A 'lil HooHaa

Messing with the blogging world since 2005

job

Busy, busy, busy!

I don’t talk much about work on the blog because, well, mixing personal and business isn’t something I usually do.

But sometimes, it’s nice just to kind of spout a little.

Now, don’t get me wrong I like my job. I like that it keeps me busy. But wow … this time of year!

Working in two school districts provides a challenge enough in regard to scheduling and trying to get to things. But when December comes around, it can be hard. You shift a schedule to do one thing, move other things around, and then end up missing something anyway.

It’s part of the job, I imagine.

I have a list I’ve been working on … and hoping to finish before the holiday break. Despite being a 12-month employee, I’ve decided to take the week between Christmas and New Year’s off to have a nice little break. Before then … so much to do.

So much.

I put a dent into things today and felt pretty happy about it. Then a few more things arrived. And all I could think was … really? Will it stop?

Probably not.

In the end, when I finish everything up and have things scheduled for break and things continue to keep pushing out, it will be a nice thing.

Until then… pardon me if I pull a little hair out here and there.

Most of these things are quite fun, which is nice. It allows me capture a lot of moments that aren’t otherwise seen.

I also seem to sleep better at night, which is good.

So here’s to the weather not playing anymore havoc so I can continue to get everything done and finished before the break starts … and then I can take a deep breath.

How about you? Is this time of year crazy and hectic as well?

Feel free to leave a comment, or e-mail P.J. at hoohaablog@gmail.com. Also, please “Like” A ‘lil HooHaa on Facebook! You can also follow me on Twitter @softball29!

Capturing memories with a click or two

It’s said a photo is worth 1,000 words.

Sometimes, I wonder if it’s more.

In this day and age of social media and technology and with so many mediums for communication taking back seats to something newer and better, I am often reminded how important and timeless a photograph is.

One photo can be a memory for years and years.

Sure, videos are great things. So are other ways of seeing the past. But a photo – it captures a moment in time that somebody can be whisked off to with one glance at the image.

I was reminded this at work Thursday.

Part of my job as a communications specialist is taking photos. I do video as well. I also design publications, write stories/releases, deal with media when necessary etc. But the best part of my job, without a doubt, is the photography.

This morning was the first day of school in the one district where I work and I was at the elementary school bright and early capturing kids as they arrived, along with parents sending them off etc.

As I went through the photos, processing them and looking at each one, I’m reminded how important a photograph can be in showing a story.

I love photography. Over the years, I’ve done it at different levels, be it personal or a wedding, or newspaper, or something else. I love snapping a photo and knowing I’ve captured something in time. I’ve done my best in the past few years to try and capture my family as much as possible, too, as I believe it’s extremely important.

Still, there are times when I think people tend to forget about how important photography is, be it digital or film. Any photo — be it a silly selfie or a cute candid, or something else — holds many memories. The photos can trigger so much.

Photography, when done right, is something more than an image. And while I agree that phones, point-and-shoots and things like that are amazing these days as compared to when it first started, there is still something more when it involves somebody who has taken the time to learn a craft. I’m not saying I’m the best by any means, but I always try and find something special when I am shooting.

That’s something that makes me truly love my job for the most part. It’s not all cake and candy by any stretch, but for the most part, I get to capture some fun things and help these kids and their families create memories they can always look back on.

Don’t underestimate a photo … and I say that without putting a photo with this post. Go figure!

Feel free to leave a comment, or e-mail P.J. at hoohaablog@gmail.com. Also, please “Like” A ‘lil HooHaa on Facebook!

Common courtesy seems to be going away these days

(Note: This is the first of likely several posts over the next month or so that were written a while back and saved in drafts (this might be the only one — I haven’t gone through them all yet!) I’m attempting to clean out the folder, so if they seem worthy of publishing, I will do so. If not, they get deleted!)

What is going on in the world of employment?

Realize that employment rates seem to be going up, but it’s not easy to track people who are without work and can no longer collect unemployment benefits. I personally know people who have been out of work for a while and who can’t seem to find a way to get back into the employed world.

Part of the problem, no doubt, is credentials. Another part is outsourcing. Another part is flat-out downsizing.

I truly feel bad for future generations. With computers and cheap labor overseas, there are going to be people without work.

But this post isn’t just about that, rather how things have changed as things are more and more competitive. When a job attracts some 200 applications, things get lost it seems. And what happened to the personal touch? People spend hours on cover letters and getting things right. They at least deserve a form letter, don’t they?

After spending so much times on resumes and/or cover letters, shouldn't people get some sort of a response -- even if it's a form letter?

After spending so much times on resumes and/or cover letters, shouldn’t people get some sort of a response — even if it’s a form letter?

During my 2.5 years of unemployment, I didn’t always get notification that my application was received – even with some electronic ones, which can be set up to automatically give notice. And it was highly rare to hear back from places, even after an interview.

Sometimes, too, you just have to wonder about the whole situation.

When I got out of college – with my master’s degree – I had a lot of experience. Not all that experience was what a daily newspaper would want, and I got that. But it’s not like I had never worked under a daily deadline before.

Anyway, out of college I started to freelance at my local daily. It had always been my goal to not work there, because I wanted to go beyond local. But interviews at other papers didn’t work out. So I started freelancing there. From there, it became part-time. They opened a search for a spot that opened. It was split between two of us who were working … then the other went to another full-time spot at the paper. I had basically been told that one of us would get it… so it seemed like it would be mine, right?

Nope.

A search happened. I interviewed – again. It was offered to somebody else who ended up not taking it. They advertised for it … again. Seriously, a second time. Another offer to somebody else.

I have to be honest – if I had any other viable options, I likely would have taken them.

They waited nearly two weeks for this person – TWO WEEKS! – to give an answer. They never got it. It was offered to me, and I basically had to say yes what they were offering (though, honestly, I should have tried to get more – nobody else was accepting the position at this point. Live and learn).

That gave me the start of the next seven years. I always remembered that, though. And I always pushed myself to get pretty better, in spite of everything. I did things wrong, sure. But I did way more right. And I won some awards and was a pretty model employee.

Until they decided my position was no longer needed, which then started me to eventually land on my feet much better than before.

It also made me remember a few other times I was brought in for interviews and how bizarre things could be, though none are more bizarre than asking about my feelings about dogs. Many of the places I applied to barely acknowledged they received my resume, let alone once they made a decision. That even happened at a few places where I actually had an interview!

I have friends still searching. They are qualified for many of the jobs out there. But they don’t ever know where they stand. The lack of communication is crazy. All they want to know is where they stand in the big scheme of things.

So where did things go so wrong? Why are there no more personal responses? Or even a form letter? Why are people kept in the dark, yet told not to call to follow up? It seems rude to me. And I also understand that with so many applications, it might not be feasible to answer everybody. But a form letter? A form e-mail?

Anything?

Where are we going in the future? Is it going to get worse? Will it get better? Only time will tell. But it can be very scary to think about when looking at the big picture. For those of you — me included — who are employed, be thankful for what you have as it’s a crazy world out there. 

Feel free to leave a comment, or e-mail P.J. at hoohaablog@gmail.com. Also, please “Like” HooHaa Blog on Facebook!

Four years already?

Not that I want to beat a dead horse or anything here but…

Four years ago, at the time I am scheduling this post to go live, I was being given the news that my “position was being cut” at the local daily newspaper.

Seven years, six awards, and rarely a day off meant nothing at that point. Here’s your severance and best of luck.

It was a tough day, that’s for sure.

I’m not here to rehash everything from that day, but it is one that shaped me quite a bit. I went through a long bout (about 2 1/2 years) of unemployment. I questioned a lot of things. But one thing I am quite sure of – I am a better person in the long run. I started to see the good in a lot of things and I became a lot calmer in life.

And in the end, I landed on my feet at a place that appreciates what I do (I think!) and where I feel like my work actually matters. In the newspaper industry, that’s not always true – especially now. The reporters and such usually care about the stories and the readers, but as you go up the line … it’s more about counting those beans, which is why newspapers are on the endangered species list.

Anyway, I feel strongly that I should look back to this day each year. It helps me appreciate where I’ve been, where I’m going, and the road I had to take to get from one to another.

If you are up to reading a little about this saga, here are a few of the highlights from the blog:

In the end, I made out OK. It still doesn’t take away what I went through for all that time and, truthfully, I’m still digging myself out of several holes made during that time. But I’m smiling now. I’m happy. And that part of my life is way behind me in the rear view mirror. And all the while, I smile. Because in he end, I know I am way better off than if I stayed there, and I also know I landed because of me, not because of somebody giving me “a push.”

Happy is key and happy I am, and in no part in thanks to people who made this decision years ago. In the end, I get the final laugh and know I am now in a good place.

Feel free to leave a comment, or e-mail P.J. at hoohaablog [at] gmail.com. Also, please “Like” HooHaa Blog on Facebook!

One year later: Still smiling

One year later, I’m still smiling.

Nov. 14, 2013 was a massively huge day for me. It was a day where a more than two-year nightmare ended for me.

It was a day when my unemployment ended.

I’ve documented my two-plus years on this blog more than once. In fact, this blog was a massive help for me during that span. It gave me a creative outlet and a way to continue to write. But the road was long. I didn’t get interviews, and those where I did get them, I felt like things were already stacked against me.

Heck, I couldn’t even get interviewed at some of the big box chain stores. Imagine that?

Then my current job came along. Everything happened fast. There was the interview and the next day an offer. I accepted, of course. And a few days later, I started.

Just like that.

I consider myself lucky to have gotten into this position. The service I am part of is growing and we actually just hired another person. Hopefully that’s a sign of more and more growth.

As for me, I’ve grown professionally and personally over the last year. I smile more. I truly do feel like I found something that was waiting for me. And I’ve learned. Oh, how I’ve learned.

I work in the communications field, as many of you know. But though I dabbled in some PR, my background has been, for the most part, newspaper journalism. And I was pretty good at it, too. I’m not always a “self-back patter” but I won several awards and had grown so much over a seven-year stay at a daily newspaper.

But the reality is, newspapers are not what they once were. Daily papers get thinner, circulations are shrinking – almost as fast as paychecks – and it’s not a profession that it once was. I still read newspapers because it’s something I always believed in. But the amount of errors on a daily basis in many (typos, headlines wrong, bad information, etc.) makes me cringe. Many newspapers don’t keep up with the times and technology, either, which then makes them “yesterday’s news.”

Times are a changing, that’s for sure.

And, now, I’m on the opposite end. I’m flipped. I’m in the PR/communications side of things. I work with websites and social media and releases on a regular basis. PR is no longer just about feeding a newspaper or radio station a story. It’s about drawing readers and others to your media sites. It’s about showing the story, not necessarily digging for other things.

And I have loved it.

I’ve learned many things over this year, from budgets to educational battles, to working on events and making many contacts in the community or political world. You really run the gamut. All the while, I still believe in working with the traditional news sources and getting them information they need.

This past Friday was the one-year anniversary of being offered (and accepting) the job. I started a year ago tomorrow. I was nervous, excited and everything else in between. Since then, I’ve grown and will continue to grow.

It’s amazing what happens when you land on your feet in a place where you feel you are part of something special. I am excited with the future and what it will bring. I love where I am in life, and the past will never destroy me as it made me realize many things I will use for the rest of my career – and life.

One year ago, things changed – for the better. I’m a better person for it all, too, as I now don’t take things for granted. It can end in a moment and without you ever having a clue it was coming.

Today, take a deep breath wherever you are. Smile. Realize the world could be much worse. Take a moment to look around. Being alive is a gift in itself, so always keep that in mind.

For a couple of the posts I had about my unemployment run and finding a job, finally, follow the links below:

Feel free to leave a comment, or e-mail P.J. at hoohaablog [at] gmail.com. Also, please “Like” HooHaa Blog on Facebook!