Christmas

Well it is unavoidable isn't it?
Advertisers are trying every trick in the book. You mail cards to "friends" that you havn't spoken to in years. You hang out enough lights to make your electric supplier Lick his chops and sharpen his billing pencil. You hope that the people that you know with the holiday depression syndrome catch a bye on this one. for the umpteenth time you wish you had bought stock in a battery company. You go screaming through a couple of stores at the very last minute. All these things are just the prelude.
Time seems compressed and flies by all too fast.
But take one look at the face of a child. And listen for 30 miinutes to thier thoughts with no regard for your own.
It's all worth it!
Do not let polititions, self-centered idiots, or self-serving parasites take that away.
Merry Christmas to all and a Happy New Year!

Ramblin...

Well it should be painfully obvious by now that this blog thing is a catch as catch can kind of happening. The only time I can do this is when nobody else is around. And those times are seldom seen.
Part of the problem is I just cannot stand an audience. The other part is the audience is either competing for my attention like my grandkids or trying to drive the train like other people I could name. Don't smirk. you know what I mean. Either telling me I got it all wrong or trying to correct my grammer. I'll have you know my memory is just as good as it always has been and my grammer is dang near purfik.
Other news is there has been yet another layoff at where I used to work. Must be about number seventeen in the series. Another piece of the pie headed across the border. I know because some of the refugees have come to work where I am currently employed. I have given up hope that congress or company higher ups will ever realize that it is a declining spiral. Wall Street has them paralyzed.
It is real simple. If you fire more people, then you make less product to sell. If you sell less product, then you make less money. As a matter of fact if you fire more people, then there are fewer people out there with money to buy your product because your people buy products from others that use that money to buy your product.
The system is self-feeding but it can also be self-eliminating.
I think I will call my new theory "enema economics" instead of "trickle down economics".

Fall or Autumn

Well the answer to that particular question is Fall. At least it is and always has been in Texas. The only reason that I grew up even knowing there was an alternate word for it was some mention in an obscure first grade reader schoolbook. It was probably written and published by someone from the north. Of course I immediately filed that word in with the other useless words written in primary readers by some yankee writer. You know, words that have no meaning or reference to a Texas native. Like mittens or snow or golashes. It's a good thing they included a pictoral reference or I would have assumed it was a medical condition. Lost her mittens or lost her mind sounds like the same thing to me.
As a matter of fact, there are probably a lot of cross culture words that I could remove and never miss. There are also some that have more that one meaning like stoop. Down here it means bending ov a little closer to the ground. Up north stoop is a tiny front porch. In Texas we just have different sized porches. Little ones, big ones, medium sized are all called porches. Of course when you get a great big one and your family wants to put on airs they call it a veranda. It's still a porch to me.
A word of caution. This story has no moral, This story has no end...
Bye now.

Amazing Feats by the Government

Wow, they now have an "interim" security clearance . I have been informed that I have one of those. So now I can do real work on my assigned project. That is amazing because it means that the gov actually changed an existing procedure. Remember that these are the same people that still say it is agianst the law to carry wirecutters in your hip pocket is certain states. However, back to the subject.
I wonder how that works?? I think "interim" means that it is still in the investigation phase but they have got far enough along to assume that I will probably test out all ok. That's all right if I make it, but what if I don't? Do they have one of those 'Men In Black' thingys that make you forget the stuff I am not allowed to see?? That is a scary thought! Maybe that's how Reagan, Ollie North, and Clinton were able to state that they just could not "remember" some incriminating items. That definitely means that the device wasn't around during Nixon's term.
This could be a real hoot !! You could finally forget that really cute girl in High School that turned you down. There are lots of really embaressing moments that I could definitely do without! Besides that I could re-claim that room for storing things now that I keep forgetting.
I gotta go think about this... later folks

Security Clearance Blues

Well here I sit waiting for the U.S. government to get off of the couch and declare that I am not a threat to sell or give away any secret stuff. So far it has been only 2 weeks. That last time, it took almost nine months exactly. Coincidence ?? I don't think I want to go there.
Meanwhile I am bored to death.

Ipod vs. Boze

Well looking back it ain't so bad. This blogging thing at least gets me up off the couch. It is a kind of wierd feeling when you suddenly realize that you can write anything here. And I do mean "anything".
For instance. I don't particularly like the Ipod. Nah, It is not because I'm an old geezer. The functionality, the physical package, and the interface are Great! It is just that the quality of the music is so bad. At a maximum data rate, the highest quality MP3 is 4.28 times worse than a Compact Disc at reproducing the sounds.
The generation before me and my generation spent a lot of sweat and money and time taking recorded music from the old wind-up players, to platters, to "hi-Fi", and to Stereo. Speakers were designed and built to help reproduce sounds as close to the original as possible. Now they seem to be throwing that away.
What's with that?? I do not buy the story that the music is so bad that it is not worth being faithfully reproduced. What do you think?
Pretty risky huh?? Saying that I don't like the most popular music reproducing on the planet? Not only that, It is made by Apple which happens to be the most famous underdog on the planet as well. Shame on me...

Negative ego trip

It's a good thing that I am not dependant on the number of people that read this for my daily bread. Woo Hoo... That would be a buzz kill for real.
I never thought that There would be a large audience for my ramblings during the job hunt, But I did think that the number would be larger than Zero. Insert picture of deflated Ego here.
Seriously folks. I did not even tell friends and family about my venture into the blogging world. That would be too much like selling girl scout cookies. I really wanted a place where I could spit out anything with no fear. However I kind of vicariously like the thought that you can't take back what you spit out. I wonder if it will withstand the time test. You know, read it a week later and think " Wnat a lame thing to think !! Even lamer to write it down where anyone could stumble across it ".
Oh yeah, on the job front... So far So good... still employed. But getting up at 5AM kinda sucks.

Still Alive and Kicking

Just a short note to let anybody that cares know that I intend to continue updating. Yeah, I know... my entire audience is me, myself and I. However that will not deter me.
The past two weeks have been busy times. My new employer works a 9-9-9-9-4 work week. And the day starts at 7:00 AM so I have to be up at 5:00 AM in order to drink enough coffee to stay awake for the drive in to work. Give me a few weeks and I will settle into the new schedule. If I repeat that to myself enough times maybe I'll start to believe it. The only time I ever got up at 5 AM before was the first day of hunting season!!
That's all for now. See Ya.

Woo Hoo, I was wrong!!!

Yep I was wrong. Apparantly I did not completely blow the interview. I start the new position Monday morning . That is part of the reason for the length of time between updates. The other part is you suddenly have 15 million things to do that you have been letting slide. At the same time, you really want to go collapse in front of the TV and just veg out for a couple of days.
Now having said that, I have to also relate the stress relief that I feel. It is amazing. It's almost like I feel externally justified in my existance. Most of the doubts that were beginning to creep in have vanished. Trust me, there were some doubts. Was I "out-of-date"? Too old? Too geeky? Too "out-of-touch"? Too specialized? Not specialized enough?Etc. ?? I am not sure about other people in this position, but I was on an emotional roller coaster.
You have to believe in yourself in order to sell yourself to potential employers. But if you are so damned good, then why did they let you go? Yeah I spent some nights with very little sleep. During the day, you don't dare let your friends, family, or potential employers see any signs of doubt or stress.
One other strange thing is when you tell someone about your success, you are a little disappointed that they don't immediately run around in little circles waving the flag or something. The usual response is "Cool, I knew it would happen". Man, I wish they had let me in on the secret! It was getting pretty lonely out there!

Immediate feelings after the interview

Man, I blew it.
Or at least right now I feel that I did. I should have done the prectice interview and other thiings. There is one particular reference that I should have reviewed. "Typical interview code questions" is a real killer. I am one of those people who cannot type when there is an audience. If someone is looking over my shoulder I cannot code the most simple function in the world. I just go into a brainlock.
If I had practiced on a few of the examples, I may have done better.
On the other hand I always blow the first interview. That's what I am telling myself.
Pretty lame excuse huh?

First sign of progress

I have an upcoming interview. Woo Hoo... I did the phone interview thing and now I am going to have the dreaded "face-to-face" interview.
No pressure at all. If you impress them enough, you get a job. If not you're doomed! <>.
The job-search-help organization I have been attending has classes on interviews, practice interviews, seminars, and reference material. All of which I have pretty much ignored up to now. Am I suddenly worried? You bet your butt I am! But It is no more than the natural nervous feeling that I always get before giving a presentation to a group of people. Did I mention that I'm a software nerd? Usually the only time I am in front of more than two people at a time is at a family reunion.
So I keep telling myself I am not doomed. It just means the search continues. And continues...and continues...etc. Maybe I AM doomed bit I won't realize it for quite some time. Now that's something to look forward to. Right?

Win the lottery or get a job. Choices..choices...

This is the way an engineer's mind workss. Follow along now and don't get lost.

I have a dollar for a lottery ticket.
If I win the lottery then I don't need a job.
If I get a job then I might not "need" to win the lottery. But it would still be a good thing.
Statistically, my chances get pretty good for winning in about five thousand years.
I see reports where a lot of lottery winners end up broke.
Spend the dollar on beer, forget about the lottery.
Drink the beer.
What problem?? I don't have any problems...

Back to the job search.

Weekend Vacuum

Actually I only named it that so I could show off that I knew how to spell vacuum. Else the title would have been Weekend Sucks. When you are not working, it is hard to tell the weekend from any other day. In reality you are busy all the time. I have been using the weekends to make up for work that I should have been doing the rest of the week. Usually things to do with the job search that I didn't get to do because I was interrupted.
My family just assumes that if I am home then I am not "working" and therefore I am available to do whatever. It is not thier fault. That is the way it has worked for years and I guess it has become a habit. taking out the garbage or fetching something from outside doesn't sound like much but it's a complete shift of mental gears. It takes a while to get back to what you were doing.
The seminar type classes I have been attending told me that job-hunting was a ten hour-a-day job. However I didn't really believe it until I had to do it. Oh well some time spent revising the resume for the twentieth time and another copy e-mailed to an employer that will probably get a hundred applicants a day.
Well that just makes my point. Weekends are depressing.

Daily ramblings

I think I mentioned back a few posts that I have spent extensive time in the defense industry. The reason I mention this is because one of the must-haves for that job is a security clearance. I included my last clearance level on my latest resume for two reasons. One is I would definitely accept a job offer in that arena. The other was it should be a clue to the commercial job recruiters that I would probably never be an embaressment to any company. It is an indication that unlike certain public officials I have never been associated with a brothel or any other strange group trying to overthrow the present government ( democrats included ).

The point is, the group I am working with suggested that I remove that from resume copys that I submit to non-defense companies.

Nah, I'm leaving it in there. I think that indications of stability, ethics,,etc shoud be pretty important to a recruiter. I for one would hate to wake up and find out that I had hired the unibomber just because he had a great interview personna.

Any opinions out there?

Nobody Out There ??

That's what I get for asking. No one replys. Probably my fault for not knowing how to advertise a blog. Of course the "other" answer is the blog is Boring... Of course it is boring you idiot... I'm a software engineer nerd!! The only thing more boring would be a resident Egyptologist in an obscure musuem in Bumsquatch Nebraska!
You would think you would be getting used to being ignored by now. It starts as soon as the layoff announcement is known. Everyone at work tends to avoid you like you have the plague or something. Maybe antibiotic-resistant TB is a more recent simile. I know they don't mean to, but it is kinda like some kind of superstitious ritual like not walking under a ladder. You just cannot avoid doing it.
Another interesting thing about being laid off is the emotional turmoil. You pretty much run the gamut from anger to fear. That can cause you to appear a little unstable to friends and family. I have to watch it to keep from exploding over some little thing around the house.
Well another day and another resume copy in the mail. By the way, did I mention that I am really good at this software thing? I got lots of awards and stuff. That's just in case you are a hiring manager with a hot job request in your hand.

Oops. That's why erasers sell better than pencils

So much for the once-a-day commitment. Gee, that lasted a whole day! A combination of Family, previous promises, and unforseen events all ganged up on me.
Enough excuses. I was also carrying on a running e-mail with a head-hunter that wants me to do contract work for him. I want to know a little more about his company's track record before I sign on the dotted line. It looks like they prefer to work in a W-2 environment instead of a W-1099. There is something to be said for each. I gotta do some research. Anybody out there have an opinion?? Any reasons for that opinion??
With any luck the answers to those questions is the total amount of my research.

I'm going to try to do this once a day. So some of them are going to be boring. I guess you pretty much have the picture now. I'm seriously looking for work.

I am a software engineer with extensive experience in the embedded software field. I have worked for defense companys and most recently for a commercial company in the telecommunications area. The assumption that I am going on is my departure is the result of outsourcing jobs to overseas locations. That assumption is based on recently training two chinese nationals to do my job. That was one of the signs that I should not have ignored. I just assumed I would be assigned to a new project. Silly me, my new project is job hunting.

So far I have taken a bunch of classes that attempt to teach me what my resume should look like, what are the most effective jobsearch techniques, and some hard reality looks at what I need to do in order to compete with other job applicants. Mainly that amounts to an advertising sales pitch with me as the star product. You know... a meat market.

Later that same day... Well some of this is coming together so I better get back to the main attraction. Me and my jobhunt.


First let's set the stage. The reason I started this is I got laid off for the first time ever in my life. Every other time that I parted ways with a company it was because I believed I saw the end coming. Now I did not just run around job-hopping. I stayed a minimum of 6 years at any one company and I usually wasn't wrong when I left. One got company sold to BarinCo and got severly downsized and re-directed. One closed shop entirely, and in another one the division I was in got sold and re-located out-of-state. This time I guess I ignored the portents or perhaps I just thought I was bulletproof. After all, I had survived there over 8 years and over 3 years of twice yearly downsizings, re-orgs, and just plain old job-cuts. Well I am here to tell you I was Wrong.


They tell me that these days the average time spent at a company is about 6 years before some major event happens. That event usually entails looking elsewhere for employment. So if you are reading this you better figure that it will happen to you too. So pay attention and don't make the same mistakes that I am about to. I promise to let you know what works and what doesn't.

Let's get started. Part of the reason for starting this is to document my jobsearch and part is to leave a trail of breadcrumbs so other people can tell me where I am going wrong. One other thing I hope to accomplish is to get over the initial loathing and shyness about the self advertising that is a necessary part of the jobsearch process.
More to come as I get used to this blogging thing...