Hopelessly banal with a slathering of ennui | johnozed

Like I wrote yesterday, today would have been a better day to be ill. I felt better last night, whatever it was that was putting me under the weather had subsided and left. Today it’s been nothing but a grey day, rain and strong winds. I was able to make it out to the really big supermarket and saved some money in doing so, but mostly it’s been a day spent indoors. Bits of my information still routinely gets sent out in the morning, occasionally a phone call comes back. Very occasionally. I keep getting calls from Geico, trying to set up an interview.

The thing is the interview is in Elmwood Park and I have no way to get out there. Plus I am not interested in the position. A friend of mine pursued it and found that they charge you a fee to take their tests. This friend was offered a similar position with Geico in lower Manhattan and took the test a couple of times, paying for each test as she went along. They call and sound so happy, happy that they have your resume and telling you that you are a good fit for this position.

I have spoken with them a number of times, expressed my lack of interest and my inability to make it out to the former East Paterson via email and still they call, so glad to have gotten me on the phone. I suppose it is a bit flattering but each time I’ve turned them down, only to have them contact me some time later. I know it’s not personal, they’ve merely gotten to the “O” section of their indexes. I am sure they do get a number of responses via their bait and switch methods, only for some it is too late.

Too late once they realize they have signed up for what seems to be a bit dodgy, charging people to take tests so they could work for their insurance company. There are vultures out there, swindlers who try to get as much information about you. I just got a notice that I’ve been picked to be a secret shopper. I give them my bank information and then they ‘transfer funds’ to my account and I am to take the money out and do some spying on various sales clerks and floor workers at least that’s how it is on paper.

“You have been selected for assignment as a “Secretshopper” in your area. You will get $200 has been a Secretshopper and your employment packet will include funds for the shopping. Full job description will be sent to you prior in your assignment. You will have access to training materials after
you register. Payment check/Money order would be in a certain amount which you would be required to cash a your Bank then deduct your salary and have the rest used for evaluation.”

Seems fishy doesn’t it? I mean, I never even applied for such a thing.

I am sure people get taken in through desperation. Who knows? If nothing happens for me I might fall for such a thing as the end of my rope seems closer and closer. I would certainly hope that isn’t the case but desperate people tend to do desperate things, no matter how intelligent they might seem to be. I do have hope that something might happen that I get on my own merits, steering away from scams and con artistry. And once again I have several offers at being a truck driver, though I haven’t been behind the wheel since 1985. That should be fun!

02 – Venus

Another wishy washy day. And it’s a Wednesday and even for me it feels like a Tuesday. The holiday on Monday once again throws everything out of whack. I’ve been out and about, sometimes in the rain today. Not going far, just within Hoboken city limits and not even near the borders. A trip to the really big supermarket not just because it’s cheaper but because the workers at the other supermarket are just a bit on the snotty side of things. I wander around the really big supermarket with a basket singing along to the songs that are played on the store’s PA.

Another bibliothèque visit was in order. They did correct the problem with regards to the DVD return, it was finally taken off my card. As I suspected, the dear old lady who I talked to about it yesterday did not do anything about it. I brought it up again and by the time I got home it was taken care of. And I took out a new DVD, Infamous, the ‘other’ Truman Capote movie, this one starring Toby Jones and Sandra Bullock with Daniel Craig as the Beaver. I’d seen it before and figured why not again?

I also have The Decendants and The Apartment. I watched The Apartment a week or so ago on Turner Classic Movies and I didn’t think Bill had seen it before. It’s a great movie and I am sure he would love it. That’s two things I like to do with Bill, turn him onto new music as well as classic movies. And so far I am doing good. Last night we watched the Democratic National Convention on C-Span. It made so much sense to watch it on C-Span. No advertising. I tried watching the Repugnant Convention last week on PBS and even they had adverts. Adverts for themselves, but still…

Finally there is a blue sky after it being rainy and cloudy all day. Of course since the weather was most uncooperative there was no busking today. Despite that I practiced a bit and I think it went well. No complaints, no blood, just callouses. Oh and Harpy was right, both the new Bob Dylan and the new Cat Power records are very good. I would also add the new Tom Tom Club EP to the list. I heard it first via Chris Frantz posting via East Village Radio the streaming of Downtown Rockers. It’s light, it’s fun and it’s the Tom Tom Club.

I saw online that the National Guard is looking for a Human Resources Specialist and thought about applying for it, but upon further reading of “Job training requires nine weeks of Basic Training, where you’ll learn basic Soldiering skills, and seven to nine weeks of Advanced Individual Training and on-the-job instruction, where you will learn basic typing skills, how to prepare Army correspondence and forms, how to manage personnel records, and computer update and retrieval procedures.” I thought better of it.

I don’t need to learn basic typing skills, at least I don’t think I do. After all, I have posted 2,357 entries so far and I think I have the hang of it. It did seem promising (the job posting that is. This here blog seems promising every so often, but more often than not it seems somewhat needy). While it does occur to me on occasion that it is truly ‘De Profundis’ in the most banal way, I still find it worthwhile to continue on whatever path it may lead.

Bill and I had a talk about it over the weekend, with me bringing up Jimmy Seltzer’s name and the scheme to collaborate on something. But that was earlier this year and since I have not seen dear Jimmy since May, I can only guess that that collaboration has been shelved indefinitely. C’est la vie!

07 – Red Leaves