Facebook, my saviour ...

There are a couple of things I'd like explained to me:

- Who is the mental midget that created the McDonald's coffee campaign? Do they seriously believe that adding -é to any word makes it French, and therefore more attractive? Someone thought this was a not just a good idea, but that it would make people buy McDonalds crappy coffee? Don't most 'Americans' (referring to the uneducated section of the populace this campaign is obviously aimed at) dislike the French and think they are snobs? You'd think this approach would backfire by driving the ignorant public away from McDonalds. It certainly did something for me. I am boycotting McDonald's until these commercials disappearé.

- To the geniuses who designed the current Baskin Robbins commercials: Having the words 'ice cream & cake do the ice cream and cake' screamed at me rhythmically over and over again while misshapen plastic figures topple off of cakes is not going to make me go buy an ice cream cake. In fact, all it does is make me change the channel, thereby defeating your advertising purpose. Try something slightly less annoying and maybe your customers won't go postal on you for having your idiotic commercial trapped in their brain-pan for hours at a time.

The above rants illustrate with striking clarity a problem I've found myself with lately: I have nothing to talk about. Yes, I do work on my French some, and study some, but neither give me much to talk about when someone asks me what I've been doing. How many times can you repeat 'No, I still haven't found a job, yes I'm still looking' before people get tired of asking you? Then comes the dreaded 'So what have you been doing lately?' After you say 'I've been working on my French some, and studying some', to which you get the obligatory head nod, you trail off without anything to add. No one wants to hear about the fascinating trip you took to the 99-cent store or Wal-mart. I feel like I'm living half my life on Facebook right now. That's where a good-sized portion of my human contact comes from on a day-to-day basis. Thankfully all of my 'friends' on Facebook are people I actually know, not random people I added because they know someone who knows someone who knows me. Their support and daily comments let me know I haven't fallen off the face of the planet or been forgotten. What I'll do with Facebook when or if I actually get a job, I have no idea. Right now, it's a fabulous time-sink. Here's a big Thank You to all my friends who send me 'drinks', 'smiles', 'Farmtown' stuff, and throw 'Water Balloons' at me. You guys are keeping me sane right now.

What's my motivation again? Oh yeah ...

Ok, I have to rant for a minute and since it's my blog, I can. Enough about Michael Jackson already! He's been dead for weeks now, but there is still a daily 'update' that updates us about nothing at all. When the media actually finds something out, then update us. Until then, I have no need to hear the latest theory on his death or weird life from the guy who stayed in the cabin next to his 35 years ago at summer camp.

I still haven't heard from the cosmo chick. I guess I'm going to have to contact her again. Maybe she's not that interested in actually teaching? You wouldn't think she'd post something looking for students and then not want any. Ah well, people are weird. This is something I've learned. I'm still really feeling like this is the way to go. At least I'd have a better chance of finding something. Administrative work doesn't seem to be in high demand right now.

I'm trying to work on my French more while I'm unemployed. I've found a site that I'm checking out before I recommend it to others. I wish I had the self-discipline to use it more. I know I need to use this time I have to do more studying (theocratic & french), but the motivation is hard to come by. It's so easy to let the day slip away watching TV and hanging out on Facebook & Twitter. TV is entertaining. Studying not so much. I know I'll be mad at myself when I eventually do get a job (I hope!) and I look back on this time with not much to show for it. I have auxiliaried two months, but I've been out of work for five. Not a good ratio.

Ok, mental butt-kicking time.
-You'll be less depressed if you do more than just watch TV.
-You'll be more useful in service and at meetings if you improve your French and study more.
-You might actually have something to talk about with people when you are around them if you've done more than sleep half the day away.
-Roz will quit making that sound she makes every time she calls and asks what you're doing and you say for the umpteenth time 'Watching TV'.

Stay tuned. Will Angela actually do something for a change, or will she continue to morph into a giant slug? Only time will tell.

Maybe a new direction ...

Last night I was looking around online when I got an idea: What if I found a way to go back to doing hair? Of course the problem is that I've already taken the practical twice and flunked both times,and without a license I can't work in a salon. I'd already checked the schools in the area, and none of them had anything that wasn't full-term schooling for a year. I don't need a year, I just need to know what to do to pass the boards. So last night I decided to check and see if there were any online courses or videos that might help. I found some videos, but I also found a posting on Craig's list for a certified instructor that teaches how to pass the boards. I emailed her and she emailed me back that she'd be happy to give me a call and tell me all about it. I'm waiting for her call.

While I'd miss having a normal weekend, I miss doing hair too. Being an admin is so boring. I miss having clients and great conversations all day. I also miss tips! It was nice to have cash. I'd even consider possibly going back to Hair Club. Insurance, paid vacation, and sick days are nothing to sneeze at. Of course this is all conjecture right now, but I don't seem to be getting anywhere with the admin thing. Four months and I can count the interviews I've had on one hand. If I had my license I could walk up the street and get a job right now, or even work at a chain salon if I was desperate.

I guess we'll see what happens.

Well, here goes ...

So this is my very first blog. I guess we'll see how this goes.

I'm currently unemployed and have been since March. There are 50 people applying for every one job, and I guess so far I haven't been top of the heap. I've gotten lots of polite refusals, though. 'Dear fill-in-the-blank, even though you're overqualified for this position, you're not quite overqualified enough. Please reapply when you've wasted thousands of dollars getting an AA degree to do filing. Sincerely, We-know-there-are-desperate-degreeholders-out-there.' Why do you need a degree to answer phones, write letters, and do filing? Can someone explain this to me?

I have people telling me I need to go back to school. Great, I'd love to. However, school is not free. Classes cost money. I can't pay the bills I have now. How do I pay for more schooling? Have you ever tried to wade through the morass of getting the federal government or state to pay for it? It's nearly impossible, and now of course the education budget is slashed even further. By the time I could get approved to go back to school, I'll have used up all my unemployment and be living in a box in the alley. It's really hard to study when you live in a box. The lighting sucks. It's noisy. When it rains, your house melts.

Anybody got any ideas out there? I feel like I'm banging my head against a wall...