It's a Harsh World Out Here

I generally try to avoid making negative statements about the world or my current lack of employment a central focus of the blog. At times I fail, but generally, I believe I succeed in keeping a positive if not humorous tone about it all. Today is a different matter. Today I learned a lesson in how not to do your job.

Today (yes, today is Saturday) at 3:00 p.m., I received a call from somebody named Justin (whose last name I can't recall but for some reason I think he said Combs). He made no mention of his company but was specifically calling to see if I was interested in a sales and marketing position with his company (or whichever one he was representing). When I asked if there was a title for the position Justin replied, "There is pretty much whatever you may want to do."

When I asked if there was a job description, Justin curtly informed me the company provides mortgage protection services. "What are mortgage protection services?" you might ask. I'm glad you ask because I didn't know either.

Apparently if you subscribe to or buy these services, when you die, your mortgage is paid for according to Justin. There are a few other services along these lines which apparently the company offers, but I really can't remember what they are. After abruptly describing these offerings, he told me that the company receives letters from individuals which require somebody from the company to call (I guess to confirm the consumer really wants to buy the service).

"Are you capable of calling people?" Justin asked. "Well, yes," I reasoned.

But that's all beside the point. What Justin really wanted to know was if I was available to meet someone on Monday to discuss the matter further. When I didn't respond directly to this question, he shuffled it back into the conversation a few moments later by asking, "So are you able to meet in the afternoon?"

To which I responded, "You know, I appreciate the call but I think I'm going to pass."

"You're passing?" Justin retorted. "You make business decisions based on a 10-second conversation!" he stymied.

"I do this time," I replied and hung up the phone. Did I mention I was in the process of toweling off when Justin called? You know you're dealing with class when the interested party (I can't bring myself to call Mr. Justin a recruiter):

1. Can't tell you the name of the company he works for or represents when he calls you
2. Is trolling resumes on Monster.com on a Saturday afternoon
3. Calls you to schedule a Monday "business" meeting/interview on a Saturday afternoon
4. Refers to "business decisions" as if they are more important than breathing on a Saturday afternoon

Hey Justin, you are a complete ass. It may just be the company you work for, but deep inside, we ALL know it's just you shining through.

Nice Uptick

Hopefully it results in something positive (and a paycheck), but this week has provided some very nice mojo for both the job search and life in general. And none of it has anything to do with a bike.

I got to meet some really nice people at the Kentucky Poverty Law Center and will be helping both the Center and one of their programs (CKEEP) with some marketing efforts. Of course, this meant I finally had to bite the bullet and buy some pricey software for myself. But the deed is done and we're moving forward. :)

With that software also comes the potential for truly starting my own company. Though it wouldn't be filling a niche, it can provide some random income to help get us back to where we used to be financially.

Finally there is some unexpected progress in the job hunt. Nothing bike related (wake up please industry) but two positions that would keep us in Lexington both called to conduct or schedule phone screens. Hopefully I have spoken (or will speak) well enough to proceed. I'm even boning up before 6:00 am on a Saturday morning to try and finally get this monkey off our back. Hopefully he'll find some bananas soon because my credit card is starting to wear out.

Get out and do something fun!