Jobs!

Well, I guess it's about time we talked about our job situation here in Calgary.  After 2 1/2 weeks getting our house and vehicle sorted along with the other paperwork exercises we've had to do, we decided we'd better try and find some work as the pot of money was rapidly emptying and our parents nails were getting shorter every day!

My first thought was to get a job at a local Golf Course on the Green staff for the summer and hope to find some work in my trade as an Instrument/Electrical Technician as and when things pick up in Calgary.  However, all the local golf courses I visited were fully staffed and already had a number of Resume's sitting in the draw due to people taking any job they can this year to bring some money in as a result of the recession, which left me slightly stranded.  I took to Craigslist, Monster Jobs, Kijiji and Workopolis online to see what else was available and also contacted the Calgary Stampede to enquire about some work during 'The Greatest Outdoor Show on Earth'.  Stampede was also booked up, but I found a couple of things on Craigslist that appealed, one being a Lighting and Sign Service Technician with a company called Chris's Signs who were expanding into Alberta from BC.  I sent them a cover letter and my Resume on Tuesday morning 2 weeks ago and got a phone call from the owner, Chris about 2 hours later to discuss the job.  They were traveling back from the states after picking up a new vehicle with a 45ft lift on ready for Alberta and after another couple of calls over the following couple of days, I eventually met up with Chris and his business partner John last night for a meal and an informal interview at the Red Lobster opposite Chinook Mall in Calgary, which went very well.  I spent today out on the truck with them and did a bit of work at one of their customers, Futureshop before they offered me the job!!  Looks like I start my training next week so all's good.  There is still work about here, but it's a little harder to come by than it has been in the past I guess, however I'm hoping that the opportunity I have with Chris and John should be good with some good prospects for the future as they have a lot of work to get through!

Now Sophie.  When we started the emigration process about 12 months ago, we believed Sophie would walk straight into a position here as an Operating Room Nurse, but Oh, how things have changed!  Anyway, Sophie managed to get two interviews set up for Tuesday last week, 1 at a private Diet and Health Clinic and 1 at the Foothills Medical Centre in the OR department.  She flew through the interview in the morning at the clinic and was offered the job there and then, but had to hold them off for a short time as she really wanted the job at the Foothills where she was heading that afternoon for a hands-on type interview in an OR environment.  The Foothills interview also went really well, but she didn't know for 2 days what the outcome was, so phoned her contact to see how she had got on.  Of course, she was also offered the job there to start work on June 22nd, which although it's on a casual basis to begin with, it puts Sophie in exactly the right position to apply for a full-time post when they become available as the economy strengthens (Oil prices are on there way up!).  So, all in all, the job hunting process hasn't been too bad for us, compared to some of the horror stories we'd heard, but there are still a lot of jobs advertised around Calgary at places like Ikea, Safeway, Timmies, Walmart, Home Depot etc etc etc, so it's not all doom and gloom!

Now all we've got to do is prove our worth and get into some sort of routine and try and forget about the exchange rate as we'll now be earning Canadian Dollars!!

Happy Days!