Suddenly I see, this is what I wanna be.... #23

Things have been busy over the past few weeks. I've been settling down into my routine of working both my jobs and being as lazy as I can in between. I took a week off and traveled back home to see my family and also be a part of my best friend's wedding. My duties as Maid of Honor were extensive and tiring, but I had so much fun seeing old friends and dancing the night away.

Now it's back to working and preparing for the move. I brought some boxes back with me and they're sitting awkwardly in my apartment. I dropped off a bag of clothes (the first of probably many) at Goodwill and started going through drawers and cabinets to find things that need thrown away or that can be packed already. I find myself looking at my new institution's website frequently, fantasizing about what it's going to be like when I get there. A friend of mine has committed to helping me move and we've already started planning out the road trip. Things are definitely in motion.

I've been thinking a lot about the advice I would give to those who will be starting the job search next year, especially those who have never done something like this before - those people who, like myself, went straight through their education and find themselves with little clue as to how to conduct any sort of mass market job search. Here are a few things I've come up with:
- Make sure you have a handful of references that can attest to your experience is different areas.
- Have more experienced people look at your resume...a lot.
- Do all that you can to make it to a conference, and go with others that you know if you can. Having that support system there will be helpful, and getting the experience of interviewing in a high pressure situation will be helpful later on.
- Be wary of falling in love with a place because it "seems" wonderful.
- Read job descriptions thoroughly, and always do research on institutions you think you'd want to be at.
- Prepare some standard interview questions for each place you'll interview with as a way of measuring them against each other.
- Never underestimate the power of the pro and con list. It can help make your decision very clear.

Suddenly I see, this is what I wanna be.... #21

I never thought things would be as hectic has they have been over the past week.

Graduation was emotional. I participated in two separate ceremonies and cried my way through one. My family and best friend came to see me and that made it even more special. It still hasn't hit me that it's all over. My grades have posted, I've done the ceremony, but I still don't feel like it's over. Everyone tells me that it will start to feel over when the fall comes and I'm not enrolled in classes, others say that it'll be months after that when I finally feel like it's done.

I've taken the last week to rest up and try to return to society as a functioning human. My assistantship encouraged me to take some time off before starting up my summer gig with them, and so I picked up lots of hours at The Second Job instead. I made a trip to my hometown for a few days, and now I'm back and ready to get back to work tomorrow. I have the next two months of my life planned out pretty well; I know when I'll be working at my jobs and when I'll be going back home. My best friend gets married next month and I'm looking forward to an extended visit at home with my family and friends. One of my close friends that I made during the past two years has offered to help me move, and I've snatched up his offer. I already reserved my truck and made my tentative moving plans. Can you tell how much I love to schedule things?

I made a trip to my undergrad to see some old professors and mentors. It was great to spend time talking with people and sharing my success with them. Being back on campus was also wonderful, and I'm amazed that after two years it still feels like home. Things have changed, but not the degree that it has altered the feeling I get when I drive on campus. I've managed to make it to homecoming and graduation these past two years, but it's odd to know that I might not get that chance again.

People are telling me to take some time off from the insanity of my summer and do something fun. Oddly, I don't really WANT to take any time off. I'm anxious to save up money and start to plan (go figure) how I'll start paying off my debt. While I'd love to do something absolutely amazing before I go off and become an adult, I'm not going to attempt to find what that might be already. I'd rather stumble upon something and make it happen. My spontaneous side has to come out somewhere, right?