Not a lot exciting going on right now. Kyla and the girls have completely settled in to job and school. I…am starting to settle.

As I mentioned in my last post, I’ve taken a temp position at Hemmersbach, a global IT company. Basically we fulfill the on site tech support and repairs for a couple of large computer manufacturers (who must remain nameless). My job right now is to call the day before an engineer will visit and confirm the appointment. It’s either mindless and boring, or you’re getting griped at by people.

I’ll be more honest here than I have been so far: I had a harder time finding a job than I thought I would. I like to pretend it’s because I’m overqualified, but I think it has more to do with the fact that nobody really knows what to do with me. I knew that the UK wasn’t nearly as religious as the US, but I’m shocked by the number of people who don’t know what a pastor/minister/vicar is. Even those that do don’t have the slightest idea what the job entails. My current position is entry-level and could be done by anyone with a high school education that can be friendly on the phone. Three other temps were hired at the same time, and they were just sent straight from the agency without interview. I had to go have a meeting with the head of administration. He flat-out said that they didn’t understand my resume and needed to make sure I could hold a conversation.

I admit that I’ve been more than a little depressed and discouraged. That’s starting to get better. After the first week, they offered me a permanent position as a dispatcher, but I had to turn it down. The hours I would have to work were impossible for our childcare restrictions. Plus, it was actually for less pay than I’m getting as a temp and involved a LOT more stress and responsibility. It would have given me some job security, but my temp position will still be needed for quite a while, so I just had to pass.

However, since then I’ve had two different team leaders and managers unofficially approach me asking if I’d be interested in working for them. Both said the positions would fit into my existing work hours. So, while I can’t say yet whether I’m happy at the company, I certainly feel welcomed and wanted.

I’ve also made an appointment with the synod chair of the United Reformed Church in our area. I don’t know what the process will look like, how long it will take, or if there will be any ministry positions in the area when I’m done, but at least I’ll be beginning the process. I don’t know if Hemmersbach will “replace” ministry for me, but at least I’ll know that it’s my decision and not that I’m “defaulting” into one because I failed at the other.

The only other news in the area was the snow we got last weekend. It was about 4-6 inches, depending on where you were, but even that shuts this town down. Not exaggerating. Traffic was backed up for hours getting out of the business parks and on the ring road around the city. Eventually people were just abandoning their cars on the side of the road and walking home. Hundreds of cars around the city. It was like something out of a disaster movie.  I was fortunate enough that I got off early and got home before it got too bad. Kyla and the girls were out shopping when the buses were cancelled. Fortunately, it wasn’t a long walk home. Molly wanted to play in it, so here’s a couple of pics taken in our back garden.

Hope everything is going well at home. I’ll update again soon….ish.