Eagle scout

April 24, 2013

Unexpected results make me soar and dip like the beautiful juvenile eagle as I get positive results from my blind cover letter and resume recipients. On a roll then unexplicably sliding intermittently backwards into the dip of strategic planning. The creative employment opportunities come from the void space of nothing and can be stimulating and encouraging or just downright euphoric. Much better experience than the umpteen laborious resume collaboration and expecting responses that seem to catapult into internet cyberspace and float on to the “OUT” basket or file marked “TRASH.” Who are all of those computer programmers that plug in scanners to egg on the human resources representative to eject the documents that do not match the exact criteria based on verbiage from the job descriptions? Heartless bastards! Oh, is that you? Sorry, don’t take it personally!

The “Game of Job Seeking” will not be sold in toy stores across the country ending up on discount tables and clearance shelves anytime soon. It is not a fun game, it is not for the family with small children, those weak of heart or who only play to win.

A chill of winter/spring air trills down my spine and wraps around my flesh that continues to yearn and pay me back for leaving the humid warmth lush and welcoming breezes of Brasil. My intention was to arrive here and continue to work on my Portenglish, seeking out elders who are incapable of leaving their homes, keep them company while puttering thru their native language. Where did that intension get lost in the shuffle of hunting and pecking, scratching all undeniably brittle surfaces for a right livelihood, shoveling snacks at inappropriate hours of the day and night, inevitably tossing back and forth in a reclined position while fighting off sleeplessness, walking in the wind with an unbalanced gait, dressing for success and applying makeup to hide the disappointment and fright of the future?

I glance at faces plunging into the grocery isles this morning with their cart, unlikely shopping list contributes items to idle cupboards, yawning refrigerators and empty intestines, freezers spilling out guilt and undeniable flush of filling a need. I assisted an aging spotty man with ears as large as the cabbage head in his basket at the checkout. He told me Coborns is the only place he has to go today and was certainly in no hurry to get back home. We clucked at one another for the few minutes it took to load up his un-socially responsible plastic bags in the cart. I felt sorry for the inappropriate choice and sent him along his way back to the empty house gawking from the street. Unfortunately I do not believe he speaks Portuguese. Maybe I will suggest paper bags the next time I see him and maybe I will let him continue on his path of ignorance. It is bliss after all!