So many things to do, so few priority choices...
And let's not even start on the things that are a complete waste of time, yet required to do...
Corporate bureaucracy sure takes its toll. My sympathy for Dilbert comic strips exponentially increases.

Sad story, bro

[frustration]
Getting your first job might be still exciting as well as getting a job that you always wanted. Mainly, though, every story about getting a job is a sad story in one way or another.
Daily I see people with good education and actual brains in their head to work in a place way under their level. The same place I work in  with basic highscooleducation and no particular skills. While loking for something better I always ask weather I deserve something better? Well, no, I don't. But would I do a better job than some people with higher education? Sadly, it's very much even possible.
There are also a lot of other things that make me sad while job-hunting. Like the usual requirement for people to already have experience they can't get because nobody takes them without experience. There are also a lot of places that could offee you decent salary, they promote it, but at the end they just cut off all the cornes for ridiculous requirements. There are places that, if lucky, put down an ad for something that anyway gets given to someone they know personally.  Most of the time you can't even understand the criteria by which they choose people. Couple of times I applied for job in places where I would do the same damn thing I do now. Sure they didn't have education requirements put down in the ad, but obviously it was a factor since i never got a response. Then, if you get lucky, you manage to get an interview but after it they barely reply to you that you didn't get the job. And some other things I'm extremely uncomfortable to even think about.
And after all this text I still must say that I just might be extremely unlucky, as the cruel evidence of real life shows me. I can whine all I want, but people keep getting a job without much effort everywhere and they are always the same people I would like to see being overrun by a bus for how stupif they are.
[/frustration]

Turns out I was a little wrong. Instead of planned 206h for this month, I have 186h according to plan. Should have gone to work earlier today.
What does it matter? It matters because now I know that I will be having 14h shifts for tomorrow and after tomorrow. And then continue on working normally for the next 6, maybe 7 days.
Oh the joys of greed.

Lately feeling doomed

Regardless..

By trying out new tastes I found another nice pearl. While I`m always skeptic about anything that comes with Cyrillic letters, I did buy a drink named «ЭЛЬБРУС» and it turned out to taste quite awesome. It's not quite as cheap as most light drinks, especially since it comes in a glass bottle, but one 0.5l bottle of it quenches your thirst quite easily, in contrary to some more popular drinks that promote exactly that. I other word - worth every cent.
In shot, picture related. If you see it - buy it (I got it @ RIMI)

In another news - I`m working overtime again. Feeling a little lazy, but I need all the money I can get on my next paycheck and this is the best way to get it. Unfortunately my hours are limited, so I`m going for the maximum of 224 work hours I`m allowed. I think I`m at 206 atm, though I`m not sure, could be more.

And I changed my mind....I will not ignore, that I`m feeling doomed.
I feel like I`m stuck at working for a little over minimal wage for the rest of my life, which is probably true. It's a sad future, but if it were only about me, I could live with it. Unfortunately it isn't. My damn sweetheart is a lazy, dreaming klutz, she may become a graduate in a couple of months, but I do not believe she will be able to find a job that suits her whatever and won't be able to support herself. That's why I need to find a way to move forward without education, move forward, to be able to support myself and her. I need a new job, one that offers me more skills and bigger salary at the same time. Dammit!

OMG what a mess my room is!

Recap series - Sick leave

What sucked about previous month and still does - i was on sick leave from job for 3 goddamn weeks. It all started with a simple fewer of 39.7 but, obviously, while all sweaty and hot, at some point I cooled down too fast and caught myself a pneumonia. So basically I can't remember a crap about first week, as I spent it with the 39.6 temperature and it's like being constantly drunk. At the second week my doctor finally figured I had pneumonia and pumped me with even more antibiotics. And the experience of second and third week too wasn't very pleasent, since I spent most of my time coughing. Even made my muscles sore from constant cough. Well, at least I did get away relatively cheap and fast from it (after spending a bit more than 40Ls on medicine, that is), but still, it meant that I got no bonus on my paycheck whatsoever and still have to visit VSAA to get the rest of my salary.

Never again .

And it's Christmas soon and I can't afford a crap as a result.

Recap Series - Colleagues

The_guy_I_know_since_kindergarten - finally got him to work at TWWL. Obviously I can tell he is not too enthusiastic about the job, who the hell would be in his place, but at least it's something he can earn money on now.

Oh, Latvia, why do you never present any chances at all to young students? Everyone has to fight with their teeth to get a decent job in their respective profession...

Recap series - promotion

Worth mentioning, but nothing big though.
Finally two spots in Help Desk @ TWWL were freed and I actually somehow managed to get one of them, thus I was promoted to something seemingly above entry level worker and seemingly had my bonus increased.
I`m no longer working at hotline, but rather do written communication with clients, help hotline workers out with stuff they do not understand or can't solve and I`m at the controversial position that should be more or less respected but seems to be disregarded as useless by everyone. Well, whatever, It's fine. Written communication and helping people is more back my alley and I regret nothing.


Several weeks of me being the dumb newbie followed. As well as several months of workload no European should ever be tasked with still going on.

Recap series - job interview results

Oh, yeah, about the interview back then - it turned out i was right, i didn't get the job because my test scores were way too low. Really didn't surprise me, but it was still worth trying.

And the company, btw, was Cytec.

And even if I know it shouldn't, failures like these do get to me and I was feeling kind of down and doomed for a few weeks after that. Did carry on like nothing happened though.

Back from a successfully attended job interview. Not really psyched about all that stuff, but only because a recruitment company approached me themselves, so it's just a sudden opportunity not something I was looking for. If I do, however, score it, it does seem quite reasonable to take that opportunity as the company has much higher pay-grid and offers me the same amount and type of work as the current one I`m employed in.
While it feels that the interview went well, I somehow do think that the test results won't be as splendid. And the feeling that I missed something important just doesn't leave me. Well, we'll see.

I would like to give some more details about the company the offered position, but I don't feel like that would be appropriate right now.

Off to work for now.

Nope.
No holidays for me.
Even if wanted them.
It's work, work, work and training to do even more work.

By putting a small bit of innovation in helping myself out at work and creating this map, I managed to get a small token of approval from the company whose calls I`m picking up. A stylishly black backpack, white t-shirt and white+black towel (I think it's actually beach towel, not sure though, as it's a bit small for that), all with Tele2 logo on them. I do feel appreciated and positive about it for a change.

Still holding on to the idea that maybe job at Transcom may not be the best paying job in the world, but still the pay is decent enough and the atmosphere we have there completely makes it worthwhile. 

Pics? No, not this time, I`m getting too embarrassed about taking photos with a goddamn phone all the time...

Sidenote: today I stepped in shit. Haven't had that happen for at least 10 years.

Back from my first real day of work. It feels amazing to work again, even better than I thought it would. Now I just have to get over that annoying phase where I`m just learning how to properly do stuff and I will actually start liking my work place.

P.S. Made tons of mistakes, hopefully nobody will notice them. (wishful thinking)

My job intro is finally over, that is, the official training part is finally finished and on Monday I will start picking up calls. My test results weren't all that bad, so obviously I do have all the necessary knowledge, I just hope I will manage to use it as well. Not everyone can multi-task at a level that requires you to simultaneously: talk (in foreign language included), solve problems, work with computer and lead a conversation being as polite and professional as humanly possible. And even if I do manage that, there is also the question of combining my work with studies.
I`m not complaining, I`m just being realistic and those won't be easy few months ahead of me.

--------------------------

In other news, today I have a day off and my ex-girlfriend promised to come over (in exchange for some pancakes, lol). A change of scenery in my everyday life won't hurt me at the moment.

Also: I need a goddamn washing machine, how do I get to one for free?

The information confidentiality policies are putting quite a strain on my ability to learn software and policies required for my profession. I`m used to studying on my own and doing the tedious stuff at my own pace, be it sometimes faster or slower than for the others. The additional work I do at home or when I`m free to to do as I please is my way of compensating for every drawback of mine. But these damn policies are not letting me do as I please and so I`m forced to do everything exactly where they put me and according to the schedule they decided upon.
But oh well, essentially It's my own problem and it's what I myself signed for. Will just have to find way to adapt. Now hopefully I`m not wrong this time and I am indeed good at adapting.

Reminder for self: Get your goddamn ambitions back on the ground !

Yep...mondays...they're back...

FRIDAY !!!

Aside from the success of surviving till the weekend  through my first work week (well, sorta work), today I received my Samsung Galaxy Mini. Tried it out a little bit, can't say I could complain about anything so far. I just wish I could find some decent games or applications for it...most of the popular stuff is actually complete crap. But oh well, whatever. The good stuff will probably find me on its own eventually.
I wonder if I have to do anything else besides owning an android to become a member of the android club?

Yeah, completely forgot to report in after my first day at "work". Currently we are being trained and the training will last for 3 weeks. Nothing really special to report about stuff that has happened so far, just that my impression about the company still hasn't been tarnished. I do think that I should be able to deal with my future job obligations once the training is finished, I`m a bit worried about my Russian though. But will see...
Also, I don't really want to sound prejudiced or pretentious (crap, can't find a fitting translation for the Latvian "ārišķīgs"), but I`m astounded at how many good looking people are working as phone operators or..well...office workers in the company. Not like there is something wrong with it, it's just not how you usually imagine your average office-worker-phone-operator. Of course, there are some fuglies and a little overweight people as well, it pretty much proves that they do not really look at that when picking their workers, came out like that...

Good news everyone...

Just got called back from transcom. I have the job.
Now...my training period starts at monday and it will last for some 2 or 3 weeks. And before that I should work a bit on my russian, as I need to tune it in.

Reminder for self: DO NOT MESS UP NOW !

Had the second job interview for transcom today, the individual one...well, lol about the individual, I was interviewed by 3 women...
Anyway, went somewhat ok till the part where I had to pretend that I`m answering a phone call in russian. Suddenly forgot the two main phrases. I did explain myself that I just need to tune in for that type of conversations and that answering calls in russian shouldn't be a problem for me after that, but will see...

Oh, yeah, so I had this interview (well, it was a group-interview sorta) at that place. Was more of a test than a job interview, but that was just the first part. I don't know, I just went over without any stress or worries or anything, wasn't particularly sure I performed well enough from the limited opportunities to show myself, but obviously it was enough. Just a couple ours later they called me back and I have an individual interview scheduled for monday. From what I can gather, if I don't do anything retarded, it almost means that I have the job. But will see.
Oh, and about the company - overall I had a very good impression about them, I`m still a bit cynical about weather I will really get the whole payment  they are promoting there (I`m still concerned about some rumors I found on the net), but at least it's obvious that they do serious business there without any bullshit. Brings me some hope in.