Stop the Presses!

Holy Granola! Well, people, it happened - Ushiku Person got offered a job... I'm still in shock. Usually when you get a letter from the company you've interviewed with it is the dreaded FOAD. However, as I opened it, joy and sunshine spilled out (along with the sound of trumpets - I think they were trumpets - or maybe they were Ricola Swiss Alpine horns...). And I said to myself "Self, this bodes well.". It must be the consequence of the Obama-effect we have heard so much about (ripples of employability spreading out in concentric rings from last Tuesday's epicenter). Much like the Genesis Effect from Wrath of Khan, except less cataclysmic, and in easy to share individual bite-size portions (Job? Why thanks -yum!). Um... yeah, anywho, I'm still a little punchy from the whole thing, but very happy. Of course, it means another move - this time to Indiana (I mean, why not, right? Might as well have the trifecta of the midwestern States - poor Indiana has, so far, just been the transit point between IL and KY). As for packing my stuff up again, I'm serious giving thought to blowing it all in place and starting fresh (anybody want some hangers?). After basking in the afterglow, I called a friend back in Massachusetts - to share the moment. However, as I spoke with him, it quickly became apparent that today was rapidly becoming one of my friend's less-than-favourite moments of 2009. The dreaded Bad Day. That's when Gore Vidal came to mind (paraphrased, of course):

"When a friend of mine succeeds, a little piece of me dies"

I debated sharing news of my good fortune, but then it occurred to me that my friend was, despite his difficulties, an honestly good soul - and he would be truly happy for me. And he was. Now, as I type this, I wish that, somehow, in deli-fashion, I could slice off some of the good things that happened to me, and give some to my friend (like so much extra-lean karmic pastrami). So, here's hoping that you had a good day.

Is it 2009 already?

Sheesh... I know, I know - I promised to be less tardy and more pro-active on this blog, but things have been... complicated. Here's hoping that you had a tolerable 2008, and may the New Year treat you better (despite its ominous beginning, economics-wise).

Indeed! What with the all the things happening out in the World today, it is a wonder that any of us finds the time to write in our blogs - but fear nought, Dear Reader, as Ushiku Person has plenty of self-absorbed rantings to entertain you by!

Where to begin... well, first off, I had a job interview yesterday, and it went fairly well. Since moving to the Greater Chicago Metropolitan Area I have been furiously applying for work - to include pestering everybody I have ever met about possible employment opportunities (we'll call that "networking"). All that whinging might finally have paid off - I will hear by next Friday whether or not I got this job. The good news is that it actually sounds like fun, and it pays well - bad news, it means another move; this time down to Indiana. What is it? How does Lead Technician grab you? Me, a Technologist? These days, if you have what is kindly referred to as a "well-rounded" resume (that's HR-speak for some square-peg fool who doesn't fit neatly into a round hole), you are looked at with a great deal of suspicion (and sometimes a little envy). But where would Samuel Clemens have been if he had spent fifty years as a stock clerk? We would have been entreated to The Adventures of Mr. H. Finn: Insurance Adjustor.

"It is wiser to find out than suppose"

Cross your fingers, and let's hope for the best!