The beginning of the end?

So I got back to UD after what seemed like a rather short break (2 weeks goes by fast). I had a nice Christmas with my family - although it seemed rushed and weird for some reason. I was happy to be home in Waynesville with my family, though. I spent the last 2 Christmases in Wisconsin with my grandfather because we were never sure if he was going to live until the next Christmas. He passed away October 11, so as sad as I was to not have him around, I was happy to spend Christmas at home.

After Christmas, my mom, dad, brother, sister-in-law, and I went to Wisconsin to visit family. I had a good time, but it's always a bad idea because my family LOVES to eat, so my training for the half-marathon is WAY off track... I'll need to work on getting back into the swing of things in the next few days. After our visit in Wisconsin, I went to Chicago for New Years with my friends Chris, Erin, Mo, and Danny. Mo's mom was kind enough to let us stay at her house in Northbrook (about 30 minutes north of Chicago). She cooked for us every day, which was nice. Everything was delicious! The 5 of us spent New Year's Eve in Mo's basement. It was probably the most fun I've ever had on New Year's Eve. We went into the city to go shopping and I got to seek out and look at the buildings where Fleishman-Hillard and Edelman are located. I'm very interested in internships with either of those agencies, so I wanted to just get a glimpse of the area in which they are located (did I mention I've only ever been to Chicago 3 times? Once in 7th grade, once last fall, and this past December).

Now I'm back on campus and getting ready for the last semester of my undergraduate education. I'll be honest, it's a bit nerve-wracking. I have no idea where I will be in 6 months and that frightens me. I like having a plan and knowing where I'm going and what I'm doing. Did I mention I graduate from college exactly 5 months from today? Ahh! I'm also a bit nervous about graduating because I'm afraid of being alone. I want to move to Chicago. I really enjoy it there and my best bet for a job is probably Chicago. The only bad part is I don't know anyone there. Who knows... these are just late night musings that have been popping into my head over the past few weeks.

Who knows what will happen... only time will tell and I suppose that is something I will have to learn to accept.

...by the way, who wants to be my date for POD Formal? :)

The auto bailout

http://www.cnn.com/2008/US/11/19/autos.ceo.jets/index.html?iref=newssearch

Does anyone else think it must be a nightmare to be on the PR teams right now for these big 3 U.S. automakers?

It seems to me that these folks are doing too little too late. I know that it would cost Americans a lot of jobs if Ford, GM, and Chrysler went bankrupt, but these guys should have learned years ago that Americans don't want / can't afford the kinds of cars they're building (ie: SUVs and large trucks). The media had a field day when the 3 CEOs flew to Washington in 3 private jets to beg for tax payer money. I suppose I'm just glad I don't have a job on any of their PR teams. It's got to be really hard for them right now with all the bad press.

Another personal post...

So I'm into my training for this half marathon and I'm a bit discouraged... I've stuck to my schedule (minus a few days last week when I was sick... but I made those up on my "rest" days) and I haven't lost any weight... I suppose I shouldn't be too concerned 'cause it's still early and Thanksgiving was in there. My clothes fit a little better, so that's good.

What I've been doing is alternately walking 1/4 mile with running 1/4 mile. I'm not in great shape, so I'm trying to ease my way into running the full thing. In other news - over the past two weeks, I have shaved 2:08 off my mile :)

My life is pretty uneventful outside of that. My brother and his fiancee are looking for jobs in Wisconsin. I'll probably end up somewhere around there or Chicago after graduation... I just hope I can find a job :\

My first ever half-marathon

So a few weeks ago, my brother's fiancee asked me if I wanted to do a half-marathon with her as a way to get in shape for their wedding in July. I said sure because I've always wanted to do a half or whole marathon. Unfortunately, the half-marathon she is doing is on the day I graduate from college - FAIL.

BUT! My mom and I found one in Xenia on April 5, the second day of our spring break. So I'm in training for that. I also convinced my mom to take me to either Disney World or on a cruise for my last spring break ever and as a reward for doing the marathon.

I can't think of a good way to end this, so... yay!

Catholic Social Services Food Drive

The Pride of Dayton Marching Band is pairing up with the Catholic Social Services of the Miami Valley to sponsor a food drive between December 1 and 17, 2008. All food donated will be given to the largest food pantry in the Miami Valley. CSS says that with the economy suffering and food and gas prices rising, they are seeing record numbers of people every day. Most of them are first-time visitors.

Please look for the bins placed in Stuart Hall, Marianist Hall, Reichard Hall, Kettering Labs, McGinnis Center, Kennedy Union, Campus South, and the Library in December. If you give your food items to a marching band member, you will be entered into a drawing for gift certificates to local establishments.

I hope you can all find yourselves able to donate something during this holiday season. Clean out your pantry before you leave for Winter Break. If you have any questions or want to be entered into the drawing, please let me know!

First Interview

So I had my first interview today for my first "big girl job." It was with a firm called C.C.L. Executive Group, Inc. They're based in Cincinnati and they're a pretty young firm (they just celebrated their 6th birthday last week). I think it went really well. Alex, the man I interviewed with, said he liked the way I answered his questions, but they're looking to hire right now. He told me that they would keep my resume on file until a little closer to my graduation and they will be calling me back for a second interview sometime in February or March. I suppose that's about what I expected.

For all those people who complain about the Interviewing communication module we all have to take at UD - STOP. I thought it was dumb, too, at the time, but I actually used a number of things from that class in my interview today. Besides, it's only, what, a 6-week course? I think you'll live through it :)

Facebook and the job market

My dad recently sent me this link to an article about Facebook dos and don'ts:

http://www.cnn.com/2008/LIVING/worklife/11/05/cb.social.networking/index.html

I've heard about employers using Facebook to research prospective employees, but this article talks about how you (the prospective employee) can actually use Facebook to your advantage. The article talks about how some businesses actual cruise Facebook to scope out new employees. It's a fairly interesting article and I've taken it to heart. I've recently tried to make my Facebook appear a bit more professional, while retaining the things that show off my character and personality.

Perhaps you can use this as a guide to revamp your Facebook, too?