Brass and Carnelian Cuff

After much procrastinating I finally finished up this cuff for my mom and I've already got an order for another one!

Doing Work

Sorry, I've been MIA for over a week now. There are just not enough hours in the day to juggle everything I'm doing unfortunately. The last few weeks I've been spending all my spare time (aka the late hours of the night) creating jewelry pieces for a small viewing I'm doing on Thursday and entertaining my daughter who is a little more than half way through her two week spring break (please God send a shower of money down so schools can stop taking furlough days). As a result my blogging time has been cut to nothing, really I haven't even had more than a few minutes to try and catch up on the blogs I usually follow religiously. The only reason I'm posting now is to let people know I'm still here so please don't leave me. Seriously. I don't take abandonment well. After this weekend I should be on a better schedule but in the meantime check out some of the items I've been working on. 

*Everything pictured, plus more, not sold on Thursday will be posted for sale on my Etsy shop (currently empty) this weekend.

Job Search

I'm supposed to be searching for a new job, but the actual search keeps getting pushed back further and further on my to do list. Honestly, it's just really hard to be motivated to do it. I was in this situation a year ago and didn't expect to be back here so quickly. Just setting up profiles, updating my resume, writing cover letters drains so much time, that when it's finally time to start searching I'm exhausted and it's late in the afternoon. The other problem is that I don't really know where to search. I mean obviously I'm using the normal job boards, but so much of what's posted on them is not for me. Since I no longer want to be in the ASI really isn't a good option for me, but what is? Most of my contacts are in the ASI or still in school, outside of that I'm pretty much on my own. I do know I would love to do marketing/PR for a creative company like a fashion label or record company. Besides logging onto company websites to apply for jobs and cold emailing HR departments does anyone have a suggestion on how to get noticed by these companies? Anything would be helpful. Or even just tips on how to stay motivated, focused, and upbeat through this whole process would be great.

This is why I blog

I've been thinking about starting a blog for awhile. Initially, I was going to blog about the ups and downs of being a young woman in the action sports industry. I was really fed up with the way women would often be passed up for new positions or promotions so that the hiring manager's bro could get the spot instead. I mean I've watched some guys with very limited brain capacity and drive make it pretty far up in a company because of bro hiring tactics. I understand networking and getting ahead through contacts. I mean really isn't that the way most jobs are found now a days, but a foot in the door shouldn't automatically lead to your butt in a cubicle. Frankly, I don't give a flying rat's ass if these guys surf the same spot every morning, this is work, give the job to the person most deserving of it. Sorry, if I sound bitter. Right now I am, but I'll be over it soon. just have to rant for a minute.
After three years of working my butt off I've just found out that my job position has been eliminated for the second time. Yes, that's right. I've been hired, laid off, rehired, and laid off again by the same company in practically the same job just two days from exactly a year between lay offs. The thing is that I'm not sad about losing the job. It sucked and is not what I wanted to do at all. I'm just angry that I wasn't able to get anywhere while I was there. I definitely tried. I knew everyone who worked for the company, made sure all the right people knew that I was interested in moving up into their departments, and even took on an extra position for free, in a dept. I wanted to work for to try to get ahead. Instead, I got to watch about 5 guys who hadn't worked at the company at all or as long as me and/or had the same/less experience than me get jobs hand to them or even worse created for them. I was offered two different jobs throughout my stay there, but neither were positions that would lead me where I wanted to go so I turned them down. I'm glad I did too, because after having a crappy job for so long I refuse to settle for another one.