I could start out by apologizing for not updating my blog for months and promising to be better, but we all know that isn't going to happen, especially with how life is going right now, so let's just skip that song and dance. I'm going to try and give yall the summary of what's been happening in my life. It's turned out to be quite the saga so I know not all of you will want to read it, but if you want to know what's been happening out here in Texas please read on.
Lots has changed in my life the last few months! It's funny to think about what life looked like when we arrived in Texas and how much has changed in less than a year. The last you may have heard I was working as a Therapy Tech at HealthSouth. After working there a few months I decided it wasn't what I wanted. I took the job with the hope it would be good for my future career as a PTA. For numerous reasons I decided I wasn't going to go to PTA school any more and once I decided that my job soon turned into what felt like a waste of time. The atmosphere wasn't always the best, the pay wasn't great, and it wasn't very stimulating at all. Over Christmas break I started thinking about how little I wanted to go back to work and I decided I should look for a new job. The only job that I really, really enjoyed was working at Keen Law with Pops. (Sorry Kip, I liked working with you, but I don't think another chiropractor would be the same.) So I started applying to immigration paralegal jobs. I really only had my year and a half experience and my winning smile to get me one of these jobs. None of my schooling would suggest I was qualified to be a paralegal and Texas is full of Hispanics who speak Spanish better than me so I knew it wasn't going to be easy. I was also feeling kind of foolish for accepting a job I so quickly hated so I was going to be more picky with the places I applied to. I only applied to immigration law firms and made sure the drive was a distance I would honestly be willing to drive every day.
I started applying in January and accepted a job offer on March 23rd. It doesn't seem that long when I write it out like that, but it felt like FOREVER. Every day that I had to get up and go to HealthSouth was torture. Not knowing if or when I would finally find a job I liked made my current one feel worse and worse. Poor Ben had to deal with a few breakdowns during that time, but he's always been very good at comforting me. He helped me feel like I was still worth something after every rejection. Okay there weren't that many rejections, but like I said at the time it FEELS like a lot. Now looking back I'm SO grateful for the rejections I did get. I had some reservations about the other three offices I interviewed at before being offered the position I now have, but I may have been tempted to accept an offer from them just because it had to be better than where I was.
The first office seemed cool enough, but the attorney I would have been the paralegal for did immigration and family law. I really have no interest in family law and wouldn't have enjoyed that part of the job very much. The second office was a bit...strange. Just walking in it didn't really feel like a professional place. I understand maybe your clients have humble lives, but you can still be professional. In that interview I was asked how I felt about foul language and inappropriate joke. They said that's the kind of environment here and we don't want you to be bothered by it. I, admittedly, didn't give a very good standing-up-for-my-standards answer. I just kind of awkwardly said that I was currently working in a place like that soo...yeah. Which is probably why when I had a chance to speak in Spanish I totally choked. Like choked. I've never been so tongue tied in my life. I couldn't get a single sentence out. They said they would contact me for a second interview, but never did. I reached out and they said they would call me soon. They still didn't call and I figured I didn't really want it anyways and let it end there. (Just another example of how unprofessional they were...they legit ghosted on me! A business!) The third interview came at about the same time as the fourth. I went to that interview and it seemed like a nice office. I liked the lady who interviewed me but it turned out she wasn't really supposed to be the one interviewing. So she had me come back for a "second interview" which was really just a redo of the first with the right person. He asked me all the same questions, but he was way ruder about everything. Oh and even though the job was going to be in Fort Worth I had to go to Dallas for the interviews. So I wasn't that happy about having a pointless interview and then having to go back for the real one. The guy was just very snobby and seemed like he felt like he was doing me the BIGGEST favor just by interviewing me. After talking about what I had done at Keen Law and getting through the whole interview he ended it by saying, "So your experience in immigration law isn't really anything right?" I was like umm....I def learned a few more things than your average Joe. And then he just started quizzing me on things which was super annoying. They were things that were so basic every question was like a slap in the face. Like REALLY. OH! And I didn't tell you the best part! I had gone there expecting a legal assistant/paralegal job...well when I get there they told me there receptionist was leaving and they weren't sure if she'd return. Soooo I was going to be the receptionist and if she came back I could move up and if she didn't it would be a while longer before I get to move up. Yeah so that was an AWFUL experience. I came home from that interview and just wanted to stop looking for jobs. I was sick of interviewing. I decided I'd go to this last interview I had scheduled for the next day, but after that I'd put things on hold for a bit. I went to my interview at Nayar and McIntyre and the difference was remarkable! I spoke with the two attorneys first and they were so nice. I felt totally comfortable with them and we were joking and having a good time. Then I met with two of the legal assistants so they could make sure I spoke fluent Spanish because the attorneys don't. They were also very nice and I walked out of there feeling great. Even if I didn't get the job it was just such a positive interview experience it made me feel a lot better. They told me they were interviewing a few more people and I'd probably hear from them next week. The next day I got an email from Maria (one of the attorneys) offering me the job!! I was SO excited. Ben and I jumped around a little bit and drove to Walmart for some celebratory ice cream. On the way over I was face-timing Mel for professional advice. See I skipped the part of the story about my BodyPump Certification....so let's take a quick detour to talk about that.
In November I went to a training to get certified in BodyPump. Then I had to tape myself teaching a class and send it in to them to be officially certified. I won't go into all the stuff I had to go through to make that taping happen, but just know it was a lot. Finally, in February I got the news that I was certified! Just a few weeks after that I was charged for the newest BodyPump release. (They release a new set of exercises every three months and you are basically forced to buy it) Once I saw that I realized I needed to find a job teaching BodyPump fast! The training was already some $300 and every release is $38. Yes, this was more of an investment in my happiness than a money making move, but I couldn't let the debt of my BodyPump training keep piling up. So I frantically searched for job openings. None of the mainstream places were responding to my inquires so I went on the BodyPump instructors facebook page and asked for peeps that teach in my area. I got one lady who said she hires instructors at one gym and knows people who do at other so I could reach out to her if I was interested. Well I jumped on that quick and got hired at a gym about 30 minutes from my house. Not the most convenient location, but I REALLY wanted to start teaching and at that time I was only working part time so I figured I could spare a few minutes to drive to the gym. So I committed to start teaching a BP class on Wednesday nights at 5:30.
Fast forward back to the car ride. I almost immediately started chatting with Mel about how to approach the job offer because I REALLY wanted it, but I would have to leave like an hour early on Wednesdays to get to the BP class. She convinced me it wasn't outlandish to make that request and drafted a letter for me. (She also tried to weasel in a request for a higher wage, but I told her I didn't want to push it.) Those next few hours were very nerve wracking. I was cautiously excited, I had no clue what I was going to do if they denied the request. Finally I heard back that they were fine with me taking a shorter lunch a few days a week to allow me to leave early on Wednesday. HALLELUJAH!!!
Looking back and as I write this blog I can see this was the job that was waiting for me. It works so perfectly. The gym I teach at is on the way home so it's now a convenient location instead of super far from my house. The drive is a little long, it's about an hour commute with the traffic, but I've started renting audio books from the library so I really don't mind it. By the end of my time at this office I'm going to be SUPER well read. I really like the ladies I work with. I especially love that this job is challenging and requires me to think and learn. It was a bit overwhelming at first, the attorneys give A LOT more responsibilities to the legal assistants than at Keen Law, but it's getting more manageable now. The second week of working here I was also learning a new BP routine...I thought my mind was going to explode because of how many things I was trying to make it memorize.
So yeah, life is a lot busier nowadays, but it's great. I leave around 7:20 and get home around 6:45 each day. If Ben wasn't in school and even busier than me it might be a little bit of a downer that I'm gone so long, but how things are now it's been really good for me to have a job that requires more of me. It's definitely a higher stress job, but I enjoy being challenged. Of course the best part of my day is still coming home and giving Ben a hug and a kiss, but it's real nice to have a job I enjoy. Yep, life is great! Now if I could only get the Bishop to release me from my new calling as choir director....things would REALLY be looking up. ;)
Oh and I forgot to mention...that third job I interviewed at. I got a call from them the day after I accepted the N & M job. They wanted me to come in for a third interview, and they wanted me to come that second! I was SOOO happy to be able to tell them that unfortunately I had already accepted a job offer. :)
