Healthcare Reform for Dummies

Happy Tuesday! I am finally well. I was sick all last week and I couldn’t very well take a sick day during my first official week of my new job. So I toughed it out and it ended up getting worse. On Wednesday, I decided to go to the doctor. We have new insurance and I was a little nervous. For the last two years, we’ve had Kaiser-Kaiser is HORRIBLE! Every time I went to the doctor (and I had an appointment-I was never a walk-in) I ended up waiting 2 hours. 2 HOURS. EVERY TIME! It was really annoying. The pharmacy also took forever. But now we have Aetna, and I have to say, it is much better! With Aetna, you can go to the walk-in clinics at Walgreens and CVS. So on Wednesday, I decided to try out the Walgreens near my office during lunch. There were 2 people ahead of me, but I was still in and out of there in under 30 minutes! It was great! I went back and picked up my $10 antibiotic and that was that-I was done. AMAZING! Much better than Kaiser!

I’m embarrassed to say, I really don’t know much about this healthcare bill. I need “Healthcare Reform for Dummies” so I can figure out what’s going on. :) But I will say that if going to the doctor turns into a similar experience as going to the DMV, the DOL, or the Social Security Office, I’m going to be mad. My experience at Kaiser is what I am expecting government run healthcare to be like: long waits, unfriendly/incompetent workers, etc. And I can say this because I’ve been to the DMV, the DOL, AND the Social Security office and each time I experienced a long wait and unfriendly/incompetent workers. (Please note that I do understand that not all government workers are how I have described them. I’m just saying that the people I have come into contact with in the past have been this way.) So that is my two cents on healthcare reform. I’m sure I’d have more of an opinion if I actually read up on the issue. :)

Changing the subject...my weekend was WONDERFUL! Went to the Pub for drinks Friday night with some of my girlfriends. Ate lunch at Front Page News in Little Five Points for lunch on Saturday-I love that place! It has a cute little patio area and the weather was perfect for patio dinning. :) Came home, took a nap and Josh ran and got us some Checker burgers for dinner. Yum! Sunday, Josh and I went out for sushi for lunch to celebrate my new job and then I bought some celebratory shoes at DSW. They are ADORABLE and I can’t wait to get a pedicure so I can wear them. :) Later that night, we had my parents over for mahi-mahi tacos. Mmmmm.

Perfect. Weekend.

-Holly

One pair of my new shoes - so cute!

I GOT IT!

I found out yesterday.........I got my job! I'm so happy. Of course, now the real work starts. :)

I did have to negotiate salary. The negotiating process was terrible. I felt so awkward and I was so mad with the first offer (it was REALLY low compared to what I saw on the job posting on Careerbuilder). I was worried that when I spoke, I wouldn't sound calm and professional. But I was able to make them come up a bit. Still not as much as I wanted, but enough to be happy with. And compared to what I made before I was laid off, I came out GOOD! :) I am sooooooo proud of my negotiating skills. I really think being laid off was the best thing ever for me. It got me out of a job I hated and taught me to not be so loyal to a company, to not take the first offer, and to have more confidence in myself. I love this new job AND I am finally making more than I would be teaching. So I can throw away my teaching certificate...if I knew where it was. :)
 

Two More!

Got an email yesterday asking for an interview next Tuesday. Then the recruiter I'm working with called and got me an interview for tomorrow afternoon! This is just the boost of confidence I needed for my interview with my company tomorrow morning. If this company doesn't want me, then at least I might have some other opportunities! Yay!

-Holly

Balance in Life

I'm a big believer of balance in life (pleasure verses pain, work/life balance, happiness verses sadness, right verses wrong, karma, getting what you deserve in the end, etc.)

My body believes in balance too. I exercise, I want to eat more. I drink too much, I go to sleep. I laugh too much, I end up crying.

As for Karma, look at this example:
I may have called in sick to work once when I wasn't really sick...just once...I swear!! (Come on, everybody does it!!!! No judging!) Anyway, I used an excuse that something I ate made me sick. Then, a few months later, I really did get food poisoning...and I was sick FOR A WEEK! A LONG week. I knew that the universe was getting me back for lying. :)

Anyways, the point of all of the above is to preface my theory about balance in the big picture of my life. There are two large parts of my life: (1) my relationship with Josh and my family and (2) my career. I don't believe that both parts of my life can be perfect at the same time. Right now, I have a wonderful relationship with my husband and family...but a terrible career life. However, if I had to choose, I would much rather have a wonderful relationship with my husband and family and have a rough time in my career than have a great career and no one to love and who loves me.

But really, I've always had a tough "career life." I remember when I was 16, my mom drove me around to probably around 30 different retail establishments to apply for jobs. I only got one interview and I didn't get the job. I eventually got hired on at the "un-named attraction" I've mentioned before. And there I stayed for 8 years. I did have a few other part time jobs in Athens when I was in college*, but I always ended up back at the "un-named attraction." It was like I was meant to be there. (And I do have to say, I was REALLY good at my longest job at the un-named attraction. I was the best southern belle ever. I have STELLAR customer service skills.) Anyway, after I was promoted a couple of times, ended up at the corporate office, and then laid off I thought, "Wow-this is really sad. The only company that ever hired me finally got rid of me! Who is going to hire me now?!"

Some times I think I'm not meant to work:

(Thanks for sending this pic, Robin!)






Hehe. But seriously, maybe God has a different plan. Maybe I'm just meant to be a good wife, friend, and (someday) mother. I'm trying to trust God fully and no worry so much. I have my interview on Friday (the interview for the job I'm already doing) and I really am trying to just put all of my trust in God. I'm trying to let his will be and know that he does everything for my good. I've also prepared myself for both outcomes. If I get the job, I'm ready to discuss salary, goals, and plan out the next few years. If I don't get the job, I will apply for unemployment, get aggressive again with my job search, and enjoy the nice weather (I plan on getting a nice tan if I don't get this job!)

The only thing that bothers me is the more I keep finding out about the other candidate they are interviewing. (She interviewed last week, and my boss though she had “potential” so she is coming back this Friday for a second interview.) She's young, but has more experience than me as an assistant. Her resume says she graduated in '08 (that's 2 years later than I graduated) but it also says she "funded her college education with full time employment over the years." Well, good for her, but I also worked all through college and I worked AT THIS COMPANY! Anyway, I don't appreciate that my main competition is someone who is younger than me, doesn't have a masters degree, and definitely doesn't have any experience in this industry or with this company. She worked at a bank and at an apartment complex. At least the other lady they interviewed had years of experience in the creative industry. I would be less mad about all of this if my opponent was better qualified. But this is a good thing-I'm obviously the better candidate for the position. So be thinking about me at 9am this Friday-I can't wait to get the interview over with! I hope they tell me that day if I am getting the job or not. I just want all of this to be over and done with!

Hopefully I will get the job!

-Holly


*I worked as a waitress at a family owned Christian coffee shop (a job I would have liked better if we weren't required to donate all of our tips to charity-I made some good tips I would have liked to have kept!), a doggie daycare (it was a shitty job-literally-there was too much dog poop involved), and a cashier at Rich's in the jewelry department (I worked the Christmas holiday rush-not fun!).