Don't Count Your Chickens before they hatch

I'm going to switch gears alittle this week and talk about being unemployed and I hope by the time you've finished reading this you'll see how unemployment and working as a cashier are sort of related for me. So each blog this week will discuss various aspects of being unemployed--job interviews, looking for a job and some suggestions for what to do if you have some extra free time. Now you may wonder why I'm writing about what to do when you're unemployed when this blog is about my job as a cashier? As I mentioned before I worked in law firms in the city. Awhile ago I was placed by a staffing agency at a really nice law firm in the city. I knew right from the start that this was a temporary position and so I was always waiting for the other shoe to drop. Then after being there for about 4 months I got the news that the project was ending and I wouldn't need to come back the next week. Even thought I sort of saw it coming I was still disappointed. It was also sort of embarrassing to have to say to people, "Oh, I don't have a job anymore." It's still a tough thing for me to say. Then there were the practical issues I had to consider. First question--was I going to tell the grocery store that I could work either full time or tell them I could now work during the day? Well, I decided against that. Mostly because I wanted to keep my days open for applying for jobs and for job interviews. So after months of applying for jobs and sending out numerous resumes I got a call from a law firm and right from the start I thought it sounded pretty promising. The firm had a really good reputation. It was in a nice area of the city. There were 5 attorneys--which was the Goldilocks Law firm for me (not too big, not to small...just the right size). Then I went into the city for the interview and I went from thinking "oh, this sounds like a pretty good opportunity" to thinking, "Oh my god! I really, really, really want to work here." It started right from the beginning. The office was in a beautiful office building. Then I arrived at the office. Like I mentioned before it was a perfect size law firm with 5 attorneys and 7 support staff (including a receptionist and office manager.) Everyone was friendly and nice but also very professional. The office was clean, bright and spacious. Then the interview started. I met with all of the attorneys at once. I won't bore with the details but I really thought things went really well. I had a lot in common with a few of the attorneys--in fact I had even gone to school with one of the attorneys. The attorneys seemed impressed with my experience. Then the owner of the law firm took a minute to meet with me privately. We discussed a few more things about the law firm and then he asked what salary range I was looking for. I told him the range and he nodded and said that was totally doable. We discussed the benefits the firm offered to full time employees. As the interview wrapped up I shook hands with the owner of the firm and thanked him for taking the time to meet with me. The interview took place right before Christmas and he said, "Normally you would hear back from me in a day or two but with the holidays it might take some more time. I'm actually going out of town for a few days but you'll hear back soon." I thanked him again and went home feeling really good. I was so excited about the prospect of working at this firm. I was so excited that he had said the salary range I gave him was reasonable and doable. I was so excited that I was going to have health benefits, including vision and dental. I was budgeting with my "new salary". I could start to put a little money away and save up for a new car. Then I got to thinking about the grocery store. Would I still continue to work there? Hell, no! I COULD QUIT! No more second job. No more bagging groceries for $8 an hour! So you guys see where this is going, right? I mean after all I'm still working at the grocery store and writing this blog and the title of this blog is Don't Count your Chickens before they hatch. Christmas passed and I still hadn't heard back from him. Everyone kept telling (and I kept telling myself) not to worry until after the New Year. So the week between Christmas and New Years I was waiting on pins and needles. New Years passed and I still hadn't heard back from him. I tried not to panic. I thought maybe he's just catching up on work after getting back from the holidays and any hiring just sort of got put on the back burner. So I sent a courteous follow-up e-mail, just basically thanking him for taking the time to meet with me and expressing my interest in job. And I still never heard anything back. So I was pretty much just left wondering what the hell happened. What had I done wrong? So even though I work at grocery store I consider myself unemployed. So I think (or at least I hope) it's not too off topic to talk about being unemployed. I think it's related to being a cashier because the whole reason I am working part time as a cashier is because I haven't found a full time job yet.