Professionally Unemployed: Part 2.

The job hunt is so time consuming nowadays with some applications taking over an hour to complete. Why so long?

All signs tell me that sadly with all the advances in internet technology, recruiters feel compelled to use as many of them as possible on their online forms and surveys, and somewhere down the line completely lost the plot. I think human resources, in between organizing Christmas parties and vacations or whatever it is they do, have finally lost the ability to figure people out through resumes and cover letters alone.

These days, before you are even considered, you must demonstrate the ability not to notice that they are completely wasting your time by asking you online questions that your resume and cover letter have already answered.

This is on top of pretending not to notice that going through these motions has apparently got nothing to do with actually finding work.

Oh look, another form!

Nice to meet you, I’m Professionally Unemployed.

As some of you may already know, I don’t particularly enjoy most aspects of work. And just recently I realized I can add to it a whole new dimension: finding work!

Here in America, we are observing that the Job Search, is sadly becoming a national pastime for a growing number of people. So I thought I would attempt to slow my downward movement into what looks to be a perfectly formed spiral shaped toilet, by thinking up other things to do.

That said, it’s very difficult to ever go off topic because contrary to popular belief, being unemployed is not a detail that’s easily forgotten; the reminders that you don’t have an income are readily available everywhere. After a while all your clothes start to look the same, and people in your life walk the line between being your friend to visibly wondering how you can afford new things.

On the plus side, not being employed is a real bonus because you never really have to be anywhere, which, once you can get over the weirdness of it, can be quite convenient. For this period of your life, OK so you are a bit broke but you are legitimately a free person, priceless!

Doing time at the DMV

In the DMV good things come to those who wait, for hours.

Before going in I was warned of the long lines just for waiting. Some said to expect waiting times of a couple of hours or more, but inside I was unconvinced. I was so sure that a functioning government organisation wouldn’t allow waiting times like that, what about customer service? Because if it really took that long people would complain, people would have to take a day off work to tax their car, who would go? I told myself that people exaggerate over everything and this is no different.

Turns out the American people are insane over their cars, and will do a lot of waiting to drive.

It’s hard to believe I could have watched the entire Matrix trilogy, I could have driven across the Arizona desert or flown coast to coast in the time I was waiting. I could have done lots of things.

I couldn’t figure out the dysfunction or the delay. How there could be approximately fifty tellers occupied and still about a thousand people waiting in a line that wrapped around the building. Remember this is repeated every day.

As you are waiting for your ticket to be called you are reminded you had an option to book a meeting online, which would have meant no waiting time. What they don’t tell you is that you have to wait at least 6 weeks for one of those appointments.

Another bit of useless info on offer is the current waiting time at the neighbouring DMV office in case you wanted to compare.

But when your number is called, there are no words, you feel like a million bucks.