Friends,
Since we last grabbed each other in this little do-si-do, I have obtained employment, enjoyed some weird boosterism, put a family member in the hospital, stared into the maw of despair, and have come across a remarkable discovery. That’s right, it’s a housekeeping post.
Let’s box this gnat!
I’ve been applying for copywriting jobs for over a year with no success. I’m a tough sell on paper: out of the agency business for decades, and in-house samples from non-profit don’t obviously transfer to sales jobs. The other problem is I don’t know the jargon. This shuts a lot of doors for recruiters and HR people who are ticking boxes. As you’ve learned after any time browsing posts here, I hate jargon. I’ve spent an awful lot of time removing jargon. I’m good at it. I’ve always felt that if you hide behind industry buzzwords, you either don’t know what you’re talking about or you’re gatekeeping. I’ll keep applying until I find a kindred spirit, but in the meanwhile, it’s tech support.
Tech support is cleaning up other people’s messes. Usually, those messes are created by software engineers on a deadline who ship product before it’s complete, completely vetted, tested, and reworked. I understand why they do it, but that makes you, dearest reader, an unofficial software tester. You get to figure out why Outlook can’t handle that many deleted items and Excel can’t open your friend’s spreadsheet because it’s Tuesday. I get to fix it.
My current gig isn’t awful. The half-hour commute takes me to a biotech shop on the coast. Good start! The place is staffed with a lot of adults, which is a refreshing change. They just want to do a good job and go home. No real politics that I can discern. The downside is that it’s a temporary position on a contract. They may hire me, which is an idea it seems like they’re thinking about, but as far as I know now, it’s a no-benefits/onsite position all summer.
Speaking of onsite, the bosses have decided that all employees will return to the office this Tuesday after working from home since March of last year. There’s a lot of grumbling and management haven’t handled it well. Like businesses across the country, they started with the first rationale: that in-person work leads to greater collaboration and productivity. This is an assertion that really hasn’t been proven. There are no workplace studies. Nothing to back it up except hearsay and absurd commercial property values. This was quickly followed up by, “Because I say so.” Playing this card is so very popular with the rank and file workers who know that zero work has been done on ventilation systems, vaccination validation, and that very little effort has been put into revising sanitation protocols. Folks love it.
The boosterism comes from the bosses and human resources folks sending out bulk emails about how are super excited to see everyone! All you precious little knowledge workers with the tops of your adorable noggins poking over the tops of low cubicle walls fill our hearts with glee.
The knowledge workers I’ve spoken with aren’t feeling it. They’ve built home offices, rearranged schedules, taken on childcare and eldercare commitments, and now they’re being asked to chuck it in the bin. Folks feel like they’re doing the work and building premium products without needing to warm a company-issued chair.
The nature of work has changed. People aren’t just working for a paycheck anymore. Okay, I am actually working for a paycheck at the moment, and there are millions out there like me. My goal, and suspect the goal of the rest is a simple one: Work to live, don’t live to work. Enjoy what you do. Make a difference. Make it count.
Keep a kind thought for my father-in-law who was admitted to the hospital a week ago with pneumonia. He’s as weak as a very puny and out of shape kitten, so he’s going to need a lot of rehab to get back to full strength.
Also, Stinko brought some daughters to the desert and I fed them enchiladas at my parents’ house. He was subdued, but seemed to enjoy the visit and the attention. Please do what you can to cheer him up by spending outrageous amounts of money at his shop, won’t you?
We’re keeping gluten-free at my house for reasons (Celiac Disease can be pretty rough. I don’t have it, but I’m an ally in the struggle. Also, did you know that Celiac Disease is considered a disability when you’re applying for jobs? Let’s have a chat about why that’s case sometime later. Not now.) and we’ve been able to find gluten-free puff pastry dough. We made spanikopita with the stuff and it’s amazing. Light, flaky, and very tasty. If you find it in the freezer section, stock up. You never know when it’ll be back.
Thanks for passing through. Now it’s time to separate and go home.
Your best pal,
– bob
UPDATE: The original version of this post was a grammatical mess. I fixed a bunch of stuff, but if you see some glaring error, please let me know. Thanks!
