Monday, March 31, 2008

Third Interview with GE and a call from a head hunter...


My cell phone rang this morning and it was GE. They want to speak to me again, so I will be taking a phone call from a person at GE tomorrow at 2PM. I have asked a few of my HR Maven friends and they do not know why this conversation will be via phone and not in person. I also had an unsolicited phone call from a head hunter/recruiter. He is calling me again tomorrow at 3PM. Life continues to be interesting in the Enchanted Mitten.

Saturday, March 29, 2008

Back in the 'hood...


Since I think that I am getting closer than ever to finding gainful employment, I decided to take a quick trip back to Grosse Pointe to spend a few days with my parents and help my father knock out a few projects. Soon, I am afraid, I will lose the ability to come and go as I please, so it was a good time to make a break for my parent's house. The image to the left of this text was taken on Friday morning along the shore line of Lake St. Clair. The tower in the background is the venerable Grosse Pointe Yacht Club, a well known landmark used by ships and sailors for years as they traverse the lake.

I have been going back to Grosse Pointe on and off since I first
left there in 1980 to go to college. One thing that strikes me each time I return to my hometown is how little has changed. Sure, a few businesses have come and gone, but the essence of the city has not changed much in at least two decades. The Original Pancake House is where it has always been, at the intersection of Mack Avenue and Lochmoor. Pointe Cycle and Fitness is also still in business. My father purchased all of my bikes there and it remains the place to purchase a bike if you live in Grosse Pointe.

I was able to knock out a few projects for my father and he appreciated the help. Once
my chores were done, my father and I grabbed some lunch at Little Tony's Lounge in the Woods. Little Tony's has been around since dirt was invented and they serve perhaps the best hamburger in town. I enjoyed a cheeseburger, fries and some iced tea, while my father had a burger and a Labatts. Since were were going to drive to Selfridge Air National Guard Base, I was not about to have even one beer before driving onto the base! We zipped up there and I used my retired military ID for the first time, since I had to show the card to the gate guard. I stopped at the Class Six store to purchase some hooch, and I filled my car up with fuel. I think that my father enjoyed getting out of the house and running a few errands.

There is an American cliche that says "You can never go home again." Well, it is still nice to know that one can go home to Grosse Pointe and know that some things have not changed, even though the calendar shows that years have come and gone. Perhaps for my next visit back there I will pay a visit to the Irish Coffee for one of their burgers!

Thursday, March 27, 2008

Birds of prey know that they are cool

The past few years we have had a couple of hawks living in our midst. There are two nests in our backyard, which can only be seen in the winter when the leaves are gone. The hawks seem to prefer to build their nests at the top of the oak trees in our yard, perhaps to survey their domain and look for tasty morsels like squirrels and other birds. On Wednesday, I left the house to take Samson for a walk and I noticed a hawk in the tree across the street from out house. I was hoping that the hawk would still be there when I returned from my stroll with Handsome Boy. Luckily, the hawk was in his same perch when I got back from my stroll with Samson. I quickly let Samson into the house, grabbed Dee's camera and started to take some pictures. The quiet elegance of this raptor is something that needs to be seen to truly appreciate the beauty of this creature.

The hawk was perched in an oak tree across
the street from our house. After grabbing Dee's camera, I quietly walked to a position where I could best capture the hawk in his perch before he flew away. He remained on the branch for a few minutes, then he took flight, circling around the area a few times, gracefully flying along a few thermals, soaring up and down silently. After making a few circuits around the tree, he headed west, no doubt looking for a snack. His graceful flight was inscribed against the sky, and his wings were clearly outlined against this blue and white pallet. As quickly as he was here, he was gone. I hope to catch a few more images of him again, soon, before the leaves return and his nest is once again hidden from view.

New windows for Deb

I spent some time Wednesday morning at Deb's house, taking down the window treatments in her home in preparation for the arrival of the installers from Window World on Thursday morning. Deb had been planning on replacing her windows for a while, but when she saw the results of the fantastic installation of our new windows, she decided to use Window World. Not only did I have to remove the window treatments, but I also had to move some furniture, too. Deb is still not terribly ambulatory, so my strong back and weak mind worked to my favor as I moved a couple of beds and a few dressers in preparation for the window replacement evolution.

Deb's house
is ready for the installers to arrive today. I know that she is going to be happy with her new windows. Following the replacement of 6 of our windows, we have decided to replace a few more this summer. Full report on that evolution to follow.

Tuesday, March 25, 2008

Deb Update

My friend John who is a frequent reader of this blog requested a "Deb Update" in a different thread. John accused me of slacking, so here we go: Deb is recovering nicely. She is off all pain meds and she is moving along with a small scooter. I spent the better part of Monday morning at her house, taking care of a few maintenance issues. Just before her injury, Deb purchased five new Kwikset door knobs for her interior doors. While Deb had the knobs, she was lacking the technical skills needed to install the knobs. I, on the other hand, have the technical skills and experience to change the knobs as I had changed a couple of door knobs in our home. I told Deb that once things settled down at her house that I would be happy to come out and install the five knobs. I spoke to Deb on Sunday and I told her that I would be by on Monday morning to install the knobs. Well, on Sunday the father of one of her friends came by to visit and he spent about two hours replacing one of the knobs, and according to Deb the installation was a bit rocky. I arrived at Deb's house a little after 8AM and I set to work to install the remaining four knobs. The old knobs the original knobs and were Dexter, which is a company long since purchased by Schlage. I quickly removed the first knob and I discovered that the opening in the doors would not fit the new knobs. Undaunted, I looked at the new knobs and determined that all I needed to do was drill two small holes in each door and the knobs could be easily installed. In a matter of a few minutes, I completed the first installation and proceeded to work on the remaining three knobs. I also looked at the knob installed on Sunday and realized that it had been improperly mounted. The latch on the door was hitting the striker place on the door frame, which meant that the latch was not properly installed. I removed the knob, made a few quick corrections and I am happy to report that the knob is now functioning nominally. I completed the installation of the four knobs and the repair of the other knob in a little less than two hours.

As part of the continuing care and feeding of Deb while she is recovering from her broken leg, I asked her if she needed anything else done after I finished installing the knobs. She said that she had a a few prescriptions that she needed to pick up and Deb asked me if I would not mind driving her to her local pharmacy to
pick up her meds. I told her that I would be happy to do drive her wherever she needed to go. We took her car as it needed to be started and driven (Deb is still not able to drive). Deb used her scooter to get to the car, she got in on the passenger side, and I loaded he scooter into the trunk. In order to help Deb, I picked up a temporary handicap placard for last week as I felt she would need one until she recovers from her injury. We drove her pharmacy and for the first time in my life, I parked in a handicap spot. I unloaded her scooter and Deb was able to easily wheel her way to the pharmacy and pick up her meds. This placard will come in handy for Deb as she recovers from her injury. I have always been a big fan of handicap parking spots for people who need them and the parking spot worked as advertised for Deb.

Saturday, March 22, 2008

A little help for a friend

I had double duty today. Not only was I playing nurse to Deirdre as she recovered from her surgery, but I also was on the hook to give our friend Henry a hand. Based on our wonderful experience with the professionals from HWC Homeworks, Henry and his lovely bride Jan decided to have one of their bathrooms remodeled. Work began last Monday and the project is moving along according to plan. The project will take about 12 calendar or 10 business days. On Friday, their craftsman, Don, told Henry that he could paint the bathroom this weekend. Weeks ago I promised Henry that I would be happy to give him a hand painting the bathroom when the time came. This morning at 1000 I went to Henry's house and we set right to work. Yesterday Henry primed the walls and ceiling, and he was also able to get a couple coats of white semi-gloss on the ceiling. Our task was to paint the walls. I was assigned to do the cut-in along the ceiling and the edges by the trim surrounding the door. In a matter of about two hours, we were able to complete our task and not only paint the bathroom, but also four pieces of trim that Don will apply along the baseboards at some point this week. The bathroom remodeling project is really shaping up and by the end of the week Henry and Jan will have completely transformed the space.

Spring Precipitation

March 22, 2008. This is the second full day of Spring. Yesterday was the first full day or spring, as the Vernal Equinox for 2008 has come and gone. Yesterday we had our first precipitation of Spring. Usually, precipitation at this time of the year comes in the form of water in its liquid state. However, in a cruel twist, the first precipitation of this season came in the form of solid water, also known as snow. Yes, snow. You can see the the snow falling in our backyard yesterday if you look at the dark area to the right of the grill. Those white streaks are snow flakes, falling to the ground.



Last night I did not even bother to shovel the snow that fell, as the precipitation was still falling when the sun set. I made the decision to clear the walk this morning after
I was done with breakfast. Thus, a little after 8AM I opened the garage door, fired up the snowblower and set to my task. I almost ran the snowblower dry of fuel last week as I thought that we would not have any more appreciable snow this month. I am glad that I did not run the snowblower out of fuel as this power tool came in handy. I used the snowblower to clear the 6 or so inches of snow that fell yesterday. Normally, I remove the date and time stamp from my photos, but for emphasis I toggled date stamp to "ON" to document the date: 22 March 2008. Yes, spring is upon us, as is a fresh blanket of snow. Yes, winter still has its grip on the Enchanted Mitten.

Myths about adopting a rescue dog...

Samson remains a work in progress. Each day he is a little better behaved than yesterday. For those of you following this blog and a closely related one, we adopted Samson in early November. Those first few weeks with him were quite a challenge as he was essentially feral. Samson had been abandoned by his owners and was found wandering the streets in downtown Grand Rapids. There are a lot of myths out there regarding the adoption of "rescue dogs," as you can read if you click on this link. However, there is one I want to highlight in this post:

Myth 9: I'm unsure about getting a rescue dog. I am afraid he won't bond to me.

As you can see by these pictures, Samson has indeed bonded with both me and Deirdre. Samson shows his intelligence to us each day, listening to our commands and doing what we tell him to do. He has come to the point where Dee and I need to spell certain words like "w-a-l-k" or "p-u-p-p-y t-r-e-a-t" or "d-i-n-n-e-r." He is also developing a very sweet and loving personality. He will plop himself down right in the middle of us and observe whatever we are doing. One of his favorite things to do is to take a spot in the kitchen when we are preparing dinner and wait for something to fall off the counter. Samson seems to love most everything we make, but one treat he really likes are green beans. Yes, those green beans. See the photo to the right for an example of him establishing his presence in our kitchen and patiently wait for a snitch of green beans.

We are frequently reminded of our precious dog, Allie, in some of the things that Samson does. It is clear to even the most casual observer that there are certain traits
common to all German Shepherd Dogs. Like Allie, Samson likes to look out at the backyard and chase any creature that happens to wanted into its confines. He also likes to herd us when we are walking around the house, as if we do not know where we need to go and he needs to guide is from one room to another. Much like Allie, Samson enjoys his sleep and in particular he likes sleeping on our Stearns & Foster bed. Again, much like Allie, Samson prefers to take his half of the bed right out of the middle of the bed.

People might tell you that rescue dog will not bond with you. Deirdre and I beg to differ!

Thursday, March 20, 2008

And oh by the way...

Happy Vernal Equinox! Of course, in Michigan that means one thing: A chance of snow tomorrow. If you want an explanation of the image below call me.


With love from the Enchanted Mitten.

Interview update: GE & the 61st District Court

This was another interesting day in my job search. This morning at 8AM I had an interview with the Engineering Services group at GE Aviation. This interview was hastily arranged, as one of the decision makers is leaving for California over the weekend to help in another project and there is no set date for his return. I was also constrained by the fact that I had an interview at 11:30AM at the 61st District Court. So, here is what happened today...

I arrived at GE Aviation (which is located near the Gerald R. Ford International Airport) at 7:40AM or so. My appointment was at 8AM, but I did not want to be late.
I checked in with Security, as I had to prove citizenship, so I showed him my passport and I took a seat to wait for Larry to come get me. A few moments later, Larry showed up and escorted me to a conference room where we got to know each other and talk about the job responsibilities and my fit within the organization. Larry and I spoke until about 8:30AM when his boss, Hank arrived. Hank is the person who is leaving for California tomorrow, and it was because of his tight schedule that Larry was able to arrange for such a quick interview. Larry said goodbye to me, wished me well and left to get back to his projects. Hank escorted me to the office of his boss, a man named John, and the tow of them started to ask me a few questions about my background and experience, and then they started to "sell" me on the benefits of working for GE, as well as about the responsibilities of the position and what they were expecting. A few minutes after 9AM, John excused himself as he had another meeting. I thanked him for taking the time out of his morning to meet with me on such short notice and in return he said, "Paul, thank you for coming in so quickly."

Hank then escorted me back to the conference room, where he asked me more questions about my experience and qualifications, and then another person, Al, came in to speak with me. When Al arrived, Hank excused himself and said, "I will be back at 9:45 or so, Al." Al was a crusty old soul and in the the course of our conversation I found out that he was prior
Navy, that he served for about 6 years from 1971-1978, stationed aboard USS AMERICA (CV 66) and ashore at the Submarine School in Groton Connecticut. Al spent more time talking about the corporate culture at GE then he did asking me questions. At about 9:30AM, Gil arrived to continue the interview. I thanked Al for his time and he left. Gil spent the next 15 minutes looking at my resume, asking a few questions about where I had been stationed, but not much more in-depth than that. My conversation with Gil was pleasant but we really did not talk too much about what I might be doing at GE. I think he was asking questions to see if I might be a a good fit in the Engineering Services Group.

At 9:45 or so, Hank returned and said, "Paul, I know that you have to leave soon. Can we go back to John's office and cover a few things?" Needless to say, I obliged.

I said goodbye to Gil, thanking him for his time, and then I followed Hank back to John's office. John was not there, so Hank started to ask me a few HR required questions. A few minutes after we sat down, John arrived and he asked me a few more questions, chiefly about what I had thought of the interview process. It was not a little after 10AM and hank remembered that I need to leave soon. I told him that so long as I was out the door by 10:30 or so, that I would be able to make my 11:30 interview downtown. Hank said to me, "We have had a lot of change here recently. I think that you would be a great fit to help lead this change. I am going to brief my VP that we need to make you an offer, but right now the VP of Engineering Services and HR need to approve all hires. I am 99.9% certain that we will make you an offer, but it might take as long as two weeks for HR to get it together. Is that soon enough for you?" I told Hank that would be fine and that I was looking forward to hearing back from GE. I said goodbye to John, he wished me well and then Hank escorted me back to the front desk. John said to me, "It is so difficult to find engineering talent here and I think that you would be a great hire. I am going to recommend to my VP that we make you an offer. I hope, again, that two weeks is not too long for you to wait." I told Hank no, and I told him that I was quite interested in the potential opportunity to work at GE. I thanked him for his time and I left to head to my next interview.

From GE, I drove downtown to the Kent
County Courthouse. I parked across the street, walked over to the courthouse and went inside. I passed through the obligatory metal detectors, and proceeded to the Third Floor where the 61st Court is located. I checked in with the receptionist, and a moment later Amy (she is the one who called me last week) came out and she handed me a form to fill out, along with a benefits list. She said that she was getting the judges together and that it would be just a few more minutes. I was early, and I was in no position to complain!

A few minutes later the door opens and it is a Judge from the court. I recognized him because of his photo on the court's website, and he said to me, "Paul, I am A, great to meet you." I said in response, "Judge, thanks for asking me to come here and meet with you." I was then escorted to a conference room, where there were three other district court judges waiting. Each one of them introduced themselves to me, shook my hand and made me feel welcome. Judge A closed the door to the conference room
and I took my seat and the interview began. For the next hour or so, I was asked questions about my abilities and capabilities to do the job as Court Administrator. One of the judges said to me, "You do not have a lot of judicial experience. What makes you think this woould be a job that you can do?" I then went through the job description, making correlations between the duties of the Court Administrator and what I had done in the military. The judges spent the next 45 minutes or so asking me about what I did in the Navy, how I handled problems and stress, how I managed budgets and people, etc. The judges had pretty much run out of questions, and then the Judge B said to me, "Paul, do you have any questions for us?" I had prepared about 25 questions for them, ranging from what are the day to day responsibilities of the position, to how is the position evaluated, to what did they see as the criterion for success. My questions took about 30 minutes, and the last question I asked was, "So what do you like about working here?" Each judge said to me that they liked making a difference in the lives of the people.

The interview was at an end, and Judge A said to me, "Paul, I do not want you to take this the wrong way, but you have the most interesting and unusual resume of all the people we have called in for an interview. We are interviewing 7 candidates, and we hope to make a decision about a few finalists by the middle of next month. The finalists will meet the other two judges, and meet with members of the Court's staff. We will be in touch with you after we have a chance to meet and interview the other candidates."

I got up to thank each of the judges, and they each thanked me for coming in to interview. Each of them were smiling and I think that they enjoyed speaking to me. One of the judges, who did not ask me many questions said to me, "Paul, it was a pleasure meeting you. I thoroughly enjoyed this interview."

So now all I can do is wait and see when GE or the 61st District Court has to say to me. I enjoyed both interviews and I am hopeful that I will hear from either GE or the 61st District Court. Updates to follow!


Wednesday, March 19, 2008

Another interview with GE... and more strange things...

Well, today was one of the more interesting days of my job search adventure. Larry from GE called me this morning to talk to me about a "technical manager" position. I had been told a few weeks ago following my first interview with GE that I would be contacted when they were ready to bring me in for a second interview. I felt that the e-mail I received from Larry yesterday was to set up a second interview for the technical manager position I interviewed for a couple of weeks ago. Larry called me at 9:30AM and he immediately asked me questions regarding my program management experience. I started to explain my background and experience in program management, and then I asked Larry, "Is this a follow up interview following my first interview a few weeks ago?" The silence on the phone was deafening for a few moments.

Larry said to me, "Did you interview here already?" I told him that I had and I told him the
names of the five people I spoke to the end of February. Larry said to me, "Oh. I am calling about another position we are trying to fill. I know Carl, but I do not know the other people you met. Can you tell me what the position was they brought you in for?" I told Larry the job number and he said, "You applied for the position of Engineering Manager, job number 800845 a few days ago. Are you still interested in this position?" I told him that I was, and I was simply waiting to hear back from somebody at GE regarding my first interview, as I had been told that the entire division was being re-structured, and that once the re-structuring plan was determined that I would be told whether or not there was a place for me with GE.

Larry and I spoke for a few minutes more and he said to me, "Wow, it is already after 10AM. I need to get to a meeting. However, I am going to forward your resume on to Hank, my boss. I think that he will want to talk to you. I do want to let you know that GE's hiring process slow at best. Even if someone is hot to hire you, it can take a while for an offer." I thanked him for his time and I ended the call by saying, "Larry, I enjoyed speaking with you and I hope to hear from you soon." My call with him ended at 10:05AM

I hung up the phone and went on my chores: cleaning up the kitchen and breakfast dishes, picking up the house, and then taking Samson out for a walk. This afternoon, our friend and master remodeler Dave was going to come by at 1:30PM or so to the house with a production crew from the local Fox affiliate to film the outside of our house for a television spot to advertise his window replacement company and the great work that they on our new windows. I was waiting for Dave to arrive and my cell phone rang. The call went something like this:

"Hello, is this Paul?

"Yes, this is Paul. Can I help you?"

"Paul, this is Larry from GE. I sent your resume to my boss, Hank and he wants to meet you. Are you available tomorrow to come in for an interview? We are closed on Good Friday, so tomorrow is a good day for us. Also, Hank my boss is out of town all next week. He really wants to talk to you before he goes."

"Larry, I have an interview with another organization tomorrow at 11:30AM. I do not want to commit to an afternoon interview with you as I have no idea how long my 11:30 interview will go."

"Paul, OK. What about in the morning?"

"I do not want to rush you, and I must be done with any discussions with you no later than 10AM so I can get to my 11:30 interview. Would you prefer to schedule an interview after Hank is back?"

"Paul, we want to move quickly with you on this. Hank does not know how long he will be gone, and he really wants to speak to you."

"OK. I can come in tomorrow morning, but I must be done by 10AM, if that is alright with you?"

"Paul, can you be here at 8AM? I promise that we will get you out by 10AM."

"Great! Paul, I might need you to fill out a few forms in preparation for the interview."

"Larry, I met with Carol and Mimi in HR during my first interview and I filled out an application. I will be happy to fill out another one, but perhaps if I give you my candidate number you can find the application?"

"Paul, that would be great. If you already filled out an application you are already in the system and that will speed things up."

I gave Larry my candidate number and our phone call ended a moment later. So, in the span of less than three hours, I was told that it might take a while for my resume to filter its way through the GE bureaucracy to "we really want to talk to you soon. Is tomorrow morning at 8AM too early?" Yes, life continues to be interesting here in the Enchanted Mitten.

I have my first interview with the 61st District Court at 1130 tomorrow. Full report to follow!

Tuesday, March 18, 2008

Call back for a second interview with GE

Late this afternoon I received an e-mail from Larry, who is a manager at GE Aviation here in Grand Rapids. His e-mail said:

Paul,

Thanks for sending your resume in response to our position. I would like to talk more about the position with you. Please let me know some times that you are available.

Regards,
Larry
Technical Manager, Engineering Services
GE


I am happy to report that I have a second interview with GE on Wednesday morning. I am also preparing for my interview for the position of Court Administrator for the 61st District Court on Thursday. I am excited about both possibilities and I think that my job search and interview preparations will soon yield some results. As ever, I will keep the blog updated as these interviews progress.

Sunday, March 16, 2008

Sunday Night

Today was the first day in literally weeks when the sun shined all day. Sure, there were a few clouds in the high sky, but they barely interfered with Sol sharing its warmth and benevolence upon us. Today, Dee and I visited our friend Deb who is back following a week of recuperation at her sister's house. Deb looked well and we went over a some paperwork that she needed to complete before I take her to her first follow up medical appointment tomorrow. Deb's looked great and she was looking forward to her first check up.

Later this week I have an interview with the 61st
District Court. Life continues to be interesting here in the Enchanted Mitten.

Friday, March 14, 2008

One "holiday" I dread...

Those of you who know my heritage know that I am half Irish and half German. My mother's family came over from County Mayo in the 1800s and settled in easter Pennsylvania. The Irish did not stray far away from other Irish when it came to marriage, so I come from a long line of Hastings and Clancys. My father, however, is a first generation German. His mother and father emigrated to the United States in 1921. My parents met when they were both stationed at Parks Air Force Base in California. They married and moved back to Michigan where I was born and raised. Well, my mother is quite proud of her Irish heritage and when I was growing up, St. Patrick's Day was always a cause for celebration. We would go to the annual St. Patrick's Day Parade in downtown Detroit, we would wear green clothing and sometimes put on silly hats and pretend to be leprechauns. One part of the celebration was the evening meal, which invariably was Corned Beef and Cabbage. For the life of me, I think that the reason why so many Irish left the Emerald Isle is because like me, they could not stand this vile cut of seasoned meat.

Back to my story. Each St. Patrick's Day my family would look forward to eating what was essentially boiled shoe leather. My mother would fill a cauldron with water, throw in a hunk of corned beer, some potatoes, cabbage, maybe some salt and
pepper, perhaps some celery for flavor. How one could ever flavor shoe leather is beyond me, but she would try nevertheless. The aroma of this dank cut of meat would fill the house, so I would try to spend as much time as possible outdoors whenever this "dish" was being prepared. After my father came home from work, the table would be set and the the carcass of beef would be removed from the pot, along with the soggy vegetables and potatoes. My siblings would rejoice at the thought of the meat, while I could barely keep myself from retching at the stench of it.

So, we would then take our places at the table, grace would be said and then my parents and siblings would relish in the consumption of this thoroughly proletarian dish. I was forced to eat this wretched excuse for a meal, so I would slather as much mustard as possible between two pieces of bread, then put a slice of this offensive meat there as well. I would then try to gulp this down, chewing as little as possible so that I would not have to taste it, much.

So, while I applaud the celebration of the birth of the patron saint of Ireland, to this day I cannot
stomach the smell, taste or appearance of corned beef. I will probably have a beer or two, maybe even a green one. I will leave the consumption of corned beef to the peasants.


Happy Pi Day!


Winter is just about done, the days are getting longer, so it is high time to celebrate Pi Day! Yes, the ubiquitous irrational number that is interwoven into all sorts of cool and useful physical and mathematical equations has its day today. Did you know that without the knowledge of the value of pi, that many things we take for granted would be impossible? Pi has founds its way into the very fabric of our lives. Without it, transmission of electricity, television and radio broadcasts, packaging of food, just to name a few, would not be possible. So, stand tall and be proud, Pi. Today is your day!

Thursday, March 13, 2008

I am feeling well for the first time in a week...

I am happy to report that today is the first day in almost a week I am feeling well. Whatever the bug was that managed to infect me really took me down. I had a hard time sleeping and when I did fall asleep, it was not that restful. I am still coughing a little, but no where near as much as I did a few days ago. Also, beer is starting to taste good again. Deirdre can now cancel the order for the head stone. Woo hoo!


Tuesday, March 11, 2008

Another interesting day in my job search

This morning I was applying for a job with a local company that is looking for a facilities manager. The job looked interesting enough: large facility, lots of people, multi-million dollar plant replacement value. It seemed to be right up my alley. Well, while I was applying for the job on line, my cell phone rang and I did not recognize the number. I answered the phone and the conversation went like this:

Me: "Hello."
Caller: "Hello. My name is Amy and I work for the 61st District Court. Can I speak to Paul, please?"
Me: Huh... are there any outstanding warrants for my arrest?!?
Me: "This is Paul, can I help you?"
Caller: "Yes. Recently, you applied for the position of Court Administrator. The Court would like you to come in for an interview. Are you available next week?"
Me: "I would be happy to come in for an interview..."

I spent the next few minutes with Amy arranging the specifics of my interview. I have an interview next Thursday (20 March). To say that I am surprised is
an understatement. I had applied for this position in early January and I never heard a peep back from anyone. I figured that the Court had thrown my resume and application into the circular file a long time ago. I had completely forgotten that I had even applied for the job.

I looked back at documents I had sent the Court and one of the things I had to send was a list of references. One of my references is a circuit court judge (Jim) who is a good friend of mine. As soon as I got the call from Amy, I called Jim and left him a message, telling him that I had an interview. Jim called me later in the day and said, "Paul, I should have called you last week. I met with Judge B. and he asked me about you and I told him all about you." Jim told me that he highlighted my organizational and leadership skills, that I would be a perfect fit for this job, that I have all the skills and abilities that is needed to excel in the position of Court Administrator.

To make things even more interesting for me, I received a call from one of the people who interviewed me at General Electric. Stan told me that GE is still quite interested in me, but
that "Corporate GE is directing a reorganization of GE Aviation in Grand Rapids. Until the regional vice presidents know what the structure is to be, they will not be able to pair a job requisition with a particular person." What my friend Stan was telling me was to be patient and that as soon as the organizational structure for whatever GE Aviation in Grand Rapids will be, that he will be able to speak with more clarity about my prospects for employment. I told Stan that there were two other engineering manager positions that were recently posted on the GE careers website, and he encouraged me to apply. I think that if Stan had the authority to hire me (clearly it is his boss who has the hiring authority) I would have a job offer already. In the meantime, I applied for the other two positions and I will see where this leads me.

It was a pretty interesting day for me. I had no idea that I would hear from the 61st District Court and GE. I also had no idea that my friend Jim the district court judge would basically tell the chief judge of the 61st District that he would be a fool not to hire me. It just goes to show you that it pays to have low friends in high places!

Monday, March 10, 2008

Monday Afternoon...

I continue to be on the mend. I slept through the night and the Mucinex is doing its magic. I am still not 100%, but I am definitely on the upslope of the sine curve. I did spend a few extra hours in bed today, as I did not want to over do it. Samson, ever the faithful guardian, was cuddled up next to me the whole time I was horizontal.

As for our friend Deb, her sister and brother-in-law picked her up on Saturday afternoon and whisked her away to their home in Illinois for a few days. I spoke to Deb today and she is doing well, and she is backing off on her pain medication, too. We expect Deb to be back in town by the end of the week, and I will be taking her to her first follow up appointment with her surgeon on St. Patrick's Day.

Sunday, March 9, 2008

Sunday Afternoon


I am happy to report that I believe that the Grim Reaper has packed his bags as it appears that I will survive this bout with the flu. I went to bed around 10PM and I slept though the night, waking up a little after 6AM. I took more meds and based on the advice of my cousin Mary, Dee picked up a bottle filled with capsules of Mucinex. Mary is convinced, based on my symptoms, that I have the flu. I have spent most of the day relaxing as I do not want to rush my recovery. I cannot recall a time in the recent past when I felt as bad as I did yesterday, but I am definitely on the mend.

Saturday, March 8, 2008

Beer does not sound good...


A few hours ago I got out of bed. I was fearful of developing bedsores. I cannot remember the last time I have felt so awful. I got up to take some more meds and to have dinner. Dee went to our favorite take-out Chinese place and she picked up some oat pops. One of my favorite beers is Founders Centennial IPA. I washed down the Hunan Beef Dee got for me with a single bottle of the Centennial IPA. I am sorry to report that not even my favorite beer tastes good to me right now. I hope that this bug I am fighting yields to me soon. If I do not like the taste of a Founders brew, I think that I would rather be dead. But then again, if I am gone, who will cook for Deirdre?...

Update on my condition

I went sinker last night around 10PM. I was coughing a little, but the Ny-Quil (and the Canadian Mist!) took the edge off of my suffering. I woke up around 4AM and gulped down some more of that wonderful elixir, and went back to bed. I woke up at 6AM as I was in a coughing fit, so I took some more meds and went back to sleep. Samson is pretty funny right now as he is not used to one of his pack members being ill. When I went back to bed at 6AM, he plopped himself right down on my pillow, as if his presence would make me feel better. It actually did as happiness is a warm puppy. When Dee got up around 7AM, Samson refused to leave my side. Dee had to force him off the bed. Ever defiant, Samson sat down at door to our back bedrooms, guarding the door for my eventual return. I got up around 8:40AM as the coughing was back with a vengeance. I got up, put my robe over my jammies and went to the kitchen to hydrate and check my temperature. Yesterday, each time I checked my temperature it was the text book temp for a homo sapien, 98.6F. However, this morning I am not so lucky. My temperature was 100.7F, so I am definitely fighting something. I am going to have a little brekkie, take some more meds and go back to bed. And for the record, Nurse Deirdre is doing a fantastic job taking care of me. Updates to follow as conditions warrant.

Friday, March 7, 2008

I have been told I must not be crabby...

Yesterday afternoon I noticed that I had a nagging cough. I thought it might be from being out side much of the day yesterday, but the cough turned into chills and a fever later in the evening. I swigged down some Ny-Quil to get me through the night and I have been sipping on Day-Quil most of the day today. I was going to drive Deirdre into work today, but she let me just stay in the rack to regain my strength. Ever the caring wife she said to me last night, "OK, you need to stop coughing. Either stop coughing or die." I promised her would first try to stop coughing.

This is my first cold/bug of the winter. I have been pretty fortunate as I have not been sick all season. Dee also reminded me
that I am not allowed to be crabby when I am not feeling well. To be honest, I am feeling better as I type this, but my overall feeling has been like riding the crest of a sine wave. I still have to determine the period of this wave, but I think that it is about 4 hours. Right now I am on the top of the wave. Let's hope it stays that way for a while.


Thursday, March 6, 2008

DEB UPDATE, AS DIRECTED

Soon after the professionals from Window World of West Michigan were done installing our new windows, I went to see how Deb was doing. I am happy to report that each day she is a little better than the last. I held some training with one of the other caregivers, informing her the difference between meds every 6 hours versus meds every 4 hours. I also checked on Deb's recent pain dosage and all is on track for her. Deb left the house today for the first time since she was discharged from the hospital and her right leg reminded her just who is the boss. Deb ran out to some auction house where she won a bid on some door knobs. Well, I should say that she was driven to this auction house, which was only about 10 miles away, and she was clearly uncomfortable after her trip. I told her that the biggest mistake I made following my knee surgery last year was that I overdid things too soon following my procedure. I reminded that we were not 20 year olds any more and that these middle aged bodies need more time to recover. That is the trouble with youth: it is wasted on the young!

These guys do not mess around!

For those of you who have followed my blog, you know that in the past 2 months we had our bathrooms remodeled by the professionals at HWC Homeworks. In the course of getting to know the owner of the company (and helping him with a few IT issues), I found out that he also owned a window replacement company called Window World of West Michigan. Dee and I have known that we needed to replace a few of the windows in our house for a while, but we were just waiting to find the right time and company to do the work. Needless to say, after the fantastic work Dave's company did with our bathrooms, we decided to have his people replace six of our old windows.

Our house in EGR is perhaps 50 years old. The original owner, from what we were told, was a Pella Window distributor, so all of the
windows in the house were Pella. The house underwent a major remodeling on or about 1970 according to the tax records, and that is when we think the windows where last replaced. At the time of installation, the windows were probably some of the best on the market, but time and technology had clearly made them obsolete. The windows were drafty and difficult to clean. It was clearly time to replace them.

I was told to expect the installers around 9:30AM, and I was told to move all furniture away
from the windows, as well as to remove all window treatments. I removed a few of the treatments yesterday, but the majority of the treatments I removed this morning after I had Princess had left for work. Removing the treatments was fairly straightforward and I finished my work by 8:30AM. I was able to get all of our treatments down without damaging any of the mounting hardware, an accomplishment for which I am quite proud! Brent and Steve were early and they arrived a little after 9AM. The immediately started their work and within a few minutes the old window in our bedroom was removed.

In short order they had replaced all six windows and then set to the task of wrapping
each one in aluminum coil, which is essentially flat aluminum, bent and shaped for a custom fit. Of course, Samson was quite interested in what was going on. He was very friendly with Brent and Steve. He also wanted to inspect the progress of the work. Already I am noticing the difference in the warmth in the rooms. We replaced a window in our bedroom, two windows in our guest bedroom, both windows in our main bathroom and the window in our dining room. Each window is a double hung with the inert gas argon in-between the panes of glass. After experiencing the brutally cold winter here in the Enchanted Mitten, which is still going on, these windows will really help cut our heating bill next winter and help keep the house cool next summer.


Wednesday, March 5, 2008

OK, I HAVE BEEN A LITTLE BUSY...

I had no idea that my blog was so popular. I have received a couple of e-mails from people who noticed that I had not posted anything in a few days. Truth be told, I have spent a lot of my time helping my friend Deb who, if you look back a couple of posts, is recovering from a nasty fall where she broke the tibia and fibula in her right leg. Deb is at least 6 and probably closer to 8 weeks away from starting back to work even part time, so that should tell you how serious her injury was. I drove her some from the hospital on Monday, I spent most of Tuesday with her, and I literally tucked her into bed last night before coming home about 9:30PM. I was back at her house a little after 6AM this morning to let her dogs out, feed them and make her a little brekkie. So, if you think I have been slacking, call Deb and she cal tell you what I have been doing.

On a serious note, it looks like I have a great financial opportunity. I received the e-mail below earlier today:


Manager Eco bank Ghana

Ring road Branch,

Ghana.

My name is Mr.William Imo, I am the regional manager of the Eco bank ring road branch in the Western Region of Ghana. I am 50 years of age and married with 2 lovely kids. It may interest you to hear that I am a man of PEACE and don't want problem, I only hope we can assist each other. If you don't want this business offer kindly forget it as I will not contact you again.

I have packaged a financial transaction that will benefit both of us, as the regional manager of the Eco bank Ghana it is my duty to send in a financial report to my head office in the capital city Accra at the end of each year. On the course of the last year 2007 end of year report, I discovered that my branch in which I am the manager made Four Million five Hundred and Fifty Thousand Dollars only [$4.550.000.00]. Which my head office are not aware of and will never be aware of. I have since place this fund on what we call SUSPENSE ACCOUNT without any beneficiary.

As an officer of the bank I can not be directly connected to this money, so this informed my contacting you for us to work so that you can assist receive this money into your bank account for us to SHARE. While you will have 30% of the total fund .Note there are practically no risk involved, it will be bank to bank transfer, all I need from you is to stand claim as the original depositor of this fund who made the deposit with our branch so that my Head office can order the transfer to your designated bank account. If you accept this offer to work with me, I will appreciate it very much. As soon as I receive your response I will details you on how we can achieve it successfully. Pls This Transaction needs very much Urgent attention, we do not have to delay pls and I wait to hear from you As soon as possible.

Best regards,

Mr.William Imo



Looks like I will be a millionaire before I know it!

All kidding aside, does anybody believe an e-mail solicitation like this?

Monday, March 3, 2008

Resting Comfortably

Today I have served as a nurse's aide, chauffeur and delivery boy. I am happy to report that our friend Deb is home and as I type this, she is asleep in her own bed. I "have the watch" here until a little later this afternoon when Mary is due to arrive and help Deb get through her first night at home. I can tell you that Deb's spirits soared when she walked in the door of her house.

Sunday, March 2, 2008

Deb 1, Crutches 0


We visited our friend Deb today at the hospital. A few minutes after we got there, a physical therapist came by to check on her and stat some re-hab stuff with her. The first thing Deb has to learn is how to get around on crutches. The therapist fit Deb for crutches and then took her down the hall and back. When Deb got back to her room, she was in obvious pain, but she looked more confident in her abilities to hobble around on her new crutches. As the story goes, the longest journey begins with the smallest step.