Shopping and Rambling post... no really, long rambling...

Well - my job officially ends in less than 2 weeks.  I'll be retired... since I've made that decision I've been applying for jobs - maybe 50 or so?  Of which I've only heard back from one a "thanks but no thanks".

I went to a job fair last night for a local car dealership.  I felt like a schoolgirl all nervous, but I went through with it.  Had the little interview, which I was ok with.  The guy's looking at me like "why are YOU here".. all they had was a receptionist position available... so what I'm thinking is happening is I'm way overqualified for the jobs I'm putting in for - but that should be OK - they need to realize that just because our resume is impressive with 30 years of work experience, it DOESN'T mean that's what we want to continue doing for another 10-20 years... anyway, I digress...

Hung in at this job fair since I figured it would be good experience for a bigger one coming up tomorrow.  I was checking out what people were wearing, whether they brought resumes, portfolios, etc.  I learned a few things from it, one being - TAKE AN INK PEN WITH YOU DUMMY!!  Yes, that was to myself... totally unprepared but I did take resumes...

I wore a black skirt with a blue cami and black jacket - pretty boring, but that's what we're suppoed to be, right?  Since I wore that on Tuesday I can't wear it again.. since I'll be coming to work first then to the fair then back to work (ok, just an excuse to buy something else). 

I found this dark purple skirt at a thrift store for about $3 a few weeks ago - fits great, pencil type skirt and thought it would be good for an interview.  So last night I tried it on with a black lacy tank and a black shawl type waist length sweater - really did look very good., no - it looked awesome, but then I decided it was more business casual than business dressy interview style. 

This morning I decided to get up and google "what to wear to an inteview" and they also addressed job fairs.  They said to be business dress, matching skirt/pants and jacket.  Ok, so I decided I needed to do that.  One article still frowned upon wearing pantsuits.. ok -I like to wear skirts anyway. 

So at my lunch today I went to Macy's.  Had a very helpful lady there that was trying to help me.  Well, I've found out I'm inbetween sizes.  What a PITA.  Last year I could try ANYTHING on and it fit (in a size 4), oh and it looked pretty damn good too.  Well... different story this year.  I've put some weight on and the redistribution thang going on, and its in my butt and thighs.  So, the 4's fit in the waist and were tight in the butt/thighs, and 6's fit in the butt/thighs and too loose in the waist - oh wait a minute - this is EXACTLY the problems I had when I was FAT - OMG!!  So the saleslady said "you may want to look into some control type spanx"...  

I must have tried on 10 different skirts, dresses, jackets - to no avail.  She took me over to a different section and handed me this real nice royalish color blue jacket and said "this would look great with a black skirt and black cami".  I tried the jacket on (a 4) and it fit great.  I decided she was right, I'm going to throw the experts' opinons out the window and do my own thing.

So - I went on the hunt for a black skirt, to no avail.  I'm 5'3" and all the skirts hung BELOW my knees... UGH - looked like I was cut in half.  I like my skirts about 2" or a little less above my knee - I feel like it looks better.  I think I have another black skirt at home, I'll check when I get there... oh with those darned spanx....

Oh - about the Blue jacket - its a Jones New York, on the CLEARANCE rack - regularly $210 - YIKES!!  It was marked down to $120 or so.. I'm still like 'OMG - I don't want to pay that for it' - so I took it over to the little scanner dohickey thing they have to see how much stuff costs and get this - it scanned for $31... yes THIRTY ONE DOLLARS!!  - WOOHOO - you couldn't pry that jacket out of my hands after that - lol.  Bought 2 pairs of nylons too and they cost as much as the jacket - ugh..

So I decided to head over to Penneys to see what they had in skirts.  Same thing, fit like crap, hung below my knee - no... not going to work.  So I started going through the clearance rack, yea, its a habit of mine... and found this 3 piece pantsuit, 6 petite, regularly $80 for $10.  I tried it on - fit great and looked good.  Not the best quality by any means, but heck, it was $10!!  It has these little flowery things on it I'm going to cut off (I could see the threads holding it on).  Oh and the shoulder pads are coming out too. 

I also tried Maurices and TJ Maxx - nothing there.  We're kinda limited with choices here.  I may try Kohls after work tonight, I have $10 in Kohls cash burning a hole in my purse. 

So I feel pretty good I've got a few outfits that will work just fine for inteviews and job fairs.  I think I'll hit some more thrift stores too - thats where I seem to find the skirts I like best.  Oh, if I lost 5 lbs I could probably fit into the ones I already have....

Oh my goodness Jody, I want to shop with you. We have a very similar way of doing things! I can go 10 rounds over anything similar, and also end up carrousing those clearance racks.

I can't tell you all how many garments I wore this past 7 months from my own closet where I actually took the tag off that day (Things I had purchased HOPING to fit into while dieting as a "reward to myself" only to gain all that weight back plus extra).

I always got a good laugh over that, as something that was say, 2 years old! And I agree, at just under 5'4", I like a skirt to hit slightly above the knee, or mid calf (Depending on the style).

Good luck with your job fairs, and putting the PERFECT emsemble together!



Kim

Thanks Kim!  I came home and tried on my black pencil skirt with the blue jacket and it looks great!  I don't need a new skirt... AND the control top hose will help - lol.

I love finding great deals - I don't always....

i've discovered that clearance racks can be our bestest friend!!!

and....Jody....wasn't it you that posted a long time ago about the Matrix Mint Cookie protein powder?  i finally got it and it is soooooo good!!!  mixed a shake this morning and it sits in the freezer as i type this.....i'll let it thaw to slush consistency tonight and have a bit of Mint Cookie Protein "ice cream"!!!

Yes  Roz was the one that told me - in fact, I put it in my coffee today - yum!  Jus****ch the carbs on it.  I've made it into a freezy type ice cream drink before... OMG that is going to be great this summer!!

Have you considered a staffing firm??? They have lots if great relationships you could use and it should cost you $0. I used to be a head hunter in another life.

Love a Macy's deal, too. The jacket sounds beautiful!!!

Meg

I have an appointment tomorrow to talk to a lady.  Not sure what it will amount to as I'm not really willing to pay anyone to find me a job... but I'll talk to her and see what she has to say.  She's "downstate" by Detroit, so not sure she will work up this way. 

I find some very nice deals at our local Macy's.  Not all the time, and I wouldn't have found this one if the nice saleslady wasn't helping me.  I asked if she was going to be working tomorrow, I was going to come in and show her the outfit, but she's off.

Also was nice to hear "you're tiny and petitie"...

I have worked for and gotten jobs through staffing firms and they shouldn't cost you money at all. The way they usually work is that a company pays the staffing firm to find them people for a certain position. The staffing company then goes through the people they have on file to see if they are qualified, as well as searching job boards for resumes. The staffing company does the work of bringing people in for an initial interview and going over requirements and all of those fun things. If they are a good fit, the staffing firm will submit their resume to the hiring company, who will bring people in from there. If the people are hired, the staffing company is either paid a lump sum (direct hire), or the new employee is technically paid through the staffing company for a few months and the hiring company pays them (temp to perm).

Basically what this means for you is that while the common idea of "these people are supposed to find me a job" isn't true, the job searchers do not pay for a thing. This means it might be slower to find a position that asks for your skills (this will depend on the type of staffing company you go to), but you can sign up with 15 million at a time just so that they have your resume on file when they go looking for work.

Sorry for the giant reply!

Wow Jody, sounds like you found some great deals.

Good luck on your job fair.

I need to get you to come and shop for me!!!  How much would you charge - hey that might could be your new job......

Linda

LOL - personal shopper - everyone would dress like me!! .  I had the help of someone at Macy's, and when I was with Gina, I wasn't much help to her... 

Thanks for the luck - I'll need it.  Funny, my son calls me tonight when I'm on my way home and asks me for tips on interviewing - lol.. like I know... he's on his way to Houston for a job interview.. my baby may be leaving me!!