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ziasudraGot three weeks' worth of laundry washed and dried, and it's not even 10 a.m. yet! Ah, my day is done ;)
A little update on my lottery apartment: I went to see it, and it's beautiful! A real one bedroom -- not like the ones they advertise on Craigslist. All new appliances, temperature adjustment thingy in each apartment, spacious living room/kitchen area, closets, laundry on-site, live-in super... all those nifty things. I'm still not going to consider the place "mine" until I have the signed lease in my hand. I'd hate to be disappointed if for whatever reason the deal can't close as planned.
This means I'll need to look for a subletter to take my place starting May 1 or so. Maybe I'll stagger the move just like I did when moving out of 6K. I still feel like I've just moved and don't really fancy hauling everything from one place to another again. Having a month-long moving period makes it look less daunting to me somehow.
I've been feeling sick all week. Caught some sort of a stomach bug Monday and couldn't keep in anything I ate... except oatmeal. My body seemed to have declared oatmeal its bff over the past few days. Slept a lot and paid a lot of visits to the bathroom. I finally felt better yesterday and began to eat normal food again. Even managed to try some of the meatloaf that![[livejournal.com profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/external/lj-userinfo.gif)
sunnydlita made!
Every once in a while, I'd surf random articles on Yahoo HotJobs or similar sites, just for fun. Lately I've been reading some articles on how to have a good interview. I suppose I was trying to do my "homework" now that our organization is trying to hire development staff and I get to interview potential candidates. Boss Lady still does 90% of the interviewing, but I don't want to sit next to her feeling like a third wheel intruding on a two-person dialogue.
There are always lighthearted articles on what to do/not to do at interviews. I'm always amused by the anecdotes that HR experts share in these articles about disastrous interviews, and would think something along the lines of: "Nah... who except for a few special cases would sabotage their own interviews like that?"
I think you can all see where this is going. I now have a Very Odd Interview Experience story of my own to share, featuring one potential part-time job applicant who committed a hefty sum of job interview faux pas and in the end still believed they were perfect for the job. It was a painfully awkward interview, trying to get the applicant to give anything other than a one-word answer, to share their experience, to give a reason other than "I need the money" for why they want to work at the organization. I know when Boss Lady and I look for new hires, we try to find someone who would be a good fit personality-wise as much as skill-wise. The person's tendency to overuse large, intelligent-sounding words (when small words would more than suffice) aside, I just... didn't get a good vibe about their self-portrayal as someone whose only goal in life seems to be to collect trophies and go for what is conventionally accepted as "good" without giving thought to whether that particular something matches their ultimate goal in life.
Anyway. I'm still processing the experience ("odd" was the first word that came to mind as soon as it was over), but my gut reaction from the interview was similar to Boss Lady's, so I don't think I was being overly critical. More than anything, really, I'm just amused. In a headdesky-for-the-job-applicant way.
A little update on my lottery apartment: I went to see it, and it's beautiful! A real one bedroom -- not like the ones they advertise on Craigslist. All new appliances, temperature adjustment thingy in each apartment, spacious living room/kitchen area, closets, laundry on-site, live-in super... all those nifty things. I'm still not going to consider the place "mine" until I have the signed lease in my hand. I'd hate to be disappointed if for whatever reason the deal can't close as planned.
This means I'll need to look for a subletter to take my place starting May 1 or so. Maybe I'll stagger the move just like I did when moving out of 6K. I still feel like I've just moved and don't really fancy hauling everything from one place to another again. Having a month-long moving period makes it look less daunting to me somehow.
I've been feeling sick all week. Caught some sort of a stomach bug Monday and couldn't keep in anything I ate... except oatmeal. My body seemed to have declared oatmeal its bff over the past few days. Slept a lot and paid a lot of visits to the bathroom. I finally felt better yesterday and began to eat normal food again. Even managed to try some of the meatloaf that
sunnydlita made!Every once in a while, I'd surf random articles on Yahoo HotJobs or similar sites, just for fun. Lately I've been reading some articles on how to have a good interview. I suppose I was trying to do my "homework" now that our organization is trying to hire development staff and I get to interview potential candidates. Boss Lady still does 90% of the interviewing, but I don't want to sit next to her feeling like a third wheel intruding on a two-person dialogue.
There are always lighthearted articles on what to do/not to do at interviews. I'm always amused by the anecdotes that HR experts share in these articles about disastrous interviews, and would think something along the lines of: "Nah... who except for a few special cases would sabotage their own interviews like that?"
I think you can all see where this is going. I now have a Very Odd Interview Experience story of my own to share, featuring one potential part-time job applicant who committed a hefty sum of job interview faux pas and in the end still believed they were perfect for the job. It was a painfully awkward interview, trying to get the applicant to give anything other than a one-word answer, to share their experience, to give a reason other than "I need the money" for why they want to work at the organization. I know when Boss Lady and I look for new hires, we try to find someone who would be a good fit personality-wise as much as skill-wise. The person's tendency to overuse large, intelligent-sounding words (when small words would more than suffice) aside, I just... didn't get a good vibe about their self-portrayal as someone whose only goal in life seems to be to collect trophies and go for what is conventionally accepted as "good" without giving thought to whether that particular something matches their ultimate goal in life.
Anyway. I'm still processing the experience ("odd" was the first word that came to mind as soon as it was over), but my gut reaction from the interview was similar to Boss Lady's, so I don't think I was being overly critical. More than anything, really, I'm just amused. In a headdesky-for-the-job-applicant way.
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(no subject)
Date: 2009-03-07 06:19 pm (UTC)(no subject)
Date: 2009-03-07 06:31 pm (UTC)*hugs back*
(no subject)
Date: 2009-03-08 05:40 pm (UTC)I'm sorry you've been sick!
I haven't been online (checking email or facebook) for Lent, except for Sundays, so I'm sorry for the delayed response about Animal Crossing. Yes, I'd love to play sometime. If you could email me you phone number maybe we can work something out :)
(no subject)
Date: 2009-03-14 01:45 am (UTC)I just signed the lease to the new apartment! More details to come, but one thing for sure is that I won't be moving yet. Probably late March/early April. I'm still trying to see how to work out finding a subletter for my current roommates.
Hope you're well in your Internet fasting!
(no subject)
Date: 2009-03-08 05:42 pm (UTC)(no subject)
Date: 2009-03-14 01:53 am (UTC)What I've learned most from sitting in on interviews conducted by Boss Lady is that ultimately, it's the personal things that make or break a candidate. Unless someone is qualified on paper, the employer wouldn't be interested in an interview to begin with. So once a candidate is granted face-to-face time with the person in charge of hiring, reciting items straight from the resume is usually not the best way to go. To me, it seems what's most important are the more personal things, like the candidate's personality and potential fit with the people already working at the company.
Boss Lady is a teacher at heart and is always willing to hire people with so-so resumes as long as they show potential for growth. But if she gets a bad vibe about someone, then even the best resume wouldn't convince her to hire that person.
I'm sure when you do look for jobs you'll do fine in interviews. It sounds corny, but it does pay to be yourself -- in a professional manner, of course ;)
(no subject)
Date: 2009-03-11 08:41 pm (UTC)GLad things seem to be moving along. ;p
(no subject)
Date: 2009-03-14 01:54 am (UTC)Yup, I just signed my lease, and I'm EXCITED!
Still lots of details to work out, such as how to find a subletter in such a short period of time. I wouldn't want to have to pay out my current lease until it ends in September!
(no subject)
Date: 2009-03-15 07:53 am (UTC)I'm sure you'll find someone!
I have a friend moving to NYC in April. She'll probably want to live in Manhattan, but if the rent is cheap enough... I don't know! I do remember you said there was good transport. & It is close to stuff, yes?
*HUGS*
(no subject)
Date: 2009-03-16 10:02 pm (UTC)Well, the place I live in is definitely convenient... at times. The MTA subway system has a tendency to reduce services on the weekends to conduct repair, so sometimes it gets frustrating if it's your train line that gets stopped. It only means extra travel time to change to another train or bus line though, so no one is truly "stuck" due to reduced services on any given day.
I do love Astoria. It's more neighborhood-y than Manhattan. And what I said above aside, I do tend to have a very easy time traveling to and from my apartment and work. There's also the (in)famous Beer Garden nearby -- a great place to visit during warm weather ;)
(no subject)
Date: 2009-03-19 12:22 pm (UTC)I let my friend know but no response yet, she is dealing with packing and having to disperse a lot of her stuff b/c she is traveling overseas! She has been living in Europe for about 2 years so this is a big deal but she thinks it will take her career to the next level. :D
I hope I can visit sometime this year, I miss NYC! I'll see you at Azkatraz, right?