Rescue time!

We had severe storms last night, and I woke up this morning to power but no phone, internet or TV.  After running a few errands, which were limited due to the power outages, I headed over to the rescue's adoption center because I'd heard they were short-handed.  Many of the center volunteers and foster families were without power themselves, and were scrambling to find temporary homes for the bottle-fed foster kittens until the power came back on.

I hadn't been there long when a call came in - Workers renovating a house that was vacant because the previous tenants had been arrested on drug charges had found that the tenants had left several cats behind, and the landlord said he wanted the cats out by 5 p.m. or he would "get rid of them".

Well, shit.

Another volunteer and I grabbed crates and gloves and supplies and headed out.  When we got there, the three adult cats had been contained in one room.  But one of those cats had given birth recently and had hidden the kittens in the attic, and of course we couldn't take the mama cat without all her kittens.

The house must have been beautiful once - there was a stained glass window in the attic, for Pete's sake! - but years of being occupied by low-income tenants had taken their toll.

We got the adult cats out of the room and into carriers:

And then it was time to head up to the attic to try and locate the kittens.

The attic:

I will tell you right now, those floorboards were pretty sketchy, and mama had hidden the babies under the floorboards in a far corner - we had to pull the babies out of this crawlspace:

Luckily, one of the workers at the house had long arms, and he was able to reach in and grab out the kittens, one by one.  We did sweeps of the crawlspace with a flashlight to make sure we had gotten all the kittens, and then it was time to reunite the kittens with their mama and get them back to the rescue.

Babies:

And here is their gorgeous mama:

Here are the other two cats we took out of the house. The female, on the right, has severely matted fur, and at one point someone had taken scissors to her to cut some of the mats out.  Volunteers will work with her and she will be taken to a groomer if necessary to get her looking good again:

The mama with the babies is safe in a foster home tonight where they will be pampered and cared for, and the two adult cats will be neutered and spayed PRONTO and put up for adoption.

And I will tell you what, none of the other rescues in this area, including the local Humane Society who has a paid staff and a budget ten times ours, would touch a case like this with a ten-foot-pole.  But there we were, the crazy ones, the little rescue who could, taking in these cats who were going to meet a bad fate unless they could be rescued today.  Oh, and did I mention?  Our adoption rate is more than DOUBLE the local Humane Society's adoption rate, even though we take in the sick, the elderly, the injured, and the other animals (like these) that the Humane Society would deny or euthanize.

Okay, stepping off my soapbox now.  All I can say is, it was a heck of a day, and our rescue done good. :)

Walk it over

Last week, when I got offered the position, I was torn.  I didn't know if I should take the job, or wait and see if something better came along.  Complicating matters was the fact that if I turned the job down, I'd lose any shot at unemployment benefits while I looked for something else.  So I did what I always do when I'm conflicted and need to think things over - I headed for the woods.

 Waterfalls always make me feel better.

There were blooming trilliums everywhere:

Entire hillsides were covered in Dutchman's Breeches:

Of course, when you're hiking gorges, you've gotta deal with the climb:

 

But look at the view from the top!:

 

Lucifer Falls:

And looking down at Lucifer Falls from waaaaay up high:

Trout lilies:

Purple trees:

And yet more waterfalls:

And it was awesome, because it was the middle of the week, so there was practically nobody else there.  And I thought to myself, well, if I took the job, I'd have days off mid-week all the time to enjoy more hiking and kayaking and less crowds at the popular spots.  

So I went home and emailed the recruiter and told him that I accept.  I'm still uncertain as to whether I made the right decision, and nervous, and anxious, but I keep telling myself, it's not like I just joined the Army, for Pete's sake.  If it turns out the job isn't right for me, I'll just stay there long enough to learn the medical office info I need to know, and then move on.  I don't think there's any way that job-searching for the first time in 30 years can *not* be nerve-wracking, and I need to stop beating myself up about this.  Go in, have a positive attitude, and learn what they can teach me.  Who knows?  Maybe I'll love it.  And if I don't?  It's not the end of the world - it's just a job.

I took the job!

Yep, I decided to take the offer.

It is a pay cut, but it's in a growing industry in this area, the benefits are better than what I'm receiving right now, and they are going to train me in the terminology and technology needed for the position, which will be transferable to another position should I move on.

And honestly, I think the twelve-hour shifts are going to okay, because it will mean having days off in the middle of the week, and I went to Treman State Park in Ithaca today, and the weather was glorious, and I had the park practically to myself because NOBODY WAS THERE because it was the middle of the week.  Sold!

I should be starting in mid-May. 

I got a job!

Oh,.maaaaaan ....

I did not get the job for which I did Interview #3 yesterday.  To make it that far and then not get the position is a little disheartening.

I may, however, be receiving an offer on the other position I interviewed for yesterday.  HOWEVER, that is the one involving 12-hour shifts and repetitive responsibilities (I'd be doing the same thing all day long), and now I'm in a quandary.  (Also complicating things is the fact that I'd be working with someone I currently volunteer with at the rescue.) Do I take the job (provided they offer enough money to make it worth the 12-hour shifts), or do I hold out for something else?

Decisions, decisions ...

One Day

One day,

Two interviews, in two different cities, one of which was a hundred-mile round trip, one for Interview #2 for a position (a peer interview), and the second of which was Interview #3 for a different position,

One trip to the allergist's to get my injections,

One trip to the grocery store, for the first time in over a week, to buy some food,

Several calls and juggling to find foster homes for the two kittens who were trapped Sunday evening, because I simply cannot handle any more fosters at this time (they are currently in an EXCELLENT foster home and are doing fine),

One trip to the rescue to pick up Albon for my own fosters, who have coccidiosis (ewwwwww),

And one tired person who is ready for bed but can't help feel like she is KILLING it right now. :)

Medal, guys.  I am ready for my medal!

The Weekend

Saturday was a trail clean-up day at a local state park, so I spent the cold, soggy, cloudy day cutting back brush and marking trails.  Somehow I managed not to freeze to death, so that was a plus!  Plus I got free lunch and a free t-shirt for my efforts, so it was all worth it.  I guess. :)

Saturday night I got a call from a woman who had a feral cat in her neighborhood give birth back in the beginning of March.  I had told her to call me when the kittens were six or seven weeks old so that we could trap them and get them into rescue care, and it was time.  So on Sunday afternoon it was trappin' time yet again.

That's the mama cat.  Isn't she pretty?  And wild as the day is long.  Once we get this litter of kittens into care, she, along with another litter she had last fall, will be TNR'd. (Trap-Neuter-Release. The cats are altered and then put back into their home environment, as adult feral cats cannot be socialized and are happier staying where they are.)

Hmm ... would I rather trap in a cow barn or a flower garden?  haha.

I did have SOME time to get out walking this weekend.  The mayflowers are up:

My never-ending quest to get a good shot of mergansers continues:

 

 This one ain't bad - these were taken in the creek right by my house:

And does anybody know what this flower is?:

I got a call this morning - two of the kittens were trapped last night!  The property owner is keeping them in her bathroom until I can get out there this afternoon, at which point they'll come live at my place for a few days until there's room for them in another foster home.

And tomorrow is Interview #3 for one of the positions f0r which I have applied, so wish me luck!

Foster Camp Update

The kitties and their mama are doing well.

 "Look into my eyes, laydee.  Look deeeep into my eyes.  Now cluck like a chicken":

Where's the best nappin' spot?  Why, inside the fishie, of course!:

 

"It's catnip, kids.  I'll tell you all about it when you're older."

Baby's first solid food:

And the kittens are starting to go in the litterboxes!  And next to the litterboxes, and under the desk, and behind the dresser, and ... well, you know how it goes.  Potty training, man.  It's a bitch.

Show 'em how it's done, Mama!

 

And the family now has names.  The mama is Rio, the boy kitten is Duran Duran, and the girl kitten is Cinderella Ride.  What can I say?  I watched a lot of MTV back in the 80s.

Some of the weirdest interview questions I've had so far

1.  "On a scale of 1 to 10, with 1 being the least and 10 being the most, how much do you want this job?"

haha what the hell was I supposed to say to THAT?! I mean, I can think of a lot of answers that would tank you right there:  "Zero.  I LOVE being unemployed".   "Depends on if I can bring my cat to work with me."  "Eleven.  I will kill all the other candidates right now to get this job."

I mean, it was a pretty basic desk job.  How much do I want it?  Um ... enough?  I want it enough?  Jeez.

What did I say?  I gave it an 8, mainly because I was fairly meh about the job in general. So I'm sure that that put me behind someone who answered 10, but why lie?


2.  "How would you feel about working with millennials?"

What?  Um, the same way I feel about working with anybody else?  I just went with "I like working with all different kinds of people, because everyone has something they can teach me".  Or something like that.


3.  "Thinking of yourself, personally, in your personal life, what is a shortcoming you are working to overcome?"

This one actually stumped me.  I mean, I was prepared to answer questions about what needed improvement in my professional life, but personally?  WTF?  What was I supposed to say?  "Well,  I'm a raging crackhead, but I'm heading to rehab real soon."  "Well, everybody says I'm kind of an asshole, but I actually think that I'm pretty cool."  In the end I said something about not taking small things too seriously, but I kind of lamed it because I really didn't know what they were getting at with the question.  Looking back, I'm wondering if I was supposed to tie a personal shortcoming to a professional situation, like, "I have a problem with punctuality", but why would I want to admit to something like that, esp. since I'm NEVER late?  haha.

 Okay, your turn:  How would you have answered the questions above? And do you have a doozy of an interview question to add?

I found a little-bitty door ...

... in a big ol' tree out in the woods ...

... so I opened it up!

The weekend

Saturday, I attempted to GIVE away the bad art I can't bear to THROW away:

and took a little walk:

then I picked up some traps from the farm and scrubbed them up:

Sunday morning, I picked up some wee kittens from the farm and took them to the rescue so they can start their journey to being housepets:

It's hard to get a good shot of wriggly kitties!

Then I met up with a friend for a walk and some ice cream.

SOMEbody forget their shoes - their horseshoes, that is!  But look, I ALMOST got a ringer:

Someday I will get a good shot of a merganser.  Yesterday was not that day:

But we did see a bald eagle sitting on its nest!  Plus, there were snakes:

 

And of course, there was plenty of time with these guys:

And this morning?  I received word that I have moved on to Round THREE of interviews for the bank job.  They LIKE me!  They really LIKE me!  haha.

That moment when ...

... your boss, who has recently cut your hours in half because he says he can't afford to pay your full-time salary any more, calls you at home on a Saturday afternoon to ask if you would happen to know if his favorite golf putter is at the office, because he can't find it anywhere at his house and is about to play a round.

Oh ,just hand me the goddamn medal already, would ya?

So far today, I have

- transported four barn cats that we trapped last night to the spay/neuter clinic this morning.

- did two job back-to-back job interviews.

- grabbed a spare pair of glasses from my glovebox when one of the lenses in my glasses popped out IN BETWEEN interviews, and then stopped at the eyeglass place after interview #2 to get my glasses fixed.

- finally, FINALLY, after several on-line attempts and a call to a claims administrator, successfully filed an initial unemployment claim.

- stopped by a local temp firm about a temp-to-perm job that I'm interested in.  

- stopped by the local labor dept. job center because an online application I was filing needed a browser I did not have and did not want to install on my own PC.

- grabbed lunch at McDonald's and justified it by saying it was a "treat".  *snort*

- completed some bullshit online registration process that was necessary for a different online application and took an inordinate amount of time.

- did a load of laundry to get the barn cat crap off my jeans.

- took one of the permacats to the vet for his annual checkup.

- took a call from a woman I spoke to a month ago about feral cats in her neighborhood, who is now ready to start the trapping process.

- spoke to the barn cat farm owner.  27 CATS SO FAR THIS YEAR!!!!

- collapsed and died.

OKAY, not that last part, but I swear to GOD I am now going to veg out.  Until tomorrow, when I have a full day at the office PLUS a big interview.   Now where's my medal? 

Just sloggin' along

I had my first in-person interview yesterday, with a local medical facility.  I think I would like the position just fine, but it would involve three 12-hour shifts a week, plus one 4-hour shift, which ... uck.  I dunno - unless it pays really well, I'll probably give it a pass.

I've got two interviews tomorrow, plus the bank interview on Friday.  I filed for partial unemployment, which - maaaaan, they do NOT make it easy to collect unemployment in this state.  After struggling with the on-line application and then finally calling the claims center (fun!), I THINK I'm all set for partial unemployment, except it's going to take at least four weeks to start collecting, and then I'll only be eligible for one day of benefits a week, and heaven forfend you screw up any of the paperwork.  GOD.

I continue to apply for other jobs as they pop up on Indeed and the Labor Dept. website.  I did two more this morning.

I attended a registration seminar for on-line learning through the local job service yesterday, and as soon as I get my password, I'll be able to take some software refresher courses, which will come in handy.

PLUS I'm trapping cats tonight for spay/neuter appointments in the morning, AND Ponyboy's got a routine vet appointment tomorrow, AND I'm still working part-time, now trying to compress a 40-hour workweek down into 20 hours. 

This stuff is exhausting, yo. 

More kitten pics

You asked for it, you got it!

You're welcome!