Windy’s Blog

Well, praise God, I finally landed a professional job in HR again, after being out of that arena for almost 5 years. I guess I made a good impression with the Interviewer Who Cried, after all!

Today was my first day back to the early morning schedule, and it was a challenge. I set an alarm clock, plus my cell phone alarm so that I would not over sleep. The first alarm went off, and I looked at the time on the clock and realized that it was about 40 minutes fast! I must have pushed the time button when I dropped the clock the other day and didn’t realize it. So I decided to fall back asleep because it was too early. When the cell phone alarm went off, I was still sleepy but finally dragged myself out of bed only to face the realization that since the cell phone was a back up, I’d set it for a later time. And now I was running behind schedule!

Into the shower I went, dressed, etc. and had just enough time for a cup of coffee and a granola bar. I could barely see out of my puffy eyes, and just chalked up the puffiness to my not being awake. I put my contact lenses in, and off to work I went.

The current HR Manager is leaving in two days, so I have to somehow learn all of the policies and procedures of the company from her in that short amount of time. Yeah, it ain’t gonna happen like that.  But I know over time, I will succeed at this job. I feel this is a new beginning, and I’m so ready for that!

By lunch time, however, I could barely see out of my right eye. Apparently the puffiness earlier was not just from lack of sleep. I am fortunate that this job is close to where I’m living, so for my lunch break I drove home and took out my contact lenses. I had to go back to work with my glasses and hope that I could see better. That really didn’t work out too good either.

Yesterday I had gone to the store and purchased a nice notebook and a couple of good ink pens, so I was all set to take notes. I jotted down as much as I could. However, for some reason my penmanship (which is poor to begin with) always gets worse when I wear my glasses. I do not understand why this happens to me, but it does. So I now have 4 pages of notes that I cannot read, with or without the glasses!

Tomorrow we are having a pot luck luncheon at work. I had decided to make a jello salad because it’s easy and my sister gave me a quick recipe with mandarin oranges to put in for more flavor. As I was leaving work I was thinking of the jello project. I walked out of the building with the Manager and as we said “good night” to each other, I added “Well, I guess I’ll go home now and make the jello for tomorrow.”

She looked at me for a second, then said “WHY?????”

I explained about the pot luck, which she had apparently forgotten about. “OH! ” she replied. “I was wondering why you were going to make jello to bring in!”

It was such a funny moment. Nothing like making an impression with your company by leading them to think you are crazy on your first day. Yep, that’s how I roll I guess. At least we ended the challenging day on a good note.

And yes, I came home and made the jello.

However, there’s a story with that also. You see, my sister had told me to drain the mandarin oranges and to add the juice from those oranges in replacement of one of the cups of cold water. But I forgot that and added the juice as part of the boiling water instead! I will find out in an hour or so if the mistake mattered. After my day today, I’m just glad that I had enough sense to make it at all!

So it’s on to a new adventure for me, yet again. And this time, I’m bringing the jello!

When I was a girl my mother used to say to me ”Cindy, marry a man much younger than you, so you can train him.”

This advice was given from a woman who married a man (my father) nine years her senior. But it was a different time back in the late 1940’s, and early 1950’s. My Dad was 27 when he and Mom were married in March of 1950. That was considered “old” for that time. Most men his age had already married, built their first home, and had a few kids by the age of 27. But my Dad enjoyed the single life, I guess.

So there was no “training” him, as my mother would put it. Quite set in his ways, my father was not to be “trained” by anyone. Thus, perhaps, the reason why my Mom was so insistent on telling the girls to marry a younger man!

I thought about my mother’s advice the other evening as I was at work. I walked by a young man and stopped to look at him because he was fiddling with his belt buckle while several others stood around discussing the design on it. I gave him a quizical look and he said “Come on, Cindy, you know you want some of this,” and we all laughed.

My mother’s comment came back to me and I thought “Heck, no.” The youth of today are just that to me now: young. They have way too much energy and have been brought up in a world where material concepts overshadow the substance of ideals. In a nut shell: I would have nothing in common with them.

So I can’t see that I will be using my mother’s advice, but I will continue to pass it on in her honor. You never know, really, my life is fairly un-predictable. It could happen.

Nahhhhh….

The other day I had a job interview for a better position with my current employer. It was one of the most bizarre interviews I’ve had. I’ve been on several interviews over the last four years and, quite frankly, I’m getting sick of trying to sell myself to prospective employers.

The same questions are asked in almost every interview: what are your strengths? what are your weaknesses? and the inevitable “where do you see yourself in 5 years?” Sometimes I feel like saying “honey, I don’t even know where I’ll be next MONTH, never mind in 5 years!” But of course I answer that I’ll still be working for that company, blah, blah, blah.

So the along with those typical questions, I was asked several others and we discussed the current situation at the company. The woman who is currently in the job is leaving because she’s relocating. As we started to talk about her, the interviewer became quiet. I looked at her and saw tears in her eyes!

Here I was trying to do my best to sell myself and now I had to be a comforting presence to my future boss! She was going on and on about how she will miss the current manager, etc. So what was I supposed to do? I could have rushed through the moment, explaining how I will be an even better manager, really digging in with comments that would show how choosing me for the job will make her forget all about the one who is leaving.

But I took the sympathetic approach, allowing her to take time out of “my” interview to discuss the other worker. I’m not so sure that was the best thing to do, but I am hoping that I chose the correct way to handle the situation.

My niece suggested to me that maybe it was a “test,” to see how I would handle emotional people. But I’m not so sure if it was intended that way. I think it was an unplanned moment of weakness for the boss. The whole matter makes me wonder if I even want to work for such a person. Crying while interviewing a candidate is a bit unprofessional, don’t you think?

Well, I should find out in a few days if the tear-filled interview was a success or not. Either way, the situation gave my something to think about and provided material for my blog today!