After applying to my first job via the ZipRecruiter app, I received this encouraging email from my new online job seeker advocate:

Hi,

I wanted to reach out to let you know that we received your application for the position at Infotech Technologies. I'll let you know as soon as the hiring manager views it. In the meantime, I found a few similar jobs that I wanted to run by you. If you like any of them, just click the "1-Click Apply" link and I'll go ahead and submit your application using the resume that we already have on file.

Last thing - if my matches aren’t quite right, you can easily update your preferred job title and/or location for me here: Improve My Matches 

Beware of job scams: Requests to cash checks, wire money, and share credit card information are all red flags. Never provide employers with personal or financial information without due diligence. Read more here. 

Regards,

Phil - Job Seeker Advocate
 
604 Arizona Ave., Santa Monica, CA 90401

Ok well, I responded to my new ZipRecruiter friend, Phil, who emailed me this message today (let's hope he offered valuable job-landing advice - the above image shows some of my potential job recommendations via the ZipRecruiter app):

Hi,

I highly recommend that you download the ZipRecruiter app. We’ll notify you when employers view your application, and tell you the minute a new job is posted that matches your profile so you can be the first to apply. 

Click here to download the app. 

Regards,

Phil - Job Seeker Advocate
 
604 Arizona Ave., Santa Monica, CA 90401

This week's shopping trips to Target and Super Saver have been particularly photo-worthy, as noted by the above gallery of images, all of which had me picturing possible scenarios leading up to each shelving fail. Not only that, but I was also left wondering how much clean-up is left behind on a daily basis... and who is at home enjoying that extra egg.

We shall never know.

I'm kind of getting into shrimp-related recipes these days, and this one was one of the best yet:

Cajun-Style Shrimp with Zucchini Rice & Creamy Dressing

Total amazingness on a plate, which btw is not my actual plate shown here because I ate my meal so fast I forgot to take a blog picture.  And as a side note, I swapped out Jasmine with Basmati rice - not that you could see much difference between the two, but full disclosure. Also included was a zucchini picked straight from the home garden making this meal that much more special.  But the best part of all?  Saving a whole bunch of $$ by cooking a knock-off version of Blue Apron's recipe, thus skipping this week's shipment.

​*fist bump*

Today my Learning-New-Mad-Skills plan involved Wireframing where I created a prototype of a website mock-up in Adobe XD and advanced my web design skill set even further.  And after only minutes of playing around with this tool, I'm realizing how much further I can dive into this whole Learning-New-Mad-Skills process while waiting to land another position. What perfect timing, right?

​Onward and upward!

So what's a displaced professional web designer to do in the 3 months after her job has been eliminated besides Job-Search-with-a-Vengeance?  Pick up another mad web design & development skill, that's what. And what you see in the above image is a screen shot of my first user experience design and interactive prototype using Adobe XD, an all-in-one UX/UI tool for designing websites, mobile apps, and other applications super easily - at least in more of a streamlined process than back in caveman days. The best part? It's completely FREE.

...thus adding Geeking-Out-Like-a-Beast to my current list of spare-time activities. Scary.

This selfie taken with my college-aged daughter who is home on summer vacation more than adequately captures the unbroken spirit I'm feeling - because while yes I do miss certain elements that are now missing from my daily life, I also still do love the good stuff that  remains and feel grateful for so much of it... like being able to take filtered snaps in the Target parking lot without too many people thinking we're a couple of weirdos.  

Oh, and s'mores - feeling super grateful for those, too.

My dreams have been taking me to strange, unknown places since the recent loss of my job, and last night's experience was no exception.  As background, I once worked as an MCI long distance telephone operator while in college and would spend long hours directing phone calls for random callers throughout the USA and beyond.  The work was tedious and boring, except perhaps when the caller originated from one of the many penitentiaries that contracted MCI to handle collect calls for inmates - then things got a little messed up.

Flashback to a typical inmate-related phone call:

Me: MCI, this is operator 328. May I help you?
Inmate: Collect call to ###-###-####
Me: May I have your name?
Inmate:  Joe.
Me:  One moment please.  (dials number)
Callee (feminine voice): Hello?
Me: This is the MCI operator and I have a collect call from Joe. Do you accept the charges?
Inmate (using a feminine voice): Yes, I accept.
Callee: Wait, what? Who's calling me?
Inmate (still using that fake feminine voice): I said YES - put the *&^^%! call through!
Me: One moment while I connect you with my manager. *arrrrgghh*

So after my dream took me back to being employed at that same call center as a long distance operator all over again, I am left with this big huge booming voice screaming in my head:

OH HELL NO.

​So where was I?  Right.  Job seeking with a vengeance, sans long distance call centers, THANKS VERY MUCH.