"I am the Greatest!"

Just came across this old Kenny Rogers song titled, "The Greatest":

Little boy
In a baseball hat
Stands in the field
With his ball and bat

Says, "I am the greatest
Player of them all!"
Puts his bat on his shoulder
And he tosses up his ball

And the ball goes up and the ball comes down
He swings his bat all the way around
The world's so still you can hear the sound
The baseball falls
To the ground

Now the little boy
Doesn't say a word
Picks up his ball
He is undeterred

Says, "I am the greatest
There has ever been!"
And he grits his teeth
And he tries it again

And the ball goes up and the ball comes down
He swings his bat all the way around
The world's so still you can hear the sound
The baseball falls
To the ground

He makes no excuses
He shows no fear
He just closes his eyes
And listens to the cheers

Little boy
He adjusts his hat
Picks up his ball
Stares at his bat

Says, "I am the greatest!
The game is on the line!"
And he gives his all
One last time

And the ball goes up and the moon's so bright
Swings his bat with all his might
And the world's as still, as still can be
And the baseball falls...
...And that's strike three

Now it's suppertime
And his momma calls
Little boy starts home
With his bat and ball

Says, "I am the greatest!
That is a fact.
But even I didn't know
I could pitch like that."

Says, "I am the greatest!
That is understood.
But even I didn't know
I could pitch that good."

After hearing that, I decided to post the lyric in opposition to the song listed two posts ago. It's amazing the roller-coaster ride I've been on lately. Now I don't think I have quite the attitude of the little boy, but the song really struck me because...

I HAVE A JOB!!!!!

Yes, that is right. I am now back in the realm of the gainfully employed. Okay, I actually don't start work until Wednesday, but still...WhaaaHoooo! Humanix came through and lined up an interview for me with a huge nationwide company that has its headquarters here in town - Advantage IQ. What will I be doing? I will be one of the folks responsible for the opening and closing of accounts. What does that mean? I'm not going to describe what the company does...you can go to the website and find out if you're that interested. These folk work with big name corporations like McDonalds, Home Depot, Jack-in-the-Box, Staples, Starbucks, etc. I wasn't too sure about the job when I first heard about it, but after the interview I can honestly say that I am excited to see how things work.

I will certainly keep things updated on what I'm doing (within privacy guidelines, of course) as I learn more about it myself. Overall, it will be nice to get a paycheck again.

Feeling Somewhat Better

Whew.

The upside of having a rough period of time is that at some point things do get better. Yesterday (yeah, Happy Birthday to me and all that rot...whoop-de-doo) after being rejected by a janitorial company (quote: "You really don't want to clean houses for a living. You should go get a master's degree or something."), I walked into a local temporary employment agency (Humanix) and asked if they could help me out. Now, the reason I had not gone that route earlier is because the only experience I had prior to this was when I ended up as a contractor for Boeing...a job that I completely hated.

This time, however, looks to be a little more promising. While I am not working yet, they did sit me down and ran me through a battery of tests that took about 3 hours to complete. Because of that, I am confident that they have a good grasp of my abilities and strengths. Also, after talking with one of their employment specialists, who didn't pre-judge me in any way (a tremendous breath of fresh air to this whole crappy experience), I am confident in their ability/desire to find me something that I can do...and they do not charge me any money for this! Their fees are paid by the companies that hire them to pre-screen temporary and/or full time candidates. Looks like a win/win situation to me.

No matter what happens, it was a nice birthday present and has helped get me out of the funk I've been in lately (somewhat). I guess I just needed to get really pissed off first in order for me to go in there.

Speaking of the Bobs...

This past week, rough as it has been as far as job interviews, reminds me of another Bobs song. Here it is in its entirety:

Like a parrot in a picture window,
I can see where I'd like to be.
But repeated blows to my feathered little head
Have taught me not to fly straight.

Kinda depressing, huh? It has been that kind of week. I'm starting to lose my self-confidence in being able to convince others that I can do something...anything. It's not that I don't think I can do the job, just my ability to communicate to others that I can do that job. It is entirely frustrating - especially when an interview starts with the question: "So, why haven't you been working for the past few months?" As if there is something wrong with me. Arrrgg! SCREW YOU!

I though about deleting that last bit, but I'm not going to. I'm that frustrated. Somedays I just know Leslie is glad I'm not a cussing man...