The Awaited, Long Over-due Update of Bryan's Life

Ok ... so I've made a decision.

I still have not heard from all of the places I interviewed at (the one remaining is the private practice in Seattle).  Anyway.  Nevertheless, I have made a decision.  But before I get to that you all need some context.

First, it looks like California is going to be a bust.  Although I got an offer at the autism clinic I am not going to accept it because I have fundamental problems with their ideational philosophy of therapy.  Basically - they believe that by shaping simple behavior with small reinforcers (candy, verbal praise) they can shape complex behavior and ultimately cognition.  I think that the human brain is much more complex and what is really going on is they are shaping the students to be ... well, well-trained.  So, I do not think that I should go there.  Then, the hospital in San Mateo went with another candidate.  And finally, I withdrew my application at the third place (long story - basically they didn't want to hire me because of my stutter [illegal, I know, but if this is how they're going to be I don't want to work for them anyway, so there's no point in pursuing legal action].  There's a lot more to the story, maybe I'll recount it in a later entry).  So - that sums up California.  California = bust.  Which - that's sad because I really liked the weather.

So, in Seattle.  I have an offer at the public school system and I'm waiting to hear from the private practice.  The school system might work - but I'm not excited about that either.  Besides there are lots of hoops to jump through - finger prints, sending transcripts, etc.  And it's not what I really want to be doing anyway. So ... this is the decision I've come to:

I'm moving to Seattle regardless of whether I get the private practice job or not.  If I do not get the job then I will work at a nursing home for a while until something better comes along.  It's not an ideal job, but I'll make more money that I would in the schools and I'll feel better about leaving in the middle of the year if something better comes along.

So I'm sure there are a number of questions.  For instance, why Seattle?  Well - because I absolutely LOVED it out there.  It was amazing.  There was enough to do, the people were friendly, there is city, mountains, water, wilderness all within an hour drive.  Plus - it's just a super cool city.  And if I'm not going to get my ideal job I'd rather be in an ideal place with a less than ideal job than a less than ideal place with a less than ideal job.  

Next - why nursing home over school?  It's not ideal, but it gets me medical speech pathology experience and higher pay.  The road to unhappiness is paved with gold, this I realize.  But if something better comes along mid year I want to feel okay with leaving.  And nursing homes can better afford to contract out.  Plus, I'll be working with a contract company, so they will provide a housing stipend for me.  Along with more continuing education money, a sign-on bonus and moving expenses.

Anyway - I don't have a job yet ... and I will not be moving until I have a job.  So, I need to get cracking.

So, that sums up my life so far.  YAY for Seattle! 

Update ...

So, it is about time I gave an update on the good ol' job search.  

Sadly, it doesn't look like California is working out for me.  I was rejected from one place, terminated my application at another (that is a whole other blog post ... to be relayed later), and got one job offer that I'm not too terribly excited about (they ascribe to a therapy paradigm that I think it absolute crack science).  Then, up in Washington, I have virtually gotten an offer (contingent on references and letters of recommendation ... these should all be fine).  And then I'm waiting to hear from the final place (which coincidentally is the job I like the most ... grrrr ... if patience is a virtue you can keep it).  They will get back to me the end of July. 

Meanwhile, I am sending out more applications.  This time, I think I'm going into a more medical focus ... I'm sending applications to various Veteran's Affairs hospitals (Seattle, Portland, Sacramento, So. Cal., DC).  I do have the opportunity for a phone interview with Cincinnati Children's Hospital - but it's for a satellite campus for psychologically impaired kids - not sure that's exactly what I'm looking for, we'll see.

Anyway, that's my job search life in a infinitesimal nutshell.  Hopefully it suffices for now.

Dilemma

So, I've got this dilemma.  I've been over hearing this group of English teachers discuss their coursework for the coming year ... this is not the interesting or dilemmatic aspect.  The dilemma resides here: one of the teachers stutters (very mildly, his colleagues might not even notice, but it's there ... short blocks, repetitions, prolongations, interjections and avoidance of words).  So, I'm wondering, do I go introduce myself and ask about his experiences stuttering?  Or would that freak a guy out?

We'll see.