “get back in your closet and wish to go back home.”

Davey ran back towards his closet, but paused before going through the doorway.  “Will I ever see you again, Granpaugh?”

“I don’t know, but if you don’t go right now, you could be trapped here and I’m not sharing my gold.”

Davey smiled at the dragon being so protective about his gold once again.  He took a deep breath and went through the doorway, closing the door behind him.  Once inside, Davey closed his eyes and wished to be back home.  When he opened his eyes, he could hear his dad call his name.  He opened the door to his closet and continued out of his room.

When he got to the living room, his dad was sitting on the couch waiting for him.

“Davey,” his dad said, “why were you sent to your room?”

“Because I hurt Barry,” Davey said calmly.  “I was angry that I couldn’t help you cook and when I saw Barry having fun, I wanted him to unhappy like me.”

Davey’s dad looked a bit surprised.  “Alright,” he said, “it sounds like you’ve thought about this.  You can’t take out your bad feelings on other people.  Now, you need to apologize to Barry.”

“Okay.”

“And try not to take out your anger out on other people.”

“I’ll try,” said Davey.  “I don’t want to hurt people anymore.”

After a heartfelt apology, Davey was told what his punishment would be for hurting his brother: no TV and he had to do extra chores around the house, but only for two days.

Despite the chaos of the morning, the family was still able to enjoy a fun time together at the park.  Davey played with Barry and Janie and helped to keep them away from the hot barbeque, which was a way of helping his dad cook.  But he still didn’t eat any pickles.

THE END

Quit Wasting My Time

So, I had a job interview yesterday.  Kind of.  Not really.

Let me explain.  I got a call Monday evening from an employee at a nearby insurance agency.  I've been contacted through email by several insurance agencies for sales positions, but I've just ignored them because I am uniquely terrible at sales (I've had two sales positions in the whole of my life and both of them ended with me being fired due to a lack of sales) and I don't want to waste my time.  However, there were two positions available: Account Executive and Manager.  Well that sounds alright, so I agreed to meet for the interview, especially since the employee told me that she liked my resume that she saw on one of the various job sites that I have a profile on.

The interview was mis-titled since it was a presentation to me and six other individuals about how great it would be to be salespersons for this company.  [Sigh ... ]  I knew within two minutes of the presentation that I wasn't going to take any job they had ("Account Executive" is just a salesperson and managers are also required to sell in addition to managing salespeople), but I didn't want to be rude and just walk out so I waited for a break in the presentation which never came.  At the end, the person presenting (a different person than the one who called me) asked us all to pass our resumes forward and thanked us for our time.  I (very obviously, since I was sitting up front) didn't pass any resume forward and left, annoyed that I had just wasted so much time (it was about a forty minute drive each way).

I should say that I had a feeling that there was a very good chance that this would be a sales position, but I went anyway with the hope that it wasn't.  When I left, I was more than annoyed, I was crestfallen.  I've been applying for jobs like crazy and I finally got an interview.  I was hoping for catharsis and when I didn't get it, I was more than a little disappointed.

However, (to end on brighter note) after speaking to the Ward Employment Specialist on Sunday, I learned of a meeting on Tuesday that will be great for networking and getting contacts.  Here's hoping that leads to something.

Happy Birthday to Me

As promised, dear reader, I will reveal what was done in celebration of my birthday this weekend.  First of all, we had to postpone the trip to DC to visit a museum (I had decided on the Smithsonian American History Museum) due to a necessary trip to the doctor because Henry had an ear ache.  Totally necessary and totally fine.

Instead I went here:

Ian and I went to the DC Temple in the morning and it was what I really needed.  The DC Temple was very beautiful and it was great to go with my brother again.

That was great, but there was more:

Amanda went to Sprinkles and bought me some birthday cupcakes.  That was the first one that we all split.  Yes, that cupcake was split five ways and it was not disappointing.  It was super rich, so only a fifth of it was actually totally satisfying.

After the kids were put to bed, the grown ups had Chinese food and watched a movie (it was entertaining enough).  All in all, not a bad birthday.