work

lady computer analyst 

well, i just got through my 2nd week of unemployment.  i like being home with the dogs, having time to make dinner and pack the husband a lunch.  i'm slowly getting back to the gym as i recover from surgery.

i had an interview last week.  it was... a boring office and a job i'm a bit overqualified for.  not to sound like a jerk.  they made me an offer that's a bit of a pay cut.  so i followed my instincts and said "no thank you."

i know in my heart that this is the right decision, and my awesome husband backs me up 100%, but there's a part of me that feels guilty for turning down a job.  i'm not comfortable in being unemployed.

today in the mail i got that annual letter from social security, where they list your annual earnings and how much you can expect to get each month in benefits when you retire.  i never pay much attention to this, but today i did.

it showed that i've been working since i was 15 (in 1985) and i've earned an income every year since.  it doesn't show that i had a paper route when i was 9 until i was 13.  and that at age 14 i started working in a pizza shop on weekends.

so yeah, i'm an independent girl who likes to make money.  and i love my career as a QA analyst.  i totally stumbled into this job back in 2000, but i get geeked out excited about it.  i love figuring out new software programs, websites, mobile apps, and finding the flaws.  i love working with developers on fixing those bugs and making things work.  it's brought me a lot of joy.

loving what you do, having a "career" that makes you happy, this is a rare and wonderful thing.  being able to work as a QA analyst for 12 years has been a blast.  i've worked on multi-million dollar systems and tiny mobile apps that only 50 people use.  i've had my own fancy cubicle, and i've sat in broom closets.  and i've pretty much loved it all.

and when i haven't, i've moved on.  in 12 years i've worked at 6 companies.  and now i'm looking for #7.  i'm taking my time, and trying to relax, trying to be patient.