So, a lot has happened. It's been a crazy weekend, honestly.
I'm currently sitting in my parent's house.
It's a Monday afternoon and I'm sitting at my parent's house.
I think you can see where this is going.
Friday was a bit of a rough day. Know how I was saying I had at least two full weeks at the temp office? Well, that turned into one. And I found that out on the Friday I had already planned on leaving early to head home for Easter weekend, so I didn't even end it all with a full 40-hour week. Yeah, it kind of sucked. What was more surprising was how differently the attitudes were toward me that day.
This one's a little harder to write openly about, simply because I do like the office and the people working there, and I'm still hoping to get placed through them. The people were so welcoming and friendly from the get-go, which is why Friday was so jarring for me. Maybe it was just a bad day all around?
Anyways, I get in at 8:30am, ready to go, excited about the weather, happy to be done early so I can get home and spend some time with my family and friends. I start out as I always did, reading through resumes and picking out which people should be called. As I'm working on this, one of the boss ladies comes out and starts talking to the managers who are sitting behind me. This is what I overhear, which I think I'm meant to overhear?
Boss: 'Who's been screening the resumes?"
Manager: 'Nikki'
Boss: 'Well, you guys need to start doing that yourselves. We need to do a better job of screening candidates. The people we've been getting in here are crap.'
If this were a movie, the camera would pan back to me, staring, slightly amazed, at my computer screen, currently opened to a resume I'm reviewing.
How WEIRD is that? To overhear someone directly talking about you and the work you've been doing, knowing you're right there and can hear it all, and then to not acknowledge you at all!? The worst part was that I was TEMPING, meaning I was there to take direction from other people and do exactly what was asked of me. Remember, I had been strung along so much, I had no idea what they wanted from me and what they expected me to be doing, meaning do I take my own initiative and start things up on my own? Which I did do, with all my social media and social networking additions. Or do I sit on my tukhus and wait for them to tell me what to do and how to do it? Which I also did, and when I wasn't being given tasks, I'd do what I could with social networking.
So, I was a little (ok, a lot more than a little) bothered by this overheard encounter, since I was following the exact instructions on what to look for on resumes and what to get out of someone on the phone. So, this was kind of insulting.
Then, because I didn't know if I was supposed to be looking at resumes any longer, I went back to just filing papers for them, feeling a little irked and just ready for the day to be over. It was 9am.
About a half hour or so later, as I continued filing papers while sipping a mug of tea, watching the managers and bosses go into and come out of a meeting, like they did about 3 times a day usually, I was still trying to figure out what that early comment meant for me. Meaning, I totally knew they were not bringing me on as a recruiter anymore for some reason. But I hadn't give up on maybe getting a part-time permanent gig with them.
And then the other manager, the one who I spoke with during my interview, came over to my desk and asked if I wanted to go get a cup of coffee with her.
I was drinking a huge mug of tea at that very moment.
This was like that moment when you're sitting in class and your name comes over the announcements, and you have this HUGE feeling of dread, even though you know you didn't do anything wrong, and you just want to slide under your desk but instead you know you have to stand up and walk out.
So that's what I did, though the last thing I wanted was coffee. Maybe an Irish coffee at that moment, but not just jittery caffeine. No thanks.
So we walk to the place next door, doing that AWFUL small talk the whole time. Oh my God, seriously, I just wanted to say "What's going ON!?" but I had to bite my tongue the whole time and act like the day was going great so far and like I had no clue where things were heading. UGH.
Here's the problem. I'm never completely hopeless, no matter how pessimistic I am. So, though I had a very good idea that I would not be staying with this office any further than they told me, and I'm about to be out of a job once again, and how over the last week I'm there with them I would need to crack down on the job hunt again so I'm not royally screwed after it's all over and done with, I did NOT expect the next sentence.
"You've probably had an idea this was coming over the last few days, but today's going to be your last day in the office."
BAM. Out on the streets once again. Without warning once again. Ok, well with some warning this time, but without severance pay OR unemployment now. So, really out on the street this time. Well, not really because I don't plan on prostituting myself at all (yet), but you get my point.
Now, before you get the wrong ideas, she was really great about it all and I could tell she genuinely felt bad about the way everything turned out, as she had interviewed me for the original position way back when and had also thought I would transition into that roll from temping. And she asked me if I had any insight after my time with them, and I was a very good girl and didn't let these last moments cloud my overall pleasant experience with them, but I did let her know I would not have temped for them had I not been under the impression that it would help me get the job.
So, the joyful thing after all this was that I got to go back up in the office and work for the rest of my (shortened) day. Which, obviously, I was going to be a little more withdrawn and quieter during, especially since I was pretty much just filing from that point on. I don't know if it was me and the way I was keeping to myself, or if it was just the mood of the office, or if I truly did something to piss people off, but everyone seemed to be keeping away from me when possible too. Which just made everything super awkward. So that was fun.
And then, to top off my already crappy day (it's still only 11am or so at this point), I once again overhear a very obvious conversation about me, behind me. GET AN OFFICE PEOPLE. Or stop being so rude...and not because you're critiquing my work, but because you're literally doing it BEHIND MY BACK. Anyways, the receptionist comes up to the other manager, from the original conversation with the boss, and passes over the report on that week's interviews. She then mentions how there were three no-shows that week (out of 25+ scheduled interviews...for a temp agency...that could potentially get you a job). And the response to that? "Yeah, well, we're going to be doing a much better job of screening people from now on."
WOW. Two in one day. It's good to be me.
I didn't even know what to do at that point. I mean, I've already been told that I'm done, so why the crap-talk still? Why not wait until a few hours later when I'm gone for good? It's just not how I would treat other people, nor expect to be treated, and it was totally out of character, or so I thought. So now I'm totally paranoid that I did something horribly wrong and they talked about me in that brief staff meeting and they all hate me and I NEED TO GET OUT OF THERE.
Of course it's my day without a lunch break.
And, I am telling you, it does not stop there.
I really only had good things to say up until all this stuff happened!
So, as I'm going through hundreds of papers, alphabetizing and filing, I decide it's quiet in the office and since they usually turn on some tunes when it's quiet, I'd just open Pandora. So I turn on my Carole King station, since I'm pining for some oldies and a little bit of female power, and start mouthing along to the music. I already feel better.
Until that oh-so-lovely manager who-now-hates-me-or-was-having-a-truly-horrible-day came back from lunch.
Ok, so lunch ended right as Bonnie Raitt's 'I Can't Make You Love Me' came on the station (shout out to my post title!). And ok, so that's a really really really sad and depressing and somewhat pathetic workplace song. And ok, so it probably looked like I was sulking and emoting about not getting to work in their office longer.
BUT, in my defense, it's a really beautiful song and it was Pandora, so you just get what ever song they think matches your station next.
Anyways, apparently that was NOT OKAY. Because I was asked to turn it off so we could put on something more upbeat, or dance party like.
I'm sorry, I thought this was a workplace, not a late-night club. My mistake.
So I turn it off, and nothing. No one turns on this upbeat music so desired. Now it's silent again, and miserable. Fantastic. Finally, the new addition to their staff asks why there isn't any music playing if a dance party was wanted so badly. And then we get the Beyonce station. If you know me, you know how much I love Beyonce. I love Beyonce like a cat loves getting wet. Things couldn't be going better. Oh, but wait. The first song? Was a slow Rihanna ballad. Let's get this party started!!
So, finally, my day comes to an end. I have a pocketful of candy from their closet and a very kind and warm thank you letter waiting in everyone's inboxes from me. I breeze out of there and head home, glad it's sunny and ready to drive home, blasting the music I want to listen too, with the sunroof open for the first time this year.
Did I mention I'm currently getting sued? Oh, yeah, forgot to fill you in about that. I got in a fender-bender in stop and go traffic outside of Chicago on a rainy night 3 years ago. I bumped into the cab in front of me when I looked in my rearview mirror a second too long. I was shaken up and half in tears, and the cab driver was really nice, saying no one got hurt and there wasn't really any damage. So we made the decision not to call the police, since we were on the left shoulder of the packed highway and it would take forever for them to even get there. I gave him my info, we parted ways and I made it to my friend's house with just a bump in my front license plate and a few chips in my paint.
And then the douchebag sued. SERIOUSLY. And not only that, but it isn't being handled through insurance for some reason, even though they said it would be, and I have been getting papers about a deposition and answering questions, without any clue why or what it's about or which lawyer it's even coming from (is it from his? Or is it from my insurance?). I DON'T KNOW ANYTHING ABOUT ANY OF THIS!!!
Anyways, getting back to my story, I get home, feeling better about my crappy day, though worried about my job situation now. And I grab the mail before I head out of town. And there it is, waiting for me. Another letter from this law office, this time with questions I'm supposed to answer. No one has called me about ANY OF THIS. I have no idea why I'm getting these. I have no idea what happens when I don't respond (because I didn't to the last one, and they didn't seem to care at all). But dealing with a lawsuit, and a RIDICULOUS one at that, while dealing with unemployment is not what I needed.
Remember how I mentioned that my poor little brain couldn't handle all of this stuff or "I'll be on the phone in tears again with someone who loves me but who still probably hates dealing with sobby, whiny, insecure me"? Well, the traffic on my stupid street to get to the highway push me to that point a few minutes later. Plus, I opened the stupid law office envelope in the car. DUMB. I knew it would upset me, and I purposefully threw it in the car unopened because of that. And then I just couldn't resist. Stupid stupid stupid.
So, that was my Good Friday. Good Friday...what a joke.
But, be happy friends. There's about to be a lot more to come from me! Including my newest, very realistic and totally probably attempt at getting a job....
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