Unemployed but not bludging

After 4 solid weeks of sitting at the computer writing bloody selection criteria to apply for jobs, I’ve finally cracked today and registered with a temp agency. Although this will severely reduce the number of applications I can get out each week, we are gonna be in the red as soon as we pay the deposit on this flat so needs must. Grumble..grumble.. However, I’ve had the best ever experience with an agency today which made it worthwhile. I met with two agents who specialize in the government, education and nonprofit sectors, so totally up my alley, who seemed genuinely pleased to get someone with my experience on their books! I have to say that is a first. Where it leads, time will tell..

I’ve applied for a plethora of government jobs but they take such a long time to get around to responding to applications. I’ve received two emails this week regarding government jobs I’ve applied for, telling me I didn’t make the shortlist. One I applied for on the 18th September, the other was when we were in Mackay, so around July – August.

I’ve had one interview since moving to Melbourne. It’s a great job with the disability services department with a nice healthy salary, but I didn’t do so well with the last couple of questions. Nerves got the better of me, along with my limited experience leading large projects giving me not enough solid examples to draw from. I haven’t heard back from them either way, two weeks after the interview, but who knows whether that’s a good or a bad sign.

Bryn is not having a good time in his new job. It’s a long commute out to his office, it doesn’t pay very well and the job’s not particularly thrilling so he’s on the lookout for something better. I’ve been trying to be a good wife and cook him dinner every night which I have mostly succeeded at, but it’s been a long time since I’ve done this much cooking so I often find myself scratching my head trying to figure out what I can make. Bryn has an uncanny talent for producing amazing meals out of a few things we have left in the cupboard, but this is not a skill that has rubbed off on me. Despite filling our cupboards with food as if I’m preparing for the holocaust, I still often find I’m missing something vital for a particular dish, or can’t think of anything original and revert to my small repertoire of basics.

It’s a rather nice novelty being in a flat with those wonderful luxuries like hot water from a tap, a hot shower and carpet! Ooooerrrr.. We are taking over the lease from a girl who has lived here for the last 2 years and are still searching for a new flatmate, but 2 weeks before she goes I’m trying not to panic on that front just yet. Fortunately, she’s going overseas for a bit and then moving to Sydney, so she’s leaving us a lot of household stuff that she otherwise would have thrown out or given away elsewhere, which has been a great help in getting us set up here.

The flat has 3 bedrooms and we’ve advertised for a single or couple to take one room with the plan to keep one room spare for guests/office space/whatever. I think that makes it feel more like a home than a crash pad. It’s in a posh part of town and not really where the action is but it’s quiet, safe and close to town. If Bryn gets a job closer to town, we’d probably move to an inner-city suburb in North Melbourne, but right now that would make his journey to work even worse.

Right I’m off to plan the weekend’s adventurings. There are so many parts of Melbourne we haven’t seen yet, so I feel an exploratory mission is in order!