update on job thing

[thehefner]

So we still haven't found a replacement for me on Sunday at the comic shop. My boss Peter assures me that we'll figure it out one way or another, but he's never been this pissed at me before. Mainly because, in all my years working there, I've never fucked up like this before.

He said, "Tomorrow, you and I are gonna have to have a very long, serious talk. I was thinking about giving you more hours, but now I'm not so sure..."

Which kinda bugs me, because yeah, it's a serious fuck up, BUT it's my very first serious fuck up in the, what, eight years I've worked there. And also, I was promised more hours four years ago, and they left me in the lurch. NOW they were thinking of giving me more hours, when I'm earning little more than minimum wage as it is?

So it looks like I'm gonna get stripped-down hours, compared to maybe another hundred bucks a week or something that the more hours would give me. And y'know, I spent all day feeling like shit, feeling guilty, beating myself up over all this, because I hate hate hate fucking up, I take it way more seriously than I should...

And yet, an hour ago, I was thinking to myself, I wish he would fire me.

Because I realized how much I was clinging to that job. I didn't go look for another job, a better-paying real grown-up kind of job because I was terrified of the unknown. What if it consumed my life? What if I couldn't act? What if there wasn't enough downtime for me to work on my writing? What if I was miserable there? Meanwhile, I had the comic shop-- steady but low pay, customers I could handle, surrounded by comics. I clung to it, telling myself that I was making do, hoping I'd get paying acting roles or a published book soon.

But now, after this major cock-up on my part and looking at Peter's reaction, I realized that maybe, just maybe, it's finally time to get a real job.

So I'm gonna go into work tomorrow. And I'm gonna let Peter tear me a new one. And possibly my main boss too, if he's also pissed at me. And then... I'm gonna look into better jobs. Real jobs. The kind that pay well and actually have benefits and stuff.

Maybe it's finally time to grow up.

I just hope I can find a good job.

Comments

NNOOOOOOOOO

[marred82.livejournal.com]

Dearest Hef,

Welcome to the real world. I would like to invite you to be beaten by a naked midget named Leroy. I apologize for this, but it is a very necessary step in having a "real" job. Consider it much like hazing.

Please do not use my name in your monologues. Instead use Senior Gomoso Concha.

Best Wishes,
Senior G. Concha, Esq.

[interdisciple.livejournal.com]

"...yeah, it's a serious fuck up, BUT it's my very first serious fuck up in the, what, eight years I've worked there. And also, I was promised more hours four years ago, and they left me in the lurch. NOW they were thinking of giving me more hours, when I'm earning little more than minimum wage as it is?"

You need to tell Cockboy this. Especially if you're planning on leaving anyway. It sounds like he's dicking you around. Unless your job at your skill/knowledge level is in short supply and great demand, then you're a valuable asset, and he should treat you like one.

If he's still a jerk, then fuck him. Get with Ty's or Rachel's recruiter, and you'll get hooked up in a jiff. And you don't get made his bitch. Give him your piece of mind, respectfully but firmly, and relish in the liberation.

My favorite Weezer quote: If you want it, you can have it, but you gotta learn to reach out there and grab it.

[fiveseconddelay.livejournal.com]

Yeah. So were they waiting four years for you to screw up so they can tell you they are still not planning on giving you extra hours?

[thehefner.livejournal.com]

Of course you'd put it that way ;)

More like I was waiting for something to shake my out of my complacency.

Slightly Arrogant

[pondering-duck.livejournal.com]

Wow Dude, I'm sorry.

Look at it this way: Guys like you and me desperately know what we want to do with our lives (or at least you seem to) the problems are: 1) Will we make it and 2) Will we hold ourselves back. I know I could have gotten a lot more done with the Werewolf Novel done this summer if I could have just focused more, but hey, I have about a good 120 pages of it written (some of it revised) and a movie under my bealt and it looks like you're doing a good job getting where you want to be. One of these days biographers will look back at John Hefner and be like, "Did you know that guy used to work in a comic book store?"

Re: Slightly Arrogant

[pondering-duck.livejournal.com]

Also, I know this won't help at all, but if you guys are just desperate to have a body with a pulse in the shop...I'm not doing anything Sunday. Or would that be too much like a sitcom?

Re: Slightly Arrogant

[thehefner.livejournal.com]

Hehehe, aw, you're a dear to offer, but I'd have to train you to run the register and everything. Which isn't all that hard once you get into it.

Heh. Well, probably not, but I'll check with the boss. When he isn't reaming me out.

[mirthical.livejournal.com]

You know what, Fuzzy? I'm not sorry in the least. This is a prime opportunity for you, and I'm glad that you're looking to take advantage of it.

Now just get on with it, or look out for a wallop-o-gram! The singing kind!

[tazira.livejournal.com]

Step one, resume. If it's a pack of lies, i.e. you were a Junior Computer Programmer at Creative Solutions, Inc., well, list me as a reference and tell me what story you're giving others. I will back you to the hilt and lie like a Trojan for you, and give you an excellent reference into the bargain. You would neither be the first nor the last I've done it for.

Step two, shop your resume out to a couple of recruiters.

Step three, temp for a while. There's no security in it, true, but you're your own boss, nobody owns you, and you'll build a ton of practical experience while getting a taste of a lot of different environments. And you'll make better money than you would in retail, especially for what these gimps are probably paying you.

How are your computer skills? If your MS Office (Word, Excel, etc.) skills need brushing up, you've got plenty of friends who use these really well. I'm an absolute balls-to-the-wall expert in everything Word does, and I'm okay with Excel. Alan is better at making Excel sit up and beg than anyone I've ever seen. You'll have to take skill tests for any recruiter, but they are the gatekeepers of many jobs, and if you work with at least four to six of them, you will never be out of work for more than a few days.

It sounds to me like the only thing you have to lose is the illusion of security. Shoot me a resume when you have one, if you'd be willing to commute to Herndon. And if you could stand the thought of having me for a boss. ;-P

[thehefner.livejournal.com]

Y'know, maybe a lie or two in the old resume might be a good idea. Because I wrote my resume up, and frankly, it's a little thin. Help sprucing it up with first truth and maybe some lies would be greatly appreciated.

I have plenty of experience with Word, and a little experience with Excel, but as you say, I have Alan.

Temping, eh? How does one go about that? Go to an agency?

Losing the illusion of security. It's rather scary, I don't mind telling you.

[wendywoowho.livejournal.com]

Back in the day, I knew an actor who had a nice stable job w/ bennies at the Urban Institute -- the hours were never crazy such that he couldn't get to acting gigs.

[heleneotroy.livejournal.com]

I would recommend that you leave on your own terms instead of letting them fire you. It will look better on your resume. And, having just gone through it myself, getting a new job these days is a royal bitch.
But I will always recommend monster.com and washingtonpost.com. Monster got me not only the job I'm starting on the 5th, but the job that I'm currently leaving.
Don't be afraid to apply to positions that you don't seem to qualify for. You never know who is willing to overlook something just to get the right person on their staff.
With two degrees in acting, I had an evil time getting a job. I've been flat out asked in interviews "Have you ever considered getting a higher education?" To which I replied "I did. Its right there on my resume."
But the right job in the right location will allow you to continue to act. I'm excited about my new position because it gives me hours more time after work for auditions and rehearsals.

[thehefner.livejournal.com]

Well, I'm almost certainly not gonna get fired. But yeah, that is strong and good advice right there.

And yeah, the difficulty in getting a job in today's market is one of the reasons I've been clinging to the comic shop.

[bimmin.livejournal.com]

I got dicked around in a similar fashion at my retail job which I kept for 5 years. I survived the reaming and then promptly looked for a new job. Moving on was wonderful. With your friends to support you and lend encouragement you will do just fine.

That comic book shop will rue the day they let the Hefner down. Rue I say!!!

[thehefner.livejournal.com]

Heh, more like I let *them* down, but whatever. This just might be the wake-up call I've needed.

[bimmin.livejournal.com]

I guess I'm dorky old school in that I feel 8 years of dedication should be rewarded with some understanding. Screw ups happen to us all. Like you say though, embrace it as a wake up, find a new, better job...

...then conquer the world...

...then defeat Richards...

Smack.

[slaversbane.livejournal.com]

Smack.

Smack.

Next time I got you in the car, it looks like we need another lesson in driving backwards airborne with loud music.

Or I could just kick yer ass.

Pick one.

Re: Smack.

[thehefner.livejournal.com]

Did I do something to warrant a beating (beyond the fuck-up, since I am kicking my own ass way more than you ever could)?

Or are you just eating something particularly tasty?

Re: Smack.

[slaversbane.livejournal.com]

Just felt like smackin' ya.

Re: Smack.

[thehefner.livejournal.com]

Ok, that's cool. But no walloping. That's my girlfriend's territory!

Re: Smack.

[slaversbane.livejournal.com]

because I been working like a bitch for the man supporting a family for 8 years and I hate whining.

Re: Smack.

[thehefner.livejournal.com]

I didn't think I was whining. I think I was declaring how I've come to a revelation that perhaps it's time for me to get my life together. Is that so smackable?

Re: Smack.

[slaversbane.livejournal.com]

Yep. Because if you don't think yer whinin' ya probably are. Just get yer life together, don't whine about what was.

Re: Smack.

[thehefner.livejournal.com]

Because if you don't think yer whinin' ya probably are.

...

Is this one of those things like, "I can only tell the truth. I'm lying right now." ?

And dude, lest you forget... this is my LIVE JOURNAL. Refer to the icon.

Re: Smack.

[slaversbane.livejournal.com]

John, I got a seven year old and wife, I know whining better than most. Yer whining. Quit whining and do what your gonna do. See comment below for a statement of the obvious.

Re: Smack.

[thehefner.livejournal.com]

"And I am a bastard"?

... Y'know, maybe this isn't going anywhere.

And while I do value yer opinion, pally, you're certainly free to do what anyone else would do and skim past my whining. Unlike most other whiners, I'm actually being proactive. There's not much else I can DO.

Re: Smack.

[slaversbane.livejournal.com]

Yeah, I think I will.
We'll have to chat via another medium that is more condusive to listening where the audience isn't expecting witty banter between us.

Or maybe you don't need my advice. Fair enough.

It always is the same anyway.

Re: Smack.

[thehefner.livejournal.com]

Aye, probably a wise policy.

And also, let's not forget that things like LJ and IM rob us of tone and context, thus often resulting in... bad things. I've actually lost a couple friendships that way, and I certainly don't want that to happen again.

Re: Smack.

[slaversbane.livejournal.com]

NO JOHNNY BOY! You will not lose me so easy. However my tone and context I think are pretty clear. I am gonna tell you like it is...always. No PA (PASSIVE-AGRESSIVE) BULLSHIT HERE.

I am gonna give you the truth if I gotta beat it into ya.

Re: Smack.

[slaversbane.livejournal.com]

AND I AM A BASTARD.

[adaptor.livejournal.com]

I think you could absolutely find a real grown-up job, but if I were you I'd stick this out a bit longer if you can. People looking for jobs who are currently employed have a real advantage over those that don't. It says great things about you.

Also, one big mistake in 8 years? Even greater great things!!!!

[gnort.livejournal.com]

the job market is irksome for many reasons, especially when they jump down your throat for making one mistake. The same thing happened to me at superfresh. By all means look for something but don't quit or pray you get fired. Job hunting is a HUUUUUGGGGEE pain in the ass and having a job intact makes the process less stressful.