Tuesday, May 24, 2011
Sunday, October 3, 2010
HOME IS WHERE THE HEART IS...
...And the heart of the home is in the kitchen.
Stuart and I were lucky enough to have a 4 day weekend this past week and got another brilliant idea to do a quick makeover on the house.
We got as far as the kitchen.
Here is the before... However BEFORE I begin, this whole makeover thing reminds of that talk show Jenny Jones... Remember that one. I think every show she did was a makeover or then and now show... things like "I Went From Geek to Chic"
It was always something like a scrawny geek from high school who is all hot now brought on one of their old high school mates that turned them down for a date or made fun of them.
Anyway, before the introduced the former geek, they showed pictures of them in high school and the whole audience would yell things like "Ewwwwwwwwwww!!!!" and wave their hands in disgust.
So when I show you these BEFORE photos, I want you to shout out "EWWWWWWWW!!!" when you look at them.
Did you do it???
OK now in the grand tradition of Jenny Jones, when you see the after photos, you need to whoop and holler and give a grand applause.
Ready?
Stuart and I were lucky enough to have a 4 day weekend this past week and got another brilliant idea to do a quick makeover on the house.
We got as far as the kitchen.
Here is the before... However BEFORE I begin, this whole makeover thing reminds of that talk show Jenny Jones... Remember that one. I think every show she did was a makeover or then and now show... things like "I Went From Geek to Chic"
It was always something like a scrawny geek from high school who is all hot now brought on one of their old high school mates that turned them down for a date or made fun of them.
Anyway, before the introduced the former geek, they showed pictures of them in high school and the whole audience would yell things like "Ewwwwwwwwwww!!!!" and wave their hands in disgust.
So when I show you these BEFORE photos, I want you to shout out "EWWWWWWWW!!!" when you look at them.
Did you do it???
OK now in the grand tradition of Jenny Jones, when you see the after photos, you need to whoop and holler and give a grand applause.
Ready?
Sunday, September 26, 2010
MOONLIGHT MADNESS
Soon after the previous boo-hoo-poor-me post I wrote, I was offered several jobs in a week.
I interviewed for this one job that was VERY interesting, however the guy didn't really seem very keen however he did ask for references, so I thought, well, I actually didn't think anything. I was already numb to the whole tedious process at that stage.
Then I got a call from a company that, at this stage, have kept me waiting for 6 weeks for a second interview. They did their weekly ring to see if I was still interested and available, to which they ended by saying that it will probably be another week before they can arrange the Director to be in town. Did I mention they said the same thing every other week they rang?
Later that morning I got a call from a company who I interviewed for on the previous day and they offered me a position. It was not a fantastic position, it was a step back in my line of work, but it was an immediate start.
I weighed up the options. I didn't think that Job #1 was really interested, Job #2 was the perfect job and the highest salary of the three but come on!!!! Six weeks!!! So I took what was behind Job Door #3... you know, as an interim position.
It was Friday afternoon, so I rang them back to accept the offer, when they told me that I needed to be in Sydney on Monday morning for a 10 day orientation.
I scrambled to pack 10 days worth of clothes for business, 10 days worth of evening clothes and 10 days worth of casual clothes and caught the Red-eye flight leaving Perth at 11:55pm Sunday and arriving in Sydney at 5:30 in the morning Monday. (It is only a 4 hour flight, so getting full sleep on the plane is not an option, however not complaining)
The first day of orientation was great, as it always is. Then went slightly downhill on Tuesday, and continued to decline from there. The job was not turning out to be what I signed on for. Sure it had some resemblance to the one I interviewed for and discussed in length with the employers about before accepting the position, however it was turning out to be like a drag queen taking off her make-up. Slowly the porcelain painted face washed aways to reveal a 5 o'clock shadow.
You know what I mean?
On the Thursday, I got a call and was offered Job #1. You know, the one that I liked but didn't think the guy was very interested.
I was over a friend's house that night and I relaying the story of this nightmare job and this new offer and it MIGHT have been the pitcher of Pimm's, 4 martinis, 2 glasses of wine and the espresso martini, however we came up with a plan of escape.
We snuck into my hotel, threw everything into my suitcase and crept through the halls, hiding if we heard the elevator or a voice. This hotel was old fashioned and I still had to check out at the desk, so we scanned the room for people and when it was safe I went to check out as they snuck my very large suitcase out of the side doors which were out of view and hailed a cab.
Once checked out I ran out the doors and we all dove into the cab as quickly as we could and sped off over the Harbour Bridge to freedom!
I didn't have internet access so Stuart who booked my flight back home that Saturday, who as the week went on, could sense something of this nature was going to happen.
I sent the company a quick resignation email and couriered back the phone, laptop, etc the next morning.
I almost forgot the best part! In the middle of all of this, I got a call from that slow motion company who kept me waiting at this point almost 7 weeks, to tell me that they have decided to offer me the position without a second interview. It may have been the drinks or it may have been the full moon but I really enjoyed telling them that they snoozed and they losed.
I interviewed for this one job that was VERY interesting, however the guy didn't really seem very keen however he did ask for references, so I thought, well, I actually didn't think anything. I was already numb to the whole tedious process at that stage.
Then I got a call from a company that, at this stage, have kept me waiting for 6 weeks for a second interview. They did their weekly ring to see if I was still interested and available, to which they ended by saying that it will probably be another week before they can arrange the Director to be in town. Did I mention they said the same thing every other week they rang?
Later that morning I got a call from a company who I interviewed for on the previous day and they offered me a position. It was not a fantastic position, it was a step back in my line of work, but it was an immediate start.
I weighed up the options. I didn't think that Job #1 was really interested, Job #2 was the perfect job and the highest salary of the three but come on!!!! Six weeks!!! So I took what was behind Job Door #3... you know, as an interim position.
It was Friday afternoon, so I rang them back to accept the offer, when they told me that I needed to be in Sydney on Monday morning for a 10 day orientation.
I scrambled to pack 10 days worth of clothes for business, 10 days worth of evening clothes and 10 days worth of casual clothes and caught the Red-eye flight leaving Perth at 11:55pm Sunday and arriving in Sydney at 5:30 in the morning Monday. (It is only a 4 hour flight, so getting full sleep on the plane is not an option, however not complaining)
The first day of orientation was great, as it always is. Then went slightly downhill on Tuesday, and continued to decline from there. The job was not turning out to be what I signed on for. Sure it had some resemblance to the one I interviewed for and discussed in length with the employers about before accepting the position, however it was turning out to be like a drag queen taking off her make-up. Slowly the porcelain painted face washed aways to reveal a 5 o'clock shadow.
You know what I mean?
On the Thursday, I got a call and was offered Job #1. You know, the one that I liked but didn't think the guy was very interested.
I was over a friend's house that night and I relaying the story of this nightmare job and this new offer and it MIGHT have been the pitcher of Pimm's, 4 martinis, 2 glasses of wine and the espresso martini, however we came up with a plan of escape.
We snuck into my hotel, threw everything into my suitcase and crept through the halls, hiding if we heard the elevator or a voice. This hotel was old fashioned and I still had to check out at the desk, so we scanned the room for people and when it was safe I went to check out as they snuck my very large suitcase out of the side doors which were out of view and hailed a cab.
Once checked out I ran out the doors and we all dove into the cab as quickly as we could and sped off over the Harbour Bridge to freedom!
I didn't have internet access so Stuart who booked my flight back home that Saturday, who as the week went on, could sense something of this nature was going to happen.
I sent the company a quick resignation email and couriered back the phone, laptop, etc the next morning.
I almost forgot the best part! In the middle of all of this, I got a call from that slow motion company who kept me waiting at this point almost 7 weeks, to tell me that they have decided to offer me the position without a second interview. It may have been the drinks or it may have been the full moon but I really enjoyed telling them that they snoozed and they losed.
Tuesday, August 17, 2010
YOU WANT ME TO MOVE WHERE??
So know that we all know that I am an unemployed loser who can't find a job, let's move on to the next topic.
I don't really know what sparked this dream, however one day Stuart came home from work and was insistent that we sell our houses here and take that money and go live in the US.
So after doing preliminary calculations of how much we will make on the sales, and researching what we can get for that money in different cities in the US and then comparing it to what we can get here for the same amount, I was convinced that it was a great idea! Move to the US, live in a nice house and be mortgage free!!!!
The list of cities I looked into was: LA, San Francisco, San Diego, New Orleans, Miami, St Petersburg (FL), Hamptons, Stamford, Columbus, Aspen, Denver, Philadelphia, Asheville and Chicago... there may have been more.
The city that offered the nicest house for the money was the city that I grew up in... Cleveland.
Then the reality of returning to a place that I left the minute I finished school many years ago began to set in.
The blizzards, shovelling snow, the politics, the red necks, the high unemployment, the whole "been there, done that" thing.
On the other hand, there are hosting Thanksgiving dinners for my family, an afternoon at the fantastic art museum with friends, popping down to the local bar for an evening martini, Chicago & NYC are one hour flights away making easy weekend getaways.
But first things first, Stuart needs to get a visa... which is a confusing process without much help from the Embassies, Consulates or Homeland Security.
I don't really know what sparked this dream, however one day Stuart came home from work and was insistent that we sell our houses here and take that money and go live in the US.
So after doing preliminary calculations of how much we will make on the sales, and researching what we can get for that money in different cities in the US and then comparing it to what we can get here for the same amount, I was convinced that it was a great idea! Move to the US, live in a nice house and be mortgage free!!!!
The list of cities I looked into was: LA, San Francisco, San Diego, New Orleans, Miami, St Petersburg (FL), Hamptons, Stamford, Columbus, Aspen, Denver, Philadelphia, Asheville and Chicago... there may have been more.
The city that offered the nicest house for the money was the city that I grew up in... Cleveland.
Then the reality of returning to a place that I left the minute I finished school many years ago began to set in.
The blizzards, shovelling snow, the politics, the red necks, the high unemployment, the whole "been there, done that" thing.
On the other hand, there are hosting Thanksgiving dinners for my family, an afternoon at the fantastic art museum with friends, popping down to the local bar for an evening martini, Chicago & NYC are one hour flights away making easy weekend getaways.
But first things first, Stuart needs to get a visa... which is a confusing process without much help from the Embassies, Consulates or Homeland Security.
Monday, August 16, 2010
FAKE IT TILL YOU MAKE IT.
There has been a lot going on these past few months. I don't mean the cocktail parties, opening nights at the opera and travels to Africa sort of way. I mean things that require my attention to be in other places or else the entire universe of my existence would be sucked into a cosmic black hole and implode... or re-appear in caveman times.
I have been a bit apprehensive about publishing this for privacy sake, however besides the fact that my photos are every where on this blog, I have mentioned where I worked, where I live and all my personal details I am pretty sure that my blog is anonymous.
You may be aware that there is this whole Global Financial Crisis thing going on. Apparently, Australia is the only country in the world that did not go into recession and has in fact maintained, if you believe the politicians, a boom economy.
The problem is that my clients and target market were the old pensioners who were living on dividends from overseas stock. To make a long story short, the stocks crashed, they stopped buying what I was selling and I am now unemployed.
The bottom line is that there were some fatal flaws in the COGs & RRP which were contractually set before I took the helm, wearing 15 different hats spread my focus too thin, a rapidly growing mutual hatred between my boss and I dampened the work environment, plus I am not really to blame for the GFC and the toll it would take on millions, if not billions of people's investments & retirement plans(It was all Fabulous Fab's fault!) .
As a closing line in his farewell speech to me, my now former boss said, "I hope you're successful in your next job." Which doesn't look so bad in print, but believe me when I tell you it was said in a way which made me want to throw a drink in his face.
I had great achievements. I made record revenue in my first year, developed a commercial website which enjoyed tremendous success in Australia, created an award winning ad campaign, introduced large corporate relationships and I better stop before this post starts to look like my resume.
Despite these SUCCESSES I feel like a failure.
I read a quote that put things in perspective, "Life is not about worrying about the storm, but learning how to dance in the rain." (Unfortunately, this philosophy tends to lead people to think that one doesn't care about the problem at hand.)
I tried to live this philosophy and smiled as I had my 42nd interview, competed a la reality TV game show for a position, gone through 7 rounds of interviewing for a lesser position and waiting 5 weeks for a second interview with a company that is "really keen to have me on board."
On the outside I am dancing and on the inside I am raining. Fake it till you make it, right?
I have been a bit apprehensive about publishing this for privacy sake, however besides the fact that my photos are every where on this blog, I have mentioned where I worked, where I live and all my personal details I am pretty sure that my blog is anonymous.
You may be aware that there is this whole Global Financial Crisis thing going on. Apparently, Australia is the only country in the world that did not go into recession and has in fact maintained, if you believe the politicians, a boom economy.
The problem is that my clients and target market were the old pensioners who were living on dividends from overseas stock. To make a long story short, the stocks crashed, they stopped buying what I was selling and I am now unemployed.
The bottom line is that there were some fatal flaws in the COGs & RRP which were contractually set before I took the helm, wearing 15 different hats spread my focus too thin, a rapidly growing mutual hatred between my boss and I dampened the work environment, plus I am not really to blame for the GFC and the toll it would take on millions, if not billions of people's investments & retirement plans(It was all Fabulous Fab's fault!) .
As a closing line in his farewell speech to me, my now former boss said, "I hope you're successful in your next job." Which doesn't look so bad in print, but believe me when I tell you it was said in a way which made me want to throw a drink in his face.
I had great achievements. I made record revenue in my first year, developed a commercial website which enjoyed tremendous success in Australia, created an award winning ad campaign, introduced large corporate relationships and I better stop before this post starts to look like my resume.
Despite these SUCCESSES I feel like a failure.
I read a quote that put things in perspective, "Life is not about worrying about the storm, but learning how to dance in the rain." (Unfortunately, this philosophy tends to lead people to think that one doesn't care about the problem at hand.)
I tried to live this philosophy and smiled as I had my 42nd interview, competed a la reality TV game show for a position, gone through 7 rounds of interviewing for a lesser position and waiting 5 weeks for a second interview with a company that is "really keen to have me on board."
On the outside I am dancing and on the inside I am raining. Fake it till you make it, right?
Friday, June 11, 2010
Thursday, April 8, 2010
VANISHED
Hmmmmm... absolutely no posts written by me in the month of March.
Shameful.
I do have a good reason... three good reasons actually.
1. My Mom came out to visit for the entire month of March. I initially thought that I would have time to laze around and write a new post everyday, but alas, we were having such a good time that I rarely even got on the computer.
2. I have been working on something which cannot be announced publically until I announce it publically, which is not now.
AND....
3. I died. I turned another year older in March and as I am reminded by the kids in the mall who, as they check out other kids in the mall, vacantly bump into and walk through me without noticing that they bumped into or walked through someone... I am too old to exist.
Pictures soon, but of course I will only appear as a glowing white blur.
Shameful.
I do have a good reason... three good reasons actually.
1. My Mom came out to visit for the entire month of March. I initially thought that I would have time to laze around and write a new post everyday, but alas, we were having such a good time that I rarely even got on the computer.
2. I have been working on something which cannot be announced publically until I announce it publically, which is not now.
AND....
3. I died. I turned another year older in March and as I am reminded by the kids in the mall who, as they check out other kids in the mall, vacantly bump into and walk through me without noticing that they bumped into or walked through someone... I am too old to exist.
Pictures soon, but of course I will only appear as a glowing white blur.
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