Job References

Recently, I have been job hunting, and finally, after all the hard work, after all the interviews, assessments, etc, I was given an offer at this firm.

Should be happy yea? Of course I am! I was already really excited about this job. This is like the first real job since I've graduated in June. Real job as in full time, in an office, real world job, which there is no end to it. This is like the new next chapter of my life. I feel that I was really fortunate to get it, even though I'm starting low, as an entry level administrator, but yea! This is already pretty good, given the fact I have almost zero office experience ( except for this summer job I did before I went to university), and lots of random retail experiences, which are not really related to the field I'm getting myself into right now.

I was, like everyone else who started, start daydreaming about what the environment is like, how can I do well, where should i go for lunch (there's almost nothing around the office building, it's somewhere uptown, and the closest restaurant I see is like the McDonald's that's 5 minutes walk away ( and I don't wanna eat McD's everyday and I don't have a car and don't want to pay for the ttc until I get a metropass next month). I was worried about what people wear to the work, what's business casual, and spent the whole day in the mall, work clothes shopping, observing what working women wear, etc.

Then today, the day before the start date, the HR called and said she couldn't get to my references and decided to delay my start date! I was pretty lost and stressed, running around trying to look for my references. Apparently I got hold of one, and managed to let them contact each other. That was a lot of phone calls, emails to make it happen. Then I got hold of another one, from the same store I worked in though, and got him to call the HR the next day for me. These 2 are very nice, I can't wait to go treat them when I get my first paycheck.

As for the others, I don't know. The major problem of trying to get these people's reference from the coffee shop I previously worked in, is that most of them are not working there anymore. The manager's off to Japan, the supervisor no longer works there and is out of reach ( her phone is forever off, so I guess she went back to Korea), the coworker I was closest with suicided last year. I don't even know who to use anymore.

Good thing I don't need to use this retail clothing store that I worked with before, because the store closed down, and HR said there's no need to contact them. Or else, there's the same problem. For some reason, the calls go through, but they just REFUSE TO PICK UP! I tried facebook message, I tried text and call. But they NEVER return the call. I asked the manager, when the store was closing, whether I can use her for my reference. She said yes, but now she's not like helping me at all. I'm in touch with the assistant manager there, and he said he's really busy too, working almost everyday, and he never picks up too.

Do people just like ignoring calls, when they see people they haven't been in touch with contact you out of the blue? Why would you do that? Are you suppose to keep in touch with everyone you've worked with previously, so then in the future they can be your references?

Why are professional references necessary? Especially when we're working in such an informal environment, does it matter whether the references are from some of the part time places I've worked rather than some teammates or classmates I've done projects with, etc?

So fustrated! And this is a big problem too, as not only will it affect this job, this is like the hurdle that I'll never make through. You know how it hard it is to get an offer, after all the screening, all the applying, etc. And it's just gonna blow me off because of my referencing problems? Not like I'm trying to hide anything, but it's not my problem that they refuse to pick up ANYTHING.

What should I do?

I'm currently pretty sad right now...

It's either that the professor lost one of my exam papers ( there are 3 questions in the exam which he told us to write in 3 separate booklets), or I was stupid enough to forget to write my name and student number on the paper ( he informed us that there are several annoymous marked papers he've received). I'm sure I didn't miss out the question, because I keep flipping around the books to check my answers. I also stayed till the end, asking people what question they chose from 3 and 4, and how they found the test, so there is no way I can slip any papers home, because the invigillator picked it up from our tables.

This question is worth 30%! And this exam is worth 50% of the final grade.

I did pretty well for now, because I got 62% dispite 30% of my paper was gone. This means I can still graduate, so this is not a life-death situation.

Still!! It's going to make a difference between A and C! If I got 60% on my last question that'll give me an A.

I was so paranoid I started googling all these forums, about other cases of professor losing papers, etc. There were instant, where the professor just failed the students ( calculated their final grade without their final marks), forced to do re-make, graded according to what they've acheived in their midterms.

But this is so rediculous. It's not our fault that they've lost our papers, so why do we get penalize for it.

I've already emailed the prof, (I don't even know where's his office and he told us he changed his office hours) and he just got back with us a big message on the bulletin, which doesn't really answer my question.

My only hope is that one of the annoymous answers belongs to me. I mean they can do a handwriting verification, comparing my writing to my other books ( I tend to write uglier than I usually do during exams, cuz your hand sort of get tired). Right now, I'm pretty scared someone already made a step ahead of me, and claimed my book, because there are currently 6 people in the same situation as me, for question 3 or 4 that was missing in their grade.

So stressed!! But I don't have time to look for the professor tomorrow because I have a clashing time. Will just have to wait till wednesday, to find out what's going to happen. It'll be so unfair if he just leaves it as it is, telling me I'm not in the worst situation and I should piss off.

What should I do?

haha since i started playing restaurant city ( which was like june of this year), I've made a fake account so I can get more items from the people.. and i used a gmail account to do so..

but since i put my email in one of the restaurant city threads on facebook, from then till now (because I don't really use my gmail account often), I've got 10879 friend request!! x.x I don't know how people manage to cope with this, especially when they stopped playing ( hahah the longest you'll spend in this game is like.. 3 weeks?) haha

good thing I used a gmail account instead of the hotmail one that I use most often XD haha

There are many things running in my mind now.. Many worries, many mix feelingss...

Right now it's the summer, and I have no summerschool.. so nothing academically related...

Firstly..

It wasn't until yesterday night that I found out one of the closest coworker at Urbana, Nami, has recently passed away. She suicided, because of some personal issues. She jumped off her own condo building at around the end of april...

We had so much fun when working together.. All the sharing cake, making lattes, sharing stories... She was so friendly, lively and energetic... If only I realize anything.. or if I get to know her even more, maybe we could have resolve those issues.. she may not have ended up like this...

I was wondering wat happened to her when I tried reaching her the day after my last exam ( around the same time she died).. the phone never rang.. It was always her voicemail.. after around couple of attempts, I just thought she doesn't wanna hang out anymore.. that she was saying out of courtesy.. Occasionally I'll peek into Urbana when I walk pass to see if she's around...

Then yesterday.. I took a peek at her facebook to see how she's doing... then i saw all these RIP messages plastered over her facebook.. it wasn't until I called up one of our mutual friends to find out what happened...\

She lived so close too... I can just run there in two seconds and maybe stop her in time...

Secondly...

I'm working at this retail store called Buffalo now. Because the keyholder is heading back to France ( he only came to canada for a year to learn English), this spot is currently open, and the managers are looking for someone to fill this position back urgently...

I wanted to try going for this keyholder position, because I believe I am ready for it. I want to do more than just being a sales associate.. It's not like something difficult anyways.. just additional responsibilities.. like ability to take shifts for the managers, when they're not around, you just have to do what they usually do....

I think the best way to get that position is to confide the district manager about it. I heard Aurelien asked for that position too and she gave it to him. But do I have the guts? I need to get myself prepared first, to ask her the next time I see her... Am I going to blush like mad? What if she says no? Well there isn't anything to lose when I ask her.. worst come the worst, I'll just stay being a sales associate... I have tomorrow to build my confidence, because I'm going to be working  the day after....

Thirdly...

Johnny parents are going to be here tomorrow. It's not like it's a bad thing, but I do get nervous around them. Probably because I only see them once a year. I'm usually pretty quiet in front of people I don't really know (except when I'm working which I have to open up and be approachable).. I should learn to be confident.. I should learn from Johnny's brother, Jimmy,  because he seems like a pretty competitively aggressive and confident person...

Also Johnny told me his parents, or just his mom is going to live at our place for a few days. Jigga is going back to hk soon after his graduation ceremony and his room will be perfect...

The thing is they'll see me.. in my ungroomed, lazy way.. The way I usually act like at home ( like that Hotaru no Hikari drama) I should try to go work as much as possible, so I don't stick around at home too much.. hahha. sometimes I think like lsat year, I stick to their family too much.. eating too much with them.. haha give them the impression that I'm always stuck to Johnny.. I should give their family some space.. but it's hard when I live under the same roof.. 

It feels soo wierd, to sleep on the same bed with their son in another room.. Feels like I'm very (chui peen) open girl, that always sleepover at boyfriend's place (even though we ARE living together now)... You know in Hong Kong this never happens.. I never stayed over at boyfriend's place before.. my parents never lets me.. their parents think I should go home when it's late.. I think its just canada, the fact we're away from home.. 

Just some random thoughts... haha

and now since I'm 21... yayy!! I'm legal in America!! I really want to go to Vegas.. not for gambling tho ( I'm a pretty risk adverse person).. haha but just to see the showss.. the cheap good fooddd.. the cheaper hotels.. ahha

soo happy my mom said when I graduate, our family may go on a 1 month vacation around America or something.. ahha wherever.. I want to go on a vacation!!!!

I want to go to New York again.. it was too short during xmas.. haha we only stayed there for 3 hours. cuz I wanted to go to Woodbury outlet.. turn out that I regret going to the outlet rather than staying in NYC for the rest of the day.. x.x

I also want to go to Cuba.. It's soo cheap too.. Kiara told me it was 750 for 8 days.. everything inclusive.. hotels, plane ticket and food at the resort! But don't think this is the right time.. cuz of swine flu, cuz johnny needs find work, and if I make it to keyholder this is not the right time to go away on a trip...

I"ve finally have the initiative to get my passport sorted after so many monthss...

After filling so many work forms, from Guess, from Club Monacco, from Armani Exchange, from Levis.... haha filling out a passport form is like nothingg ( you dont have to write about.. whyy you're interested in getting a passport, what you can brign to the passport society.. like the way you have to bull shit about those questions they have on application forms.. haha)

haha yayy!! It's like I've grown wings on my back or something.. hahaah  I'm soo going to head down to New York this winter.. haha no matter whatt (although the canadian currency have dropped soo much)..  arggggg

or maybe i can go to Japann... i really wanan go to japann.. gotta save up now. since Urbana hired me.. ahah needa work hard selling those cash cards and smiling hard to get tipss.. if i save up to 2000 then wakakaka i'll go for sure.. and I can go back to Hong Kong on the way.. WAKAKAK.. i dunno.. do you need a visa to get there? Argg Toby's picturess are killing mee.. all the foodd.. haha

aittee.. better stop thinkingg.. needa get back to my philosophy paper...

and next step after the passport.. get my G1 license.. haha