Exciting!

So yesterday I called about a vet receptionist position I saw in the newspaper. The ad said "vet office experience preferred." Not "required," so I gave it a shot. They had me come in to fill out an application. I met with Mary, who talked to me briefly and then showed me around the facility. She said she would call me if they wanted me to go on to the next step, which would be coming in for a couple hours to try out the position. She said lots of people think it is fun to work in a vet office, but it's not for everybody, so they like to give it a dry run, so to speak. Well, she just called me and I'm going in on Thursday from 8-10! Yippee!

This would be an awesome job. It's right here in Cary, just a few miles away, and it's full time with benefits after 60 days. I would work four days a week, 7-6, and every other Saturday (only 9-12). The pay is "negotiable" so I'm not sure what it'll be exactly, but they said my ballpark of $10/hr is reasonable. Just going to the office yesterday to fill out the application tickled the animal lover in me. There were kittens and puppies and they were all so cute!


And as a receptionist, I don't have to give them shots or cut them open or anything like that, which is why decades ago I ruled out becoming a vet, and more recently decided against becoming a vet tech. I love working with animals but the sickness and injury I couldn't take.

That's why I thought petsitting would be such a good option. I really enjoyed the four or five months of it I experienced in L.A. I had planned on starting my own business out here, but I got spooked by the possibility of a snow or ice storm keeping me from my appointed rounds. Of course, no ice or snow yet. I might consider offering my services seasonally (spring/summer/fall) and working in a vet's office would make referrals easy!

Meanwhile I have an interview tomorrow in downtown Durham (my mom will raise an eyebrow at that location) for the reader/evaluator position at Measurement, Inc. The position isn't that great--it's just scoring student essays (I imagine it's like the ones for state competency exams). It's a temporary gig (could be long-term but they make no promises), the pay is so-so, but the big downer is there are no benefits. The benefits thing is important because if the job I get doesn't offer medical insurance I have to keep paying for Cobra and that would be a significant chunk of my monthly income. However, if I can use this position as a stepping stone into a better position with the company, a permanent one that pays well and offers benefits, that would be sweet. So I'll have to find out at the interview tomorrow if that is a possibility.

At least there is some activity on this front, finally!