Boredom and Necessity

I wouldn’t say there are drastic improvements, but there are improvements in my life. I have two companies interested in my services (though they’re taking their sweet time in letting me know to what extent) and an interview with a third tomorrow. Best case scenario: I get part-time gigs at all three. That would be great for variety, contact-building, filling out a full-time work week, and … maybe that’s it.

My wife had a successful interview today as well. Two incomes means we can wipe out our student loan debt, get dental checkups, and eat out a couple times a month while rebuilding our savings. I guess eating out isn’t really among our priorities. If I had the extra money, I’d just buy more homebrewing supplies and start a second batch, and Rebecca would return to acupuncture.

It’s been so hard to find work. I blame the Bush administration: when Clinton was in office, jobs were falling out of the sky for me like snowflakes. I worked everywhere, from architectural firms to the psychology department, from the college of business law to investment consulting. When Bush stole the office (he was never legitimately elected) the jobs dried up—even staffing agencies went out of business. And he left the economy and job market in such a shambles that Obama’s had to struggle mightily (cleaning up Bush’s disaster and fighting a contrary, spiteful Republican-headed Congress) to succeed at any endeavor.

Now he’s finally turned unemployment around, a proven and substantiated fact no conservative pundit or candidate will ever admit, but it hasn’t quite reached me yet. Other jobs are available but the market is such that businesses are still budgeted tightly and unwilling to spend on advertising, which means less work for the agencies that would hire/contract me. And while I don’t like encouraging consumerism, I love working in that creative industry. The alternative is to put on a tie and attempt to explain social media tech to my supervisor in a cube farm. I’ve done that before and it’s not fun and it’s not secure.

But I’ve had some positive interviews at great places lately, and I have reason to hope.