Happy feet

About a week ago, I saw a CraigsList ad for 15 pair of high-heel shoes for $40 in a size that might fit (or probably would be a bit small for) me. I contacted the girl and told her I would be interested in trying them on and for the next week, we scheduled meetings and she inevitably rescheduled all the meetings. Well, today I saw a new ad for a bunch of shoes that were more like my size, posted from a lady that was packing up her house and down-sizing. She was only asking $15 for the whole lot, so I called her and told her I'd come right over (so I didn't have enough time to think about it and back out). On the phone, she told me that the reason she was packing and down-sizing is that her husband has been out of a job for 3 months and they and their 5 children have to move in with his parents for now.
When I got there, she had two totes over-flowing with shoes! We put them into two large garbage bags and I decided to give her the $40 I had set aside because it sounded like she really needed it. I could tell the offering warmed her, but I still felt a little bad that I was taking all those shoes for so little money. She threw in a coat that was "going to Goodwill" too (I'm undecided about it right now).

Well, after I dumped and sorted both bags, there were 59 and a half pairs, here's the picture of all of them. I then proceeded to try every pair on and separate them by what fit, and what didn't. 19 didn't fit and 2.5 got thrown away.
Finally the hard part, what I want to keep and what I don't. Well, it was a lot of on-and-off and my happy feet aren't so sure they're happy currently, but I got down to 18 I didn't want, 6 maybes and 14 keepers.
I'm pretty content. There are at least a few that are SUPER cute and I feel good that I was able to help that lady too.
PS- She told me about another website that I'm going to have to check out called FreeCycle.com where people post free things and usually they're snatched up really quickly.


Per request, here is a picture of the coat. I haven't worn it yet (except for this picture) so chances are, I'm not going to keep it.


Wow, I think this is the first time I've taken a cheesy, in the mirror picture...

Finally!?

Well, it took more than a week, one email and one voice mail, but Northrop Grumman's recruiter finally called me with good news. She offered me a job and just as she was starting to tell me about it, the call dropped! She emailed me a bit later and said that her battery had died on the phone, but I could call back. She told me that the reason I hadn't been called before is that she was on vacation and the person that was supposed to be covering for her had a death in the family.

She offered me the position, that a few weeks ago I hadn't dared to dream of and told me that my new title would be Level 2 Systems Engineer. She said that if it were possible for me to start by next Monday, I would be eligible for the raise they'll have in March, but since that's not possible, they've factored in the raise I would get, into my base pay. The base pay is a 13% increase on what I'm currently making, not to mention all the other incentives that would make it ridiculous for me to decline the position.

She'll be sending me the offer letter and background check tonight and asked me when I'd be starting, respecting the 2 week notice that I will be giving. Well, 2 weeks from tomorrow is Thanksgiving, so it only makes sense that I will be starting on the following Monday, December 1st.

I've now told my supervisor who was not happy, though he understands the decision and wishes me well. He's told the group ever since I started two and a half years ago, that this is not a job to retire from and we all have bigger and better things to move on to. I've also told my closest co-worker, who says that I can't leave. It's nice to be appreciated.

So here I sit, in a bit of a daze, waiting for the offer letter to confirm that I didn't dream it, and hoping that this will be a step in the right direction of my "good" life.

New direction

I have been in my current position (as second level tech support) for almost two and a half years and while I appreciate my job and enjoy my co-workers, it is not my end-all job. I've known that the entire time that I've held the position, but I've never been quite sure what to do about it. During that time, I've been "keeping and eye open" for other interesting jobs that I might qualify for, sending my resume out here and there, not really hearing much back besides, thanks, but no thanks.
About a week ago, one of my automated searches presented me with a couple new positions with Northrop Grumman, a company which I had heard the name, but didn't know much else. They were marked as "entry level" engineer jobs, so I decided to throw my hat in and expected the same results as I had previously become accustomed to. To my surprise, I received a call from one of the organizers asking if I could come in for an interview the next day. Later, it was rescheduled for 3 days later... today. After a bit of drama regarding driving directions and date, everything was cleared up and I was there half an hour early, expecting that there was a bit of a mistake and I would soon be asked to leave.
I was brought into the labs and shown around the systems that they use. They told me that the majority of their jobs is to research and develop new defense systems for the Navy that would win new contracts. Apparently they had recently won some number of said contracts, which is why they are currently hiring 10 positions.
I interviewed with a total of 4 guys, all working for smaller parts of the same larger group. Each had questions about what I had done and what I wanted to do. After talking to them, I quickly gathered the idea that getting a position with them would be all I could have dreamed of. This could be my end-all job.
After the interview, the main guy walked me around and started talking about benefits, which included a "medical savings" account that the company puts $2000 per year into, and if it's not used, it will roll over to the next year and after a few years, if I've been healthy and then need a big procedure, it's all there for me to use.
He asked me what salary I wanted and I told him what I was currently making. I said that I'd like to make about that, but would be willing to take a pay-cut as this was the kind of job I wanted (not to mention I'd be getting a security clearance out of it). He stopped me and said, I would certainly not be getting a pay-cut.
He topped it all of by telling me that he thought my diversity in knowledge and experience was impressive, he felt that the interview went well, and he couldn't imagine that I wouldn't get an offer. Well, okay.
Since then, I've been having a bit of difficulty breathing, just waiting for the phone to ring...

Potential

Some fresh sales consultant in my company felt the need to share the following quote with the entire company this morning:
" What would you attempt to do if you knew you could not fail?"
While I don't doubt that she'll be reprimanded for spamming the company, it is an interesting question and one that I've been asking myself recently in not so many words. I've found myself reevaluating my life, my choices, my accomplishments, but more specifically trying to figure out exactly what I want from this one lifetime I have to live. The best answer I've found so far is that I want a job that requires me to have a passport...

I'm here

Alright, thought I've felt no pressure to creat my own blog, I decided it's about time. Besides, even if no one else reads it, it'll be there to help me look back on the whatever that is my life...