An Then Came Rains

Nine months had gone by and I was beginning to wonder if I would ever find a new job.  It's hard enough to be unemployed, even if it is by choice,  eventually you start to question yourself, not a good situation! As it turned out signing up with the career counselor was a smart move, he served as a good counter balance to my ever growing insecurity!

I got up early Sunday morning and began my search through the Denver Post classified ads.  I had turned this ritual into a systematic process, armed with a highlighter and a pair of scissors.  I could find appropriate listings quickly, highlight them, cut them out and tape them into a spiral notebook before I finished a cup of coffee!  This particular Sunday I found three ads that had possibilities but one really caught my imagination.  It was run by a company called Nursefinders , they were seeking an administrator to run their home care program.  The only requirement was that applicants had to have management experience and since I served as the chairman of the History/English department for three years I felt I was certainly qualified!  The other nice thing about the ad was they wanted interested parties to call not just send their resume. To me, the eternal optimist, that meant they were in a hurry to hire which sounded like a perfect match!

I didn't sleep well that night thinking about the call I was going to make in the morning.  I ran various scenarios of what the job would entail and how my background matched up with the company's needs.  Finally the baby was up and the day had  begun!  I waited until 9:30 before I called, not wanting to look too anxious!  The person who answered the phone told me that I needed to speak with Ann Rains, who hadn't arrived in Denver yet, but was due later that day.  I hesitated to ask whether I could expect to hear from her today but I couldn't stand not knowing, unfortunately, the answer was inconclusive, and I was doomed to wait for an undetermined period of time.

Around 7:pm the telephone rang and the voice on the other end asked for me and announced that it was Ann Rains calling.  I introduced myself and thanked her for the call.  She explained that she had been in San Franciso and had a hard time getting to Denver due to fog on the west coast.  We chatted for a few minutes and she asked some basic questions about my background.  When I told her that I was a teacher trying to find a better paying job she totally understood, telling me that one of her daughters was a teacher but now worked for Nursefinders! Wow!  She asked me if I had time to come to her office and visit the next day, and I almost said I could be there in a half hour, but restrained my enthusiasm and scheduled a 10:00 am appointment. There was general excitement about my scheduled interview although I knew it would be another long night!