Catch up

[whirligigwitch]

This was going to be a short update to my journal, but it's getting longer so I'll cut it up.

Just over a month ago our staff circular had an advertisement for one of the perennial 'acting up' opportunities. In typical fashion, this was for two posts to cover for maternity leaves but not straighforward 26 weeks. I was in two minds as to whether or not to apply (the posts are area assistants - responsible for the staffing and smooth running of branches and buildings and staff training, as well as a attending meetings the area library manager can't) but decided that I might as well. My line manager encouraged me to apply as well, so I wrote my 'expression of interest' and sent it in the day before the closing date. Par for the course, none of the applicants heard anything more for the next ten days (bearing in mind that both posts are vacant) but then last Monday I was asked to attend for interview on Thursday. I wasn't really very pleased about that as it was my only day off last week as well as being my birthday so we had things planned. But I said I'd go. Then I thought I should ask around and find out about the competition, which oddly enough wasn't as large as I thought. It ended up that there were 6 of us put in for 2 posts. One of those was adamant that she should have been given the post and shouldn't have had to apply for it - way to go and get ahead, shout about your entitlement. The strongest paper canditate was Ian who has a postgrad in Information Management or whatever they are calling the course this year.

Fastforward to the day of the interview. I got up and ironed my suit, but just before I left the house I discovered that my wallet was missing. I had had it a few minutes previously, to take out some Boots vouchers, but then it vanished. Took us a good 15 minutes to find it. On another day I would have left without it, but I had almost no petrol and didn't think I'd make it the 30 miles round trip to the interview on fumes ;-) Got to the petrol station, there was a queue of 3 cars for each pump. Grrrrr argh. Toyed briefly with the idea of going to the garage at the other end of town, but the petrol is 2p a litre more expensive there. Of course, I should have just put a fiver in and filled up later, but I wasn't realy thinking straight. Finally I got going and sailed straight along the A1 and down into the town. But when I was about 5 minutes away - less really - I got stuck in a hideous traffic jam. At 10.30 in the morning! I gave it a few minutes but realised I was just going nowhere fast so had to ring and apologise because I was going to be late. By this stage I was just wondering why I had ever bothered in the first place - I was wasting two hours of my day off getting to and having this interview, and to be honest I'm really quite happy in my current job. Got there in the end, but the person who was supposed to be letting the interviewers know when candidates arrived was on the phone and I had to stand outside for over 5 minutes. I could hear them talking as well - luckily it was football or I would have had to interrupt.

The interview itself was...eh. Questions were ok, with a couple of challenging ones but i had put a lot of effort into preparing and there was nothing I couldn't handle. My answers were ones I ws pleased with but I felt like I was talking in phrases rather than complete sentences. Didn't expect to hear anything for a few days even though they said they would let us know ASAP. Oh, one other thing about it - they had changed interviewers so one of them was my line manager. My biggest fear was doing a bad interview.

I couldn't be bothered trundling around the library talking to people, I wasn't really having a very good day and felt out of sorts so went straight home. David and whirlywitchette were waiting for me by the garages so I just picked them up and we went out to our favourite pub for lunch. They had changed the menu. It was still very nice food but now everything comes with 'chunky chips' or 'rustic potato wedges' and fresh salad or 'rustic root veg'. The scampi came with 'rustic bread and butter'. They also served 'rustic roasts'. OK so :)

When we got home whirlywitchette was falling over with tiredness so we took her to bed for a nap. We'd all just started to doze when the phone rang. It was to offer me one of the jobs. I must admit to being quite surprised. I knew my interview was fairly good but Stephen told me that it has been excellent. Afterwards my boss told me that I had surprised him immensely with how well I did, so that was nice :) Anyway, I came first because I get the six month post - the other is for a shorter period. Tried to go back to sleep but I was a bit hyper by now. Just as I started to doze the damn phone rang agin - it was one of my colleagues to know whether I'd got the job. Apparently L, the person who felt she should have had it, had found out she didn't get it so was locked in the staffroom crying. She won't talk to me atm and has been muttering things about it's where you work and who you're friends with. Oh well. I'm moving areas - to work with another of the rejected candidates. Sometimes I think I work with toddlers.

Had some cava for my birthday, I splashed out and bought some expensive stuff. Went to the MetroCentre in the evening but didn't really make a good haul. Waterstone's didn't hve the books I wanted (ordered them from Amazon when I came home), Dorothy Perkins had no black trousers in 14 long. I probably cdould get away with a 12 long but would have had to try them on and it was busy. I ended up with 3 CDs - Ani DiFranco, James and Cocteau Twins. Bought Roisin a new ball, bucket, rake and spade set. D bought me Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban on DVD and the new HP book last Saturday.

Comments

[bopeepsheep.livejournal.com]

Belated happy birthday and congratulations on the job!

Will L be a PITA at the end of the six months? She sounds quite petty and truculent - yes, toddler behaviour! :(

[whirligigwitch.livejournal.com]

Thanks :)

I can handle L - and apparently she was heard to say before hand that she thought I'd get it. But the second post went to someone she will try to ride roughshod over and she has been playing the poor me victim for all its worth. Grow up, woman! [As an aside, I can understand how she feels up to a point - work has been the main focus of her life really, until her husband was ill earlier in the year, since her son died at 34 weeks gestation 6 years back. She desperately wanted/still wants a baby, but she's postmenopausal now. But the fact is, she's too muxh of a panicker for the job.]

Ah, intralibrary politics, the joys!

[k425.livejournal.com]

Congrats! And belated birthday wishes, too.

[whirligigwitch.livejournal.com]

Thank you :)

[tafagirl.livejournal.com]

Congrats on the job :-)

[cvantien.livejournal.com]

Congratulations! And Happy Birthday too! Sounds like a pretty good day overall even if you did miss out on most of your day off.