Day 351
What a difference a day makes. Yesterday it was 51 degrees … right now we are at 12 going down to -1 by sometime tomorrow.
And what a difference a mere 34 years makes!
Tonight I did something that I haven’t done since 1979 … put together my resumé. Seriously. I put together my last resumé using a typewriter … back in the days of typing not keyboarding. Back in the days of carbon paper. Before white out and correcting typewriters and those amazing IBM Selectric II’s! Back in the days of the dinosaurs … or so it now seems.
I have to say it was a challenge because I can’t remember what I did all those years ago (let alone what I ate for breakfast today – if I ate breakfast today) or what I did last week or last year!
So, what did I do?
Professional experience … I was a secretary/receptionist (now it might be called an Administrative Assistant) and geological technician for an oil and gas company. I used to think, back then, that if I was of Native American descent my given name could have been – One Who Colors Maps … because, basically, that is what a geotech did at that time. That and take well reports – none of which I understood! I did that and a myriad of other odd jobs in the company until they folded 5 years later.
After that I put on make-up … mine and that of thousands of other women! I was a consultant and sales director for Mary Kay Cosmetics. The highlights of my 21 year career were earning a car, helping women achieve their goals, being asked to be a speaker at the regional conference (for 9 states), and sitting in Mary Kay’s bathtub (I have a picture to prove it)! The records I broke and accolades and awards were nice but not highlights.
At the turn of the century (which still sounds weird to me) I started subbing in our local school district. I was known as the “Fun Sub” and subbed primarily in the gifted and talented program and for the Dean of Students. I did that for 13 years until I moved from Colorado. I have also tutored for the past 3 years.
Seven years ago I assumed the CEO role in my current business … which means I am the designer, coordinator, marketer, advertising specialist, creative director, sales person, editor, customer service rep, computer technician, shipping manager, accountant, secretary and chief executive officer of the company. I ran a quarter of a million dollar business that first year on 4 hours of uneasy sleep each night … not knowing much about the business. I can surmise I did okay as I’m still at it 7 years later.
The resumé included my university credentials and my contact information and some characteristic traits that are my strong suits … highly efficient, excellent sales skills, supremely organized, ethical, genuine, reliable, reliant, responsible …
What it didn’t cover were life experiences which, in my opinion, should be accounted for. No mention of a 27 year relationship with a wonderful man. No mention of that loving and faithful and happy marriage. No mention of the heartbreak when it ended. No mention of the book I authored or of this blog I’m writing. No mention of the many parties, holiday dinners or gatherings I hosted. No mention of the offices I held at all the schools. No mention of the endless committees and boards I was on or chaired or of the thousands of volunteer hours I gave.
There was also no mention of the thousands of miles driven to sporting events, lessons, friends’ houses, long-distance travels and grocery store runs. No mention of the scrapbooks and photo albums I put together. No mention of the house redo that took 11 months or the animals cared for or a count for the times I used the vacuum cleaner or the number of allium in my front flower bed (110 last year).
And no mention of the BEST job I’ve ever had … that of being a mom. Nowhere on that sheet of paper did it say what my best feat was … that of raising two incredible human beings. Nowhere on there did it ask if I could wipe away tears of frustration or anger or pain with a kiss. Nowhere did it mention that my fridge was always adorned with art from little people with tiny hands and big imaginations or that our home was always full of laughter and crafts, pets and parties and friends. Not once was it mentioned, because of and for them, that I could juggle volunteering at 2 schools, writing newsletters, counting girl scout cookies, coaching a soccer team, sewing Halloween costumes, planning a flower sale and a talent show, doing laundry, making dinner, painting the bathroom and washing a dog, simultaneously, all while being half dead with the flu. And nowhere did it mention my immeasurable pride and remarkable joy for these two humans who I have been blessed to share my love with and who gave me the time of my life.
Too bad … cuz all the rest of the information on that resumé pales in comparison as that’s the most fun I’ve ever had and the best I’ve ever done.