Another Writing Challenge

I picked up another assignment at Yahoo! Contributor. This one is for a Shakespearean sonnet. I've never written a sonnet before, so this should be interesting. After the success of the last poem, I wonder if this one will be as well received. I am thinking of using a Valentine's Day theme since it will be released before then. If nothing comes to me, I won't force it. I'll just write whatever feels right. It worked for the last poem. Maybe it will work for this one as well.

Deutsch Macht Spaß [German Is Fun]

I am making progress. At least I hope I am. I was able to send out a letter to my friend V and study a bit of German yesterday. I'm starting to forget what I learned in school and I put too much time and effort into it to start forgetting now. Vielleicht soll ich ein bisschen in Deutsch schreiben. Morgen möchte ich zu meine Freundin schreiben aber ich habe zu viel zu tun. Hoffentlich kann ich Zeit finden. [Translation: Maybe I should write a little in German. Tomorrow I would like to write to my friend, but I have lots to do. Hopefully I can find time.]

The Paper Chase

I started thinking about the purpose of job descriptions as I was taking a shower today. Why was I thinking of that in the shower? Beats me. I think of lots of strange things there. It's probably one of the very few times during my day when I'm not distracted by things going on around me.

Anyhoo, getting back to my first statement... I was thinking how job descriptions pigeonhole people into specific jobs according to their past job experience. I think I mentioned this before in a previous post, The Measure of Man's Worth. From reading some job requirements, it seems that employers want the world. I understand that many companies have downsized and employees are often required to take on additional responsibilities, but judging from what I've read, some of the requirements seem a bit overly ambitious. There is just so much time in the day. To be able to wear all the hats that some employers want would require a person to have lived only to work and not to live. Either that or perhaps the employer is looking for someone with years of experience, but I doubt that that is always the case. Wouldn't it be better for a company to find someone who has gotten a lot out of life by being able to experience it outside of work and contribute some of that experience to the company instead of being programed to meet job requirements? And wouldn't an employee have a more balanced, satisfying and richer life if there were less job demands on him? A happier employee might stay longer at a company and would contribute more if permitted. Leaving a job is always disruptive for both the employer and the employee and his family. I see it as a win-win situation.

Another requirement that bothers me has to do with degrees. A degree is almost always a requirement for a decent job, but not only must there be a degree, but it must be an industry-specific degree. Heaven forbid that someone without that degree should have the gall to think and learn on their own! Self motivation, one of the characteristics of an achiever, is rarely ever seen in the list of requirements.

We have become so industrialized that, in most companies, it seems that everyone needs to have a specific skill set to play a specific role. With everyone set into their tidy little niche, company hierarchies become more inflexible, which makes it frustrating for those who are qualified to advance to better, more suitable positions within an organization.

Breaking the Chains

I was surprised to receive a job offer by e-mail for a work-at-home customer service position today. The rate is $19 per hour (full- or part-time during regular business hours) and my responsibilities would have included using the computer to respond to customer requests. The e-mail was professionally written and I believe that it is a legitimate employment opportunity. It was tempting. They had invited me to apply for the position, which shows that they were already interested in me. A steady work-at-home job with the promise of a regular paycheck also sounded like a dream. However, after thinking about it, I did not respond to the ad. I've decided that I should really try to start my own business. A steady paycheck is nice, but I need to find out whether I am able to make a living on my own. Although job searching is very difficult, once the job has been landed, settling into daily responsibilities and receiving a paycheck is easier than having to use your imagination and wits to figure out how to make a paycheck happen. I also feel that if I have to devote my blood, sweat and tears to a job, I might as well reap its benefits and do something that I enjoy. Life is short after all and, at 39, it's getting shorter and I have so much yet to do. Sometimes the more insurmountable a thing is, the more gratifying it is once you reach the top.

Promises, Promises

I usually don't like to make resolutions for the new year because I'm not very good at keeping them. I hope that if I write them here, I will feel obligated to follow through. They are similar to the promises that I made to myself in prior years, but this year, I'm going to add writing and photography to the list.

1. Write more and find some paid writing assignments
   
2. Learn to use my camera better
3. Write to my penfriends every month
4. Practice my French and German
5. Choose one fictional work to read every month

There. It's written in stone now.

For this month, I'm planning to read Purge by Sofi Oksanen. It was given to me by my Finnish penfriend as a birthday gift, but I only read the first chapter before becoming consumed with my job search. It doesn't look like a long read, so hopefully I can finish it by the end of this week.

Who Would Have Thought?!

Woo HOO! My sestina, The Winter Journey Home, was featured in the Creative Writing section of Yahoo! Voices! Maybe it had something to do with the news feature about the grey wolf in California named Journey who is searching for a mate or another pack...