Productivity

Today was one of those days which feels productive in that the day was spent doing useful things, and unproductive because the useful things have yet to result in anything definite.

I began the morning with my appointment with the temp agency. I was all togged up in full interview mode (after a hasty dash to the nearby K-Mart to purchase -- shudder -- pantyhose) with ID, resumes, etc. and a full half-hour early. After this it was mostly filling out forms (some for background checks -- at least I didn't have to pee in a cup!) and watching an informational and safety video. It was fairly boring, though I was amused by the founding CEO's appearance (he seemed to be wearing lip liner!) and the oh-so-obvious safety information ("Hold the handrail when walking up or down stairs." "Do not pick up anything weighing over 50 pounds." "Adjust your chair and computer monitor before beginning work.").

My meeting with my "Associate" was much better; she was very helpful and seemed genuinely interested in finding work that I would enjoy and do well at. I did feel a bit like I was hunting with an elephant gun, however; she seemed somewhat at a loss as to how exactly I'd fit into their administrative schema while being appreciative of the skills I could bring to the table. No positions were immediately forthcoming, either; the two openings were for specialists in things like benefits and accounting.

(The problem of hunting with an elephant gun is that you're as likely to obliterate your prey as nail it, so it's not like you're going to be much better at collecting squirrels for the pot than someone with a BB gun.)

After this I drove around looking at apartments and neighborhoods. In my usual way, I found that the places and buildings I most liked were all out of my price budget or not vacant. I made the mistake of stopping at one "showing" in a lovely little community; I adored the apartment on sight, but have not been able to get through the phone line to find out how much it might cost. Now I am spoiled for just about anything else I might encounter. *sigh*

Here's where that ol' chicken and egg dilemma pops up again, too -- if I knew how much I'm likely to make each month, I'd have more freedom to be picky. I don't, so I'm having to look at potential apartments in terms of non-grottiness rather than in terms of desirability. (In a sense, I'm betting on my earning potential, with my home happiness and credit at stake.) Oddly, within my price range, there is surprisingly less correlation between price and ickiness than one might think. That is, within a $100 spread, you can have quite nice at the low end and rather dubious at the high, as well as the expected reverse.

I wish I was more enthusiastic about the whole process; I usually am when it comes to envisioning new places to live, but with that one exception, I have not felt inspired as yet. *sigh* Back to the classifieds...