Pressure

I am feeling it.

Yesterday after the interview, I gave a quick call to my professional references and got reassurances that they're in my corner and would say good things about me. And I have to admit, I have some pretty solid references. I sent off an email to the guy I interviewed with thanking him for the opportunity, and briefly reinforcing a few of the ways that I'd be just what he's looking for, and listing my references for him.

And I was feeling pretty good. Can't be a bad thing to make a strong showing, stand out from the competition, right?

And then the morning came.

Eeeeee.

And with the morning came the mail. And with the mail came a notice from my friends at the Pennsylvania Department of Labor and Industry, just a friendly note to alert me to the fact that my Unemployment Checks are soon to run out.

And I'll be left penniless and abject.

Okay. Not really. More likely I'll get a crappy job with a temp agency. (I'm hoping that there are still temp agencies.)

But I've worked it up in my mind till it's make or break: I get this job or it's ruin.

Not the best way to think about things. Stuff like that'll make you crazy.

And it's not a good strategy. Like men in bars, potential employers can smell desparation, and it doesn't smell like roses.

Be cool. Just be cool.

Like Donald Draper on Mad Men.

Did you see the opening?

Oh man! Tobacco, liquor, moderne interiors, and sharp suits. And those moderne interiors sure make me swoon. Visually, Mad Men totally has me. The writing is a little obvious: just when everything looks hopeless, our boy stands up and says, "Wait! I have an idea!" and Guess What? The day is saved. (Although I eat that up like ice cream.) But there sure were many lines that sparkled. And the characters were compelling.

But the look of the thing. Bee-yoo-ti-ful.

And I wonder if they plan to spring lots of topical references on us to create that verisimilitude? It's set in NYC in the late '50s, and Andy Warhol was busy changing graphic design then. I for one would welcome a Warhol cameo.

And going forward, I'm gonna be channeling some of that '50s cool.

Yeah.

Play it cool.