London or Bust: An Update

Exactly one week ago, I wrote a post describing how I felt the universe was telling me that I need to go to London this summer. In the span of seven short days, the universe has been pulling out the stops, and if I were a more flighty person (who didn't live with her parents), my flight would already be booked.

Here's the complete list of events that have occurred in the past week:

• Two weeks ago, Killian Donnelly and Gareth Gates announced they were leaving Les Misrables at the next cast change on June 18.
• Two days ago, Matt Lucas, Hadley Fraser, and Alfie Boe announced they would be returning to Les Mis at the next cast change (meaning that I'd see some of my actors no matter when I went).
• Two hours ago, my friend Rachel emailed me the itinerary for her family's European vacation, and they will be in London from June 10 to June 18 (reinforcing my belief that I absolutely must see Killian and Gareth).
• Last week I discovered a rumor that David Thaxton would be taking over as Raoul next month during the cast change for Love Never Dies.
• On Monday, the rumor was confirmed in the same press release that announced Ramin Karimloo would be staying on as The Phantom until September (giving me the entire summer to see two former Enjolras' on the same stage).
• Today I was offered a job at Target working as a cashier, which would allow me to pay for a trip to London this summer.

This is fate, right? Hopefully my parents think so and approve of this plan!

London or Bust

Earlier this week I had an epiphany, and I've grown more sure that it's the right decision with each passing day - I absolutely have to travel to England this May, and I'm going to make it happen.

Two of my best friends are going on separate trips to England this summer, but I've been wavering on whether I'll be able to accompany one of them. The biggest obstacle is the fact that I've been unemployed since May and have been slowly spending my savings. The obvious solution is to get a job, and I've been applying for archivist positions for the past few months. As I quickly discovered, though becoming a full-time, salaried employee usually means a six-to-twelve month waiting period for vacation days (meaning that I would have the money but not the time). I've hit a wall on that front, though, since I haven't seen any entry-level job openings since before Christmas.

For the past couple of weeks, I've been content to apply here and there for retail positions while volunteering at the Civil Rights Institute. But when I stopped to think about it, I realized that if I don't travel to England this summer, it will be at least another year before I have my next opportunity. My resolve strengthened when I realized that in mid-June, two of my Les Miserables actors were leaving the show (I'm super obsessed with the London production, don't judge me). Obviously, it's perfectly natural for me to base my decisions on obscure British actors. The museums and castles will still be around in a year, but you never know what an actor's next gig will be.

This morning I filled out five job applications at various stores, and I have another list of stores that require you to fill out a paper application. If I'm going to convince my parents to let me go abroad, I need to at least be able to pay for the trip myself. Fingers crossed that I'll find something soon!

Phase One of My Top-Secret Career Plan

Ever since mid-November (when I defended my thesis), my life has revolved around spending time with my friends, catching up on books and TV shows I missed during graduate school, and filling out applications. As previous posts attest, six days out of the week I'm usually in my bedroom, laptop or book in hand. However, last week I filled out a volunteer application at the Civil Rights Institute here in Birmingham, and on Tuesday I started Phase One of Operation Infiltrate an Archives and Prove Yourself to Be So Invaluable that They Hire You.

I had specified on my application that I wanted to work in archives, but I spent all of Monday worrying that something would go terribly wrong and I end up working in the gift shop. I mean, I seriously love gift shops, but it would be a waste of my talents in the sense that I couldn't put it on my resume. For the first three hours that I was at the Institute on Tuesday, I had this terrible feeling in the pit of my stomach that my fears were coming true and that the Operation was over before it even began. As soon as I got there and introduced myself, the lady in charge of volunteers told me to go on the self-guided tour. No discussion of why I was there or what my options were, but I didn't panic. So far, so good. I finished the tour and tried to find her, but she was on her lunch break. Uh-oh, this was not in the plans. I awkwardly sat there making small talk with some other volunteers, one of whom tried to turn me into a greeter like herself. Thankfully, as soon as the lady returned, I explained my experience and asked if I could work in archives. She said yes, took me downstairs to meet the archivist, and sent me home. On Wednesday, she immediately handed me over to the archivist, who immediately put me to work.

Just as Tuesday can be classified as a disaster, Wednesday can be classified as glorious. I didn't do anything exciting like process a collection, but it just felt so nice just to be in an archives again. It was definitely the sort of turning point I needed to affirm that I want a job as an archivist and that the Operation might be a resounding success.

I successfully made myself useful to the archivist by doing two menial tasks that would have prevented her from giving her full attention to more important ones. Because I was there to photocopy documents for one researcher and scan photographs for another, she could oversee an educational program and edit an oral history interview. Any trained archivist, such as myself, could do the first set of tasks, but the second group were her specific job responsibilities. She was so excited to have me there that she kept introducing me as "the perfect - and fully-trained - volunteer," and if that doesn't boost a girl's ego, I don't know what would!

I'll probably volunteer there twice a week, and best case scenario, she'll convince them to hire and pay me for my time. At the very least, she remembers those painful days of job searching and will keep her ear open for other job opportunities.

Another Missed Job Opportunity

It's been five days since my last post, which would usually indicate that my interest in this blog is already fading. However, I honestly did think about posting each day; I just genuinely had nothing to say! I'm still working my way through the same TV shows and books, so there's nothing new to review or recommend, and yesterday was the first day I'd left the house all week. For the most part, I've spent the week waiting for a phone call from the company I interviewed with last week. Every morning I thought "Maybe today is the day I'll get a real job!" Unfortunately, as I discovered yesterday, they have hired another applicant and I'm back to square one.

I really thought I had a chance at this job (since they flew me to Maryland for the second interview), but I guess the other applicants were even more amazing than me. I wouldn't be surprised if most of them had several more years of experience than me; so many historical organizations (museums, libraries, archives, etc) have had to cut staff that every stack of applications is filled with talent. And it doesn't help that I'm absolutely terrible at interviews. I look great on paper, but in person I get so nervous that I'm a mumbling mess. This one went A LOT better than my first real interview in November, though, so I hope that I'll keep improving with each one. The company also asked three times as many questions as my last interviewer, so I have a better idea of what answers I need to prepare.

I applied for this job waaaay back in mid-December, so the uncertainty of my future has been hanging over my head for the past month and a half. Now that I know their answer, I'm moving onto Plan B. I'm going to start volunteering at two organizations in town (probably the Civil Rights Institute and the county archives) while I simultaneously search for a part-time retail job. I managed to save up quite a bit during my two-year stint as a GRA at West Georgia, but those funds have been slowly dwindling since last summer. Since I still live with my parents, I don't spend a lot of money, and working in retail will give me more than enough to bulk up my savings account again.

With any luck, volunteering at an organization and archiving for free will open up new doors for me. Most places hire from within, so there are very few entry-level positions advertised online. I just know that an employer would be impressed with me if he could see me in action, rather than basing his decision on a resume and a half-hour interview. Even if neither organization has the funds to hire me at some point this year, they'll at least be in touch with other archives in the state, so they may hear about job openings that I would otherwise miss.

As much as I would have loved working and living in Maryland, part of me is very happy to remain in Birmingham. Everyone I know and love is within a three-hour radius, and I'd miss my life here if I had to move far away.