Gotta brag

I am feeling quite satisfied with myself right now!

I applied for a job as a grant writer about a month ago, and then last week got a follow-up email asking me to do a phone interview.  I did that yesterday, and had an in-person interview today, and it went really well!

Let me back up.  First of all - Amber's looking for a job?  What?  Yes, it's time.  I don't know what's going on with my emotions and stuff but screw it I have to do something, challenge myself.  And if it's a bad idea, well then, God please put up obstacles for me.

I scheduled the interview - "Two o'clock on Tuesday?  Works for me, I look forward to meeting you!" - and then panicked, because a) I have nothing to wear (I haven't bought any professional clothing since I've gained twenty pounds since working at Panasonic) and b) my car is currently deader than a doornail that keeps getting temporarily revived for mere seconds with electric shock and then dies again.

So what did I do?  Of course, I called Angela, who had offered to take me clothes shopping today.  "Hey Angela," I emailed her, "Maybe can we do our shopping in the morning instead?  And then can you drive me to my interview and just hang out while I do that?  kthxbye."  She was awesome and picked me up at 10:30 and we went to Banana Republic  (a store I've never been to, because, I realized, I hate bananas and I always associated that store with bananas) and almost immediately found me some comfy nice pants, a cute fitted top, and a cardigan!  I looked so great, if I do say so myself.

Then we went to Nordstrom Rack and found some shoes that fit and looked good!  And we were done!  We had lunch at my house, I printed out my "writing portfolio" (really just a collection of my best academic work, but that's all I have right now unless I want to give her the link to my Expert Sinner blog, um, no thanks) and then we went and Angela waited for me for like an hour and a half!

Anyway, here's where the bragging part came in...I rock interviews and I rocked this one.  The lady told me she had read about a hundred cover letters and MINE was the best!  I grudgingly credit one of my English professors for making us apply to a fake job and then tearing apart our cover letters with red font.  Yep, if anyone wants my cover letter for a proven BEST template, just send me $39.95...just kidding.  But seriously, if you want to see it, you can have it!

Anyway, she said there are some other amazing candidates too, and implied that I was one of the top ones...really, the interview couldn't have gone better.  I think she's only done phone interviews with the other candidates, so hopefully my in-person interview goes better than theirs...ahem, unless God wills otherwise.  Really (I was telling Angela) I am happy for the interviewing experience, even if I don't get the job.  I feel so confident.

And since I don't need a job really badly - like, we'll still be able to pay our mortgage whether or not I'm employed, which is a luxury many can't afford - I'm really, truly ambivalent about whether I get this particular job.  I don't know if I can handle a full time job with stress and stuff, but there's no way to know until I do it.  I have the time, and the skills, and at the moment I have the drive.  So I just have to trust God to carry me from here.  There have been other jobs I've applied for and some of them pay better and seem easier, so who knows!

Oh, and I don't have a picture to post (when do I ever?) but Angela took a picture of me in the kitchen in my interview outfit just as I was about to swallow a birth control pill.  You can't see the pill but it's on my tongue and I am probably smiling weirdly because it's weird to smile while you have a pill on your tongue!