As a general rule, I do my best to avoid the use of the names of people, places, businesses, etc. within the confines of this medium. As many before me (including, ironically, me) have discovered, this practice is typically a "best practice" (thanks, fancy work words) if you have curious colleagues who troll the Internet (presumably, for lack of anything better to do, in the office or otherwise) looking for dirt on one another.
The tell-all "no, really, fuck every last one of you, right in the ear" blog is the resulting magic unicorn of indiscretion, a few steps above the "photos of my tattoos in private locations posted on my MySpace page that my students can see" or "passive-aggressive pseudo-private blog about how angst-ridden my life is because That Guy Who I Want Happens to be Gay and Why Aren't Things Always Perfect."
I know people who have committed all those faux pas (yes, specifically) and then some. I was one of those people my freshman year who had his dorm party pics shown to him during an internship interview by a fellow alumnus of Ma-higher-learning-institute of choice.
(Hint, people who went to that school: don't post drunk pics of you, your friends, or that group of people from the dorm across the way on a web page whose URL is some mashup of "nerdinstitute..edu/~myemail" when your e-mail address is myemail at nerdinstitute..edu. If they graduated, they're easily smart enough to figure that shit out. Just a thought.)
Ironically, I got the internship, but I digress.
The point is that although this policy somewhat detracts from the rhetorical flourish that is sure to follow, I'll do my best to capture the essence without naming names, attempting to convert the gays, or showing any tattoos.
I have three interesting and mostly tangible options for career moves in front of me currently. They are as follows:
1. Status quo: I have multiple clients, I do project management, and I charge north of 40 hours a week for it. This is acceptable practice, especially when everyone else is also busy, and it pads the bank account or otherwise softens the blow when tax time rolls around. This is a much better circumstance than, say, six months ago, when I was working through a pay cut and some general nonsense. Supposedly I am also getting a marginal bump in title (think "Doer of Good 3" to "Doer of Good 4"); a marginal bump in compensation is also expected.
2. Adventure Island: Our director in charge of one of these clients (not my biggest one, but one where there are growth prospects) currently rotates from our satellite office at said client's site to our office every couple of months. He typically swaps with a senior-PM-type guy. Based on efforts so far in "pulling one out of the ditch," he has offered me to be one of those people who rotates on and off island. (Said island: possession of the United States, easternmost point of the country; Google it or e-mail me for details.) If I play my cards right, this could equal a nice promotion (title and salary) and would come with expenses-paid time on a perennially warm island. Would need to also negotiate trips home (or trips for spouse to visit), etc. Cons: away from home for long stretches, less home-office visibility, potential creep of "island time" into work habits. Might be mitigated by in-laws moving in and uncanny desire to bust ass at work no matter the circumstances. Likelihood: probably at least 75%; it's been offered and my home office management is (mostly) in the loop.
3. Adventure Island, Northern Edition: I have also applied for a position with a certain international body whose forte' is peacekeeping in light blue helmets at their US-based home office. This is also on an island, but of a far different (and extremely more populated) sort. Pros: doing something good for humanity, position commensurate with experience; salary that allows us to live on said Adventure Island. Cons: not sure if we're ready to get out of here quite yet on a multitude of levels; likely chance of occurring probably hovers around 2%.
This, by the way, is an ass-backwards way for me to let everyone know why I'm not on the BookFace as much, to generally give an update, and to shamelessly solicit advice.
Regardless of the outcome (my money frankly is on #2), I have to say this: it is damned good to have options, especially when it seems that so much of life is spent thinking that one doesn't have them.
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2 comments:
I really need a name other than "Stagger Lee's Wife," and even still, I can't remember if I dubbed myself the Cruise Director or something else. I swear I'll come up with a better name eventually.
Not that that concerns you. You have bigger fish to fry! (And if you go with #2, that might become quite literal if you get a little much "island time" in there.
So, um, wow! Like you said, it's damn good to have options, especially a lot of really good options. And if your biggest problems are to choose between a lot of good options, life is pretty good.
[snip]
Wow, I totally went over the character limit in my reply. I'm going to email you instead.
Of course you got away with it. TBS is $illy like that, as evinced in the fact that I got this job after posting 45 min. late for the interview.
I would say that Avenue Q rules are in effect here, to wit: everything in life is Only For Now. If the Justice League of America (they wear blue helmets, right?) makes an offer for you to move to Gotham City, well, as long as the wife is down I would say that is the move. Opportunities to be A Little Bit Young And A Whole Lot Crazy (tm) become more complicated with the addition of time, seniority, and the outlandish expense of being DINKUMs (Double Income No Kids Unreasonable Mortgage) in, say, Silly Con Valley. Decisions made now are not legally binding on the rest of your career, unless of course they involve whiskey and guns and result in waking up with a dead girl and a live boy and possibly the Crichton Leprechaun in full view of Channel 15 News.
At the very least, you want to be out of the Ancestral Lands before the balloon goes up and we start having to shoot back at Teabaggers. I hear the Non-Alcoholic Land Formations At Sea are a good place to wait out civil insurrections, esp. with a couple of cold Zombies to hand. (Remember, take two at most. Take three and you're under the weather, take four and you're under the host.)
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