After a Few Disaterous Distractions, Time for Daydreams Is Delayed: Part II

Distractions


My distance vision began to get better, and my near vision continued to get worse.

I kept myself busy getting ready for my daughter's high school graduation, getting the house ready for my son and his family to come to visit for the festivities, and for the big graduation party.

I realized that my time at the college would soon come to an end. My daughter's college plans did not include my workplace or any of the other institutions in the exchange groups. She has a full scholarship on her own merit at a school that seems to be a perfect fit for her and her interests.

This meant that, other than my love for the job, there was no valid reason for me to go back to pouring so much money into the gas tank and spending two - three hours each day driving to and from work. I decided to polish up my resume and work on some other skills that might help me land a job. However, I planned to enjoy the summer doing family things and start up my search in the fall after we got her settled in college.

One day, in the middle of May, I was looking for a book at a nearby library to help me with my future job search. On a whim, I asked them if they ever took resumes for hiring sometime in the future. They took my resume (I had a bunch of them with me that day in a folder I was using for notes) and I left.

I've always dreamed of working in a library. I can't imagine anything better than being paid to be surrounded by books and dealing with people who want to read. Well, that's not true, I can think of quite a few things that would be better...like being a top-ten best-selling author raking in TONS of money, that would be better. (ah... I see that Daydreaming decided to show up.) Proof of this would be my failed attempt at grad school for my Library Science degree. That failed because the timing was WAY off. We had just moved, I was driving 3 hours a day and trying to unpack and organize in the bits an pieces of time I had at home...my attempt lasted only a few weeks.

Anyway...I was busy getting ready for son and his family's arrival and all the fun things I'd hoped to do with the grandchildren. I also decided that the best "end date" for my employment would be June 15th, since that was exactly eleven and a half years since I began on January 15, 2001. So, I planned to call in my "two weeks notice" on June 1st.

I was quite surprised to get a call on Wednesday, May 30th offering me an interview for a job at the library. I interviewed on the 31st, and got the offer for the job on June 1st, within hours of giving my notice.I began the new job June 18th.

I truly believe that I had to be completely ready to let go of my much-loved job in order to get a job that I feel I will love. I had several other interviews in the past three years for jobs closer to home. All of those jobs were ones that I thought that I could do and do well, but not one of them felt like a dream job.

The only down side of this new job is the timing. Ideally, it would have come to me in fall...but, I'm sure there is a reason it came when it did. I have to give up plans we had to travel this summer, but maybe we can still get some short weekend trips in before college time comes around.

NEXT: more distractions and disaster shows up...again...

Peer Pressure = The Library Made Me Do It

Well, maybe not exactly. The library is not my peer.

The library is a building, made from the usual building materials. You know the kind, bricks, concrete, wood, plaster, windows, doors, plumbing, wiring...etc. It could be anything. But, it is filled with books, movies, magazines, and a myriad of other media...all there waiting to be read, borrowed, and otherwise used. For free.

Yes, free. Hopefully libraries can stay free and available for communities to use and enjoy. Not only are they full of all those great books (and some boring ones, too) they also offer many wonderful programs for the people of all ages in their communities. Most libraries offer story time for little ones, many offer a variety of reading clubs/groups for those who like to read and discuss certain types of books. My library offers a writers' group for writers or people are interested in becoming writers. We meet twice a month to offer each other support, suggestions and constructive criticism. We also have fun.

It is good to be able to meet with people who share the love of words. Even though what we write varies drastically, the need TO write brings us together. Some write science fiction, others fantasy. Some write poetry others create personal journals to share their life story with their friends and family. Some write plays or draw cartoons, and almost all of us do more than just one kind of writing.

We challenge each other to write things we don't usually do, to grow out of our comfort zone, to try more...and always to keep on writing. One recent challenge was to start a blog if we didn't already have one. I've considered blogging for several years but never could think of a title that I knew I could live with.

I should be working on a play right now. I've committed myself to participate in NaPlWriMo (National Play Writing Month) with a goal of 75 pages of either one play or a combination of shorter pieces between November 1 and 30. I find myself easily distracted. (I'm sure I must have AADD) Instead of writing the play (I do have 10 pages, though) I've been doing housework. Usually it's the other way around, if I have to do housework I'll be writing or reading, daydreaming, or anything else.

I also have been undergoing some painful dental procedures. I should be resting. I should be doing housework, I should be writing a play, I should be starting a blog...oh...wait. I guess I did.

Thanks to the peer pressure...at the library...I was forced to do some serious thinking and came up with the blog. I think I can live with it.