Let the Interviews Begin

I scheduled my first official interview for tomorrow since the job hunt began. I've had two other companies request an interview, but they were both part of that same job scam. It's extremely difficult to search for jobs in the advertising/marketing category. Half of all the postings are for sales position...and full time salesman I am not. Hopefully the interview will go well, but if it's not a perfect match, at least I will get some interviewing experience again. ...And it only took 3 weeks to snag an interview somewhere. I'm excited to start this process again...and only a little nervous.

Job Scamming

So....I got my first interview request this morning....too bad it was part of a job scam. It's just a good thing that I did a little background research on the company before returning their call. This particular company was part of a group of around 30 marketing companies in the scam. Basically, by the second interview I would have found myself at a folding table outside of a local grocery store trying to sell products like car wax to customers as they leave. Not the job for me. You live and you learn. Thankfully, I didn't have to learn the hard way.

Let the Job Hunt Begin...

And so the job hunt officially begins. The resume has been updated and the cover letters written. I've applied to my first two job postings in the Search Engine Marketing world and I'm feeling optimistic about getting the ball rolling.

Everything Happens for a Reason...or so they keep telling me

Last Monday I had the chance to finally feel what many other Americans have felt before me...what it is like to be laid off from a job. For those of you who haven't felt the special feelings associated with this experience...they are not fun. Friday was a normal day at work. Everything was positive and going strong. Monday, after about an hour of work, several of us were notified that the company had lost their biggest account which meant that three of us were being let go. The entire conversation felt like an out of body experience for me. I'm still trying to piece together everything and figure out what my next move will be. I guess this is the way the cookie crumbles in the real working world. 

On a related note, I'm guessing that the blog is about to undergo a few changes as I begin this new chapter in my life. Things are about to get random as I go about finding a new job, attempting to save money like crazy and exploring a few of my untapped interests and hobbies that I never had time for. Here we go...

Green Spring Cleaning

I ended up buying the new issue of Real Simple Magazine while we were stranded in the Chicago airport. Words cannot describe how much I love this magazine. I love the paper, the photography, the articles....total inspiration in a magazine. I have a few leftover Amazon gift cards from work rewards that just might have to go towards a subscription.

When we started running low on some of our staple cleaning supplies a few weeks ago, I started looking into making my own natural cleaners. I put off actually beginning the process of making everything, but then was so excited to see that green cleaning was one of the main focuses of this month's issue. There is a whole section that talks about the many cleaning uses of a variety of basic household products like baking soda, vinegar and lemons. I can't wait to get started!

Chicago Trip Recap

Our first trip as a married couple since the Honeymoon was amazing! We had a blast and I'm pretty sure that we saw just about everything that there was to see in the Loop area of Chicago. We had one definite thing to do everyday (something we had bought tickets for) and then a long list of random things that we wanted to do at some point during our 3 day stay. We did absolutely everything on our list. The weather was fantastic, which apparently was not the case for the week before and after we were there. We had the chance to catch up with Kyle's friend/college roommate from Missouri and spend the day with him and his fiance. We still might consider moving there at some point....but I think that it would be a long time for now. We definitely do not have the money for that city and I just don't know about the windy cold weather. Even if we never live there, I'm really glad that had the opportunity to go explore the city together. 

Pictures soon! They are on Facebook already.

Travel Voucher = Endless Possibilities

American Airlines has recently cut back the number of flights they offer. The problem is that they are now overbooking many of their flights....which was the case on our nonstop flight from Chicago to Houston. They offered a travel voucher for $300/ticket if anyone was willing to take a later multi-stop flight. I really wanted to get home, so I resisted this first offer. While we were in line to board the plane, the man behind the counter started talking to us and expressing how badly they needed two more people to give up their seats on the plane. Finally, he offered us $400/ticket travel vouchers that are good for a year and have no black out dates. We gave in, had lunch in the airport with a food voucher they gave us and ended up back in Austin at 2 a.m.

Yes it was a VERY long day and a VERY late night for us....but now we get to go on another trip in the next year. Airfare is expensive, but $800 should go pretty far if we really keep an eye out for the deals. I can't stop thinking about where we could go. The possibilities are endless!

London?

Bahamas?

SanFrancisco

Disney World?

Time to start saving up again!