In preparation of our planned escape from Bako, in recent months I'd ramped up the job search. I've sent out scores of resumés, applied online to even more job listings. I even went to the trouble of having promotional postcards made with some of my best work and my website address - I figured everyone has gotten so savvy about dodging phone calls and email that perhaps an old school mailing might make an impression. And I also designed a slick e-mail promotion to send to people I've worked with over the last couple of years, people who hadn't yet blocked my email address.
The good news is, last week I received a job offer!
The bad news is... it's in Bako.
Bloody hell.
Now what?
Normally I'd just dismiss is with a polite "Thanks, but no."
But these are far from normal times. Most of the postcards I sent out probably went straight into the trash since the people they were addressed to are no longer there - I found out after I'd mailed them there had just been another round of massive layoffs in the LA advertising community. Half the agencies I'd worked for recently have gone under. Of my three marginally steady clients in LA, one went under two weeks ago, another is on death's door. I had hoped to see a small spike in traffic to my website, but when I checked the stats for June they'd actually gone down, the lowest number in over a year. In a business built on "connections", all of my "connections" appear to be out of work. I saw last week that one of my former bosses, a man more "connected" than I could ever hope to be, changed his Linked-In status to "Will work for food".
So what to do?
It would appear I have no choice but to accept the job. I have to let them know this afternoon.
I know I should feel grateful, that to be offered a job in this economy, at my age, in a dying business is a much needed lifeline. But I don't.
I feel like a prisoner who's just been denied parole.
It looks like we aren't going anywhere anytime soon.
Time to explore some other options...
(Just kidding - I'd never do that to the dogs or boyfriend. At least not yet. Talk to me in August when it's 116.)
