An Open Letter to All the Random Companies I've Never Heard of that Recently Contacted Me

Dear Recruiter,

Thank you for your recent unsolicited pushy phone calls/form emails where you forgot to fill in all the blank spots. That disruption to my day was much appreciated and made me really happy that I recently updated my resume on a job posting website.

Speaking of which, no, I do not believe you have recently reviewed my resume "on line" because if you did, you would have noticed that I am a copywriter and am, in fact, not looking for a full time sales position (there's supposed to be a hyphen between "full" and "time" in that instance, by the way). And if by some far stretch of the imagination you actually read my resume and realized that I was a copywriter, I must admit it scares me and does not make me want to work with you knowing that you do not realize that a copywriter would not make a good sales person.

Take a moment to consider this, if you need to.

I'll give you a hint: I prefer to communicate in writing. Getting there? No? While it's not a universal truth, you can generally assume that people who spend a lot of time perfecting the art of the written word are not spending that time talking to strangers they don't know and convincing them to buy things they don't want to buy. Personally, I'm a bit awkward at times and sort of a recluse. I have cats. Plural. So yeah, probably not a great fit. I always wanted to be a writer so that I wouldn't have to interact with a lot of people all the time. I don't like phone calls, (thanks again for that second follow-up call to tell me about why I should reconsider a promising career in sales), and I don't like talking to people I don't want to talk to. (Pause for emphasis).

I also don't own a single business suit. Again, I'm a writer, so I mainly dress in leggings and oversized sweaters. Lots of scarves too. I just got a Zombie Apocalypse charm bracelet that I've been wearing a lot too. If that actually is acceptable attire for your sales position, please let me know because I will give you a big thumbs up and tone down the snootiness a little.

But no, even then, I still wouldn't want to set up a time to discuss an opening in your corporation (is it just me or does that sound like a serious medical condition?). I know you weren't asking; you brazenly told me that you are willing to interview me for that coveted sales position and tried very hard to imply that I would be lucky to work for you. Sadly, that was not the message I inferred.

I wish you all the best as you continue to prey upon innocent people who are trying to better their lots in life and find new career opportunities. You're right. It's their own fault for thinking generic job posting sites are a convenient way to apply for jobs they are actually interested in. You showed them.

Kudos for trying to make your company look legitimate, though. In my younger days when I was fresh on the job market and eager to figure out what I wanted to do with my life, I actually fell for it once or twice and made it to the "interview" where you try to convince a group of naïve recent grads that they'll make so much money if they work for you ... but you don't actually pay them. You only get paid when you make a sale. So for me, you never get paid. But at least you opened my eyes and helped me learn what I don't want to do with my life. Thanks for that.

Best of luck in continuing to waste everyone's time.

Sincerely,

Ms. Copywriter
Not a Sales Person

My New Job: No, I Will Not Become a Professional Napper

I know it's been a little while since my last post. Things have been changing quickly in my life (hence the subject of this post) and I've just been trying to keep up with the transition. But I wanted to officially announce that I have been offered a new copywriting position at a new company in East Syracuse! I'm very excited to be working with graphic designers and to have the opportunity to put a little more creativity into my work. And my favorite part about this new endeavor? It's part time. :-)

That's right. I'll actually have time to have a life again! No more giving up weekends to run errands and clean the house. We're hoping that with all the extra free time I'll have, I'll be able to tackle all the chores and projects around the house, run errands and hopefully work on my own writing and DGuides.com a lot more, all while Chris is at work. So when Chris is home, we should just be able to play games and enjoy ourselves. We'll see how it works out. That's a best-case scenario, of course. Well, add in nap time and it's a best-case scenario. haha But even if I can't get everything done that I want to on my days off, it should still make a significant difference in our happiness levels and just overall well being. (Think planning dinners and cooking more, keeping the house clean, playing with kitties, etc.) Who knows,  I may even start running on the treadmill on mornings I have off.

Anything is possible.

So this Thursday is my last day at Virtucom, the company that Dr. Evil forgot. lol jk We're celebrating by heading out to Turning Stone to see Lewis Black that night (Chris actually bought the tickets as my birthday present this year) and then we'll have a nice three-day weekend to relax before starting my new job next week. Now to just get through my last four days as a full-time employee ...

It's not a job, but ...

I was just offered an editorial internship with Destination Ad Agency. For the next 12 weeks, I'll be writing and editing pieces on New York City for their newest tourism page. It should be a great experience and really help tighten up my writing. Also, the more work I can present to future employers as proof of my talent, the better off I am.

I'm really happy to have the opportunity to do this, even if it would be nice to have a paying job right about now ... But in this economy, I guess all things considered, I'm still pretty lucky. And with only a 10-hour-a-week time commitment, I can still have a job if I can get myself hired somewhere. :-)

Bob the Realtor

Chris and I decided a month or two ago that we would begin casually looking for a house. It all started when we went to get haircuts at Bayberry Hairstylists. Chris's stylist, Nina, mentioned that she had just bought a small house and only pays $400 a month for the mortgage and taxes. Until then, we weren't sure if we would even buy one this year, but we figured it was worth taking a look.

Nina gave Chris the card of Bob Allen, her Remax Realtor. We sent him an e-mail and a few days later, he had us meet with a mortgage guy from Bank of America to get an idea of our price range and how much monthly payments would be. As it turns out, we could easily find the kind of house we wanted--sort of small, not too big of a yard, but with a spacious living room--and pay less or equal to what we pay for rent now.

Sounded good to us, so we started browsing through listings that Bob sent us. We got busy for a few weeks (see Disney World posts, lol) and didn't look at any houses for a while. When things slowed down, I started going to look at a few houses with Bob while Chris worked and brought home the bacon so we could afford a house. haha The list of possible houses grew, and we started to narrow down what exactly what we wanted.

Yesterday, Bob and I dragged Chris along to go back over the 4 houses I thought Chris should see. Funnily enough, we liked houses all over the spectrum. There's a great little houses for $59,000 with an unfinished attic that could easily be turned into an enormous master suite. There was a nice one for $74,900 that needed some cleaning and a kitchen makeover (pictured above). And then there was a large 1600-square-foot home with four bedrooms and no work needed (pictured below). We decided we could see ourselves living in any of them. We were all set to go back and discuss our options when Bob sprang another one on us: a small ranch for $89,000 that just went on the market the day before. Only two bedrooms, one bath, but new roof, furnace, siding, hot water heater ... you get the picture. So we decided to swing by on our way home and see if we could get in to see it.

We pulled up to a very sweet little house in a gorgeous suburb. We realized then what all those cute little city houses we had already looked at were missing: the house was set back a bit a ways from the road, and there was so much space between it and the neighboring houses. It felt completely different than the other houses.

We were eager to take a look inside. The seller's agent was still at the house, taking pictures and getting things cleaned up. We even watched her wrangle the "For Sale" sign into the front lawn. Lucky us, Bob managed to get us in to be the first people to see the house. It was clearly built in the 1950s (Bob said it was in the second generation of houses built after WWII) and obviously decorated in the 1970s. Bright green shag carpeting, old paint on the walls, bad wallpaper, the whole package. haha

But the living room was spacious, the master bedroom bigger than many of the ones we've seen, and a large kitchen with plenty of counter space. It met just about all of our requirements. Because of the great neighborhood, we knew it wouldn't be on the market long. We circled around a few times, talked through where the furniture would go, planned out future projects like putting sliding glass doors in and a deck out back ...

We headed home to get lunch and talk things over. About an hour later ... we put in an offer on the house! We drove over to the office last night to sign the papers, and Bob was going to try to track down the seller's agent right after we left. So now we wait. (I've come full circle and am back to playing the waiting game. haha) We're hoping to hear something soon, and I'll be sure to post the news right away. Fingers crossed that we'll get it ... and that I'll be able to tear out those awful carpets easily if we do. :-P

Okay, I've made a decision ... I think

I talked to four professors at Syracuse University teaching in the Advertising program about what the program would offer me. I met with the president of a local advertising company to find out what he looks for when hiring someone new. I even interviewed for an advertising internship with a different ad company. And after all that, I determined that this particular program isn't exactly right for me.

As for the journalism program, I'm just not sure it's right either. I'm starting to think that I'm not going to attend either of the graduate programs at SU. While they are both excellent, prestigious programs, I just don't think the value of that education for me would be worth the price tag. If I end up going to grad school for anything, I think I would try to get accepted into a Master of Fine Arts creative writing program.

I know, I know. I've had such great luck finding a job with my undergraduate degree in creative writing, you must be wondering why I would ever consider getting another degree in an area that won't get me a job. Well, I guess my only answer would be: because I love it. Writing is my passion in life. Becoming a full-time, published writer is my dream; it's not a job, but it's a part of who I am. Any more money that I put into my education needs to be helping me get closer to my real dream, and not just a job that may or may not be an adequate fit for me.

Decisions Decisions

Life has very quickly gone from waiting for months and weeks for one thing or another to a great big avalanche of information to process and consider.

After attending the Masters Preview at Newhouse for the two graduate programs I was accepted into, I was more confused than ever about what to do. I'm unsure which--if either--program is the right fit for me. I have a meeting this afternoon to talk to some of the Advertising professors about the program. I'm just worried that I'm paying to be trained for a job I might not like, or that I could get hired now with a company and work my way up slower and learn from the actual company. It's a huge decision and I just don't feel like I have enough information.

So I decided to enlist the help and advice of some of the advertising companies in Syracuse, to get a different perspective on my situation. I've heard back from a few, and one even wants to meet with me to discuss an internship this summer! It's unpaid, but it still sounds like a really great opportunity. Now I've got to schedule meetings to talk with several advertising executives and hopefully gain a little insight on the right path for my future.

To top it all off, I just found out that I've been awarded the Dean's scholarship for whichever program I choose at Newhouse. That certainly makes the prospect of attending the Masters program a little more managable financially, but I still need to find out if it's right for me.

I guess I better come up with a list of questions to ask the Newhouse professors in a few hours.

Life = ahhhhhh

Such Creative Whimsy finally has a pretty graphic on our shop's site on Etsy.com. It's just something I made from a picture I took in Jamaica, but at least it's something nice to look at on the site. Only one item for sale in our shop still ... but that'll change soon enough.

Been busy lately trying to get my car officially registered for NY, getting new insurance, figuring out a direction in life, and so on. Basically, I'm discovering that the transition to becoming an adult is hard.

Also, I'm realizing that not taking a GRE at the end of my undergraduate career was a mistake. I recently decided that I'd like to apply to grad school, but I have no test scores to submit. This means that for the next few weeks, I'm going to have to cram like crazy so I can take it and submit my scores before the grad school application deadlines. Fun stuff, right? The lesson here, kids: plan ahead. Cover your bases from the get go.

Oh! I forgot to mention this great online boutique I found. It's called Lavender Hill Studio . If you're looking for awesome mosaic works, this is the place to look. The artist is awesome.