Still we search

Still searching for a new job. Not getting too discouraged, but at times, as I’ve mentioned previously I wonder how long my search will take. I’ve had interviews that seem to go well (and they may have gone well for all I know), but I just don’t have what that extra thing is that would get me an offer. Eventually, I will have the extra something a hiring manager is looking for and I’ll get a job offer. I know this deep down, but it is frustrating and sometimes disheartening.

Dr. Horrible and The Dark Knight

I posted this on the Galactica Watercooler forums. It seems to fit my mood right now:

So I'm re-watching Dr. Horrible Acts I & II (on iTunes) and I just got home from seeing The Dark Knight (10 am showing).

These two works are so far apart in the spectrum of superhero entertainment that I'm worried that my head might explode! Yet, both Dr. Horrible and TDK are in their own way some of the best entertainment (not just sci-fi) I have seen in many years. I'm 42, so I've seen plenty of good stuff out there.

It seems as though summer 2008 finally gave sci fi fans really good stuff: BSG, Iron Man, TDK, and Dr. Horrible.

As an aside, my wife didn't get it, but my 2-year-old son heard me singing "A man's gotta do what a man's gotta do" and insisted that he see Act I. He loved it! We had to play the last song at least five times before Mommy thought that was enough for the night. I now play Act I and/or Act II as background music to whatever I'm doing on the computer. I'm breaking into song at odd moments. I love this!

Something different-Dr. Horrible’s Sing-Along Blog

So, in the course of my job search and general Internet surfing over the last few weeks, I’d seen several blog posts about Joss Whedon’s sci-fi supervillain musical Dr. Horrible’s Sing-Along Blog

Act I was released yesterday, Act II will be released Thursday 7/17, and Act III will be released Saturday 7/19. The episodes are also available on iTunes. It’s hard to describe, but it is great! Please check it out.

Yesterday, the website’s servers crashed, so it may be tough to get directly to Act II tomorrow, but keep trying. This is definitely worth the effort of continually checking to see if you get through.

Interviewing, at least

Interviewed for a position at my old company on Friday. The interview went well, so we’ll see what happens. I have interviews for another position there next Wednesday. It seems as though the only place I get interviews or interest is for my old company. I’d go back, so I’m glad other departments are calling me in for interviews, but it would be weird at first if I was re-hired there. I keep looking and applying at other companies, too, just haven’t gotten a nibble yet. Hopefully something will come to pass soon.

And we keep on searching

Had a phone interview last Tuesday for a project coordinator position. Haven’t heard back yet, so I’m assuming that I will not likely be called in for a in-person interview. I will keep trying to get into this company. I also found out last Wednesday that there may have been an opportunity for a contract position at my old company. At first, I was hesitant, but I decided that it would not be a bad idea to try for the position. Unfortunately, the position closed, but it had the possibility of re-opening, so I told the recruiter that had initially contacted me that I was still interested. We’ll see what happens.

My last post, I had noted that I was in an interesting place for me and that I was not as worried about my prospects as I thought I would be. I still know that my job search will take time, and that I will eventually be successful, but there are days when I do wonder when and how long it will take for me to get work again. I’m sure everyone has these thoughts during their job searches.

And sometimes, they change all at once...

Within the last twenty-four hours, I've gotten two job interviews set up in the next week and half! I'm still searching and applying for positions that interest me and that I believe I have a shot at getting at least an initial interview. I'm doing online courses to learn more about project management and I'm trying to find the best ways to learn more about project management as a discipline. I'm pretty confident that project management as a career is the direction I want to go, so it is now a matter of learning as much as I can both on the job (when I get one) and through learning more about project management outside of work.

This is definitely an interesting place for me to be in and I am oddly not as worried about my prospects as I thought I would be. I know that my job search may take time, but I also know that I will eventually be successful.

The Other Big Thing in My Life Right Now

I thought I would also post about the other big thing in my life right now. I’ve begun training for the 2009 Walt Disney World Marathon in January. Actually, I’ll be running both the Half-Marathon on Saturday, January 10 and then the Marathon on Sunday, January 11. This is called the Goofy Challenge and means that I’ll be running 39.3 miles over two days (while at Walt Disney World, so I’ll be walking a bit before and after the races, too!).

I’ve done the Marathon twice before, in 2007 and 2008, and enjoyed the experience so much that I decided to do both races next year. The training shouldn’t be too much harder than in previous years. I read somewhere to treat doing the Goofy Challenge as doing three half-marathons in two days. That way you can handle it better. (I should point out that I’m not fast, not at all, but I finish my races and I finish them running, so I figure I can do the Goofy. My times just won’t be all that quick.)

Because I’m doing the Goofy Challenge, I decided to try doing base training before starting my marathon training. Base training, as the name implies, helps develop a base fitness level for your race training. This article at Runner's World, Build Your Best Training Base, by Scott Douglas, helped me plan my base training program. Even though I started the program this week, I feel like it has helped me already. I’ve gotten out all three days so far this week that I was supposed to run and I’ll go out tomorrow for my long run (only 45 minutes and I’m usually just getting warmed up after 45 minutes). Once I start cross-training or lifting on the off days, I believe I’ll really start seeing and feeling the benefits of base training.