Injuries & Interviews in New Beginnings

2018 has not been good for my health. I’ve already talked about getting sick in my previous entry. I went running a couple of weeks ago, and pulled my calf muscle. I usually run on an elliptical, but I decided to change things up and use a treadmill. I read that if you raise the incline 1%, your treadmill pace will match your flat land road pace. Then I foolishly progressively raised it up to 2% by the end of my run. I woke up the next day with my left calf muscle torn. I took a couple of weeks off, tried working out again, and repulled that muscle again two exercise sessions in. It seems to be better now, I was able to do part of my old work out this afternoon after Jiu Jitsu. I was conscious to ease back into my old routine and keep the intensity level down.

I’ve been getting some interviews. A couple of weeks ago, I had a recruiter from Yamaha contact me via Linked In. They had an opening I’d be a good fit for, and I got an interview appointment rather quickly. It was the shortest interview ever. One of the first questions my interviewer asked me was why I left my old position. When I described my situation, he said that sounds like exactly what that office is going through. He said he didn’t think I’d be a good fit for the role and was interested to get my reaction to it. Maybe I was supposed to make a better case for myself, but I chose to agree with him. He thanked me from coming in, I thanked him for his time, and I left.

I got another interview with a company called FirstKey. A company recruiter also contacted me about this position via Linked In. The company buys single family homes, renovates them, then leases them out to tenants. The interview went well. In three separate interviews, I spoke with the woman who would be my manager, another woman who was somehow relevant to the position, and the CFO of the company. It all went well, but almost immediately after my interview with the CFO, she stepped back into see me to clarify why I was immediately available. I described my what happened with my previous company, and she became a bit apprehensive about me. I think it ended well enough, or at least as well as it could. As usual, the next steps are for them to finish their first round of interviews, then bring back their favorite candidates. This is normally the part where they ghost on me.

I also interviewed with a recruiter a couple of weeks ago, and she’s been really proactive in sending my resume out. Funny how I can respond to a job listing with my resume and cover letter and get nothing, and she can somehow get me an office interview in a couple of hours. I wonder if it’s because she’s super hot. Upon meeting her, I looked her up on Facebook, and she’s married of course. Curious that she didn’t wear her wedding ring when we met. I wonder if she does that intentionally to increase her power of persuasion. She’s acquired a few interviews since we met.

I had one with a company called Doehler earlier this week. This company is a supplier of ingredients and ingredient processing systems. The interview went well, and while the office is a bit farther than I would like, it would be a reverse commute. When I described why I left my last position, he was empathetic, saying that he went through the similar ordeal at a previous position. In a twist of fate that only I could manage, my interviewer and potential future manager is a former coworker of my former manager at IMERYS, Lindsey, the one who was unsatisfied with my performance and led to my departure. I admitted to knowing him, though I didn’t tell that he was my ex-boss. If he follows up with Lindsey, that’s gone.

My recruiter also got me job interview with a company called United Distributors, an alcoholic beverage wholesaler in Georgia and Alabama. In fairness, it was a phone interview. I’m apprehensive with how well I would fit in with this company, being that I’m a teetotaler. I also don’t like the office location. It’s not too, too bad, but it’s in the opposite direction of my Jiu Jitsu school. I’d spend over a half hour driving to work in the morning, over an hour driving to class at night, and another half hour driving home after class. Funny how, I specified to my recruiter that I wanted a position convenient to my house and not driving into Atlanta, and she’s slowly got me to consider positions that don’t meet that criteria. Must be her powers of persuasion.

I think I’m going to watch the new Thor movie tonight. I have a (two) dollar theatre not far from my house, and it has a $7 movie-popcorn-soda special. Wait three months, and save 66% of the cost.