Checking the Stars in the Skies

This morning I interviewed at an immigration law firm in Worcester and was impressed by the people there and the overall energy. One of the lawyers got his start in language and literature and then turned to law when he considered the options available for English students. He’s also done some martial arts before, and I felt as though we had a lot in common.

He told me that people who go into law with varied life experiences are often highly marketable. He also told me he went into immigration because being a public defender, his other plan, was too much of a grind. He told me he not only works with software engineers trying to come to this country to work, but victims of abuse and oppressive political regimes. “We are the good lawyers,” he said, smiling, noting that there aren’t many people in his profession who get hugs when the case is closed.

It sounded as though he trying to convince me to join the company. I left feeling convinced. I was one of the first interviewees so they explained it will be another week or two before they make a decision, but noted that they were interested in me.
*
Finding the appropriate clothes for a job interview proved a challenge. I haven’t bought new clothes in years. I was able to hobble together respectable duds from my old professorial garb, although it slightly mismatched and the fit was not ideal.

Most of my clothes are suitable for the warehouse (I realized I was wearing a tee-shirt this week that was given to me, as a gift, in 1995. The shirt is older than Dufflebag!) As some sort of Stalinist-surfer-gym bunny-Bohemian-failed writer type, I don’t even own my jeans, since they are supplied by the warehouse. One of the few perks!

My suit jacket is tight on the shoulders; the pants, if anything, too baggy. I bought my belt in high school and it’s worn at the edges. I bought my blue Oxford two years ago when I was teaching, and it is my nicest, and newest, article of clothing. The tie is slightly too short, as most ties are on me, since it’s hard to find one that fits.

It’s nice to sit here in Barnes and Noble, drinking coffee, and feeling professional, which basically means not being covered in dust. There is a virtue in the dust, of course.

I remember when I first started driving – people sensed my ineptitude behind the wheel and would start snickering and offering advice on how to perform the simplest maneuvers when I got to the job sites. For months now, this hasn’t happened. Then, yesterday, I got the snicker: “sure you don’t want to spin the truck around and back in the other way?” the contractor asked.
But the truck and I have achieved some elevated sense of awareness. “I think I got this one,” I said, and drove it, slowly and deliberately, backwards, up a steep incline coming to rest inches from my goal.

I knew what would be a tricky way to back in would turn into an effortless way to back out. I may not have learned much in the warehouse, but I do know how to drive a truck.

*

As excited as I was about the job interview, I’m going to keep applying for positions. I pulled into the Leominster Barnes and Noble to search the listings, but you can only connect to the internet with a credit card, which I can’t do. I thought it was like a regular Starbucks, where you just need an active Starbucks card, which I have. So I’m writing this in word and drinking coffee. This afternoon I’ll head home to continue the search, narrowing the field to law, education, and interesting odd jobs I can do on the weekends to make some extra bread: acting, freelance writing, and whatever else stumbles on my plate. I also have to get off my ass and assemble the computer and treadmill in our study. Since moving in, the study has become the room where we place anything we haven’t figured out a location for yet. So it’s a kind of chaotic wasteland of dead plants, yoga books, paperwork, and stray chairs. The kittens love it and, and will likely be upset when the order comes.

I’m having a small house-warming/All Soul’s Day party at the new house this Saturday, and it seems as though some old friends might make it out. We also have a tournament that day that our guys have been training hard for.

And speaking of training, I tried rolling last night for a single round at the end of class. My knee bothered me just from that limited training, and I could feel an odd burning sensation when I lay down to sleep, even though the leg wasn’t moving. I’m afraid I have some sort of partial tear – which wouldn’t be uncommon. It seems as though we’re going through a phase where many of our guys are injured. I’m not too worried, just attentive. And I’m trying to be smart by avoiding training and resting it whenever possible.

We are also dealing with the dreaded MRSA. At least two of our training partners have come down with drug-resistant staph. We keep the mats clean, but it’s impossible to protect yourself completely. I have only contracted staph once, and it was a miserable experience. Why couldn’t I have gotten into archery instead! Something that doesn’t wear away at the body and take up massive amounts of personal time.

Oh well. The path is set. Proceed!