Friday, December 30, 2011

Ready for the new job

It occurred to me the other day that I don't really have an attire suitable for the corporate world, lulled as I have been for the last six years into a sartorial sinkhole of jeans and sneakers.

Actually, I lie. It didn't occur to me. And it probably would not have occured to me at all. It was pointed out to me by a gently chiding Delta: "I want to point out, that you don't really have clothes to wear in your new job."
I blinked in panic. Holy crap, he was right.
I ran over to the closet and looked at my sweaters. Yup. Confirmed. Only two that were acceptable to wear anywhere outside of an IT firm.

As $ signs skimmed in a blur of motion past the glazed panes of my eyes, I tried to do a quick mental calc on what I'd need to buy before starting my new job. New sweaters. At least a couple pairs of trousers. Socks that were not in all the bright shades of the rainbow. Shoes. Blacks, browns, colours, boots, pumps, flats. A lot of shoes.

If you must do an extreme makeover of your wardrobe, there's no better time to do it than during the post-Christmas sales. Although be warned: If you do take advantage of those post-christmas sales, be prepared for a wardrobe bejewelled in red spangles. As I learnt.

Which brings me to where I am today. A few new sweaters ("at least have enough clothes for two weeks," Doobie had urged, and Doobie is my Official Advisor on All Things Corporate), a couple new trousers, several new pairs of shoes, a book about project management and a book about M&A.

Bring on the new year!

Saturday, December 24, 2011

The turn of the year

I'm ready for a few changes in my life. And what better time to usher them in than at the turn of the year.

Early in the new year, I start my new job.

Yes. After more than 6 years at my beloved Avanade, I'm ready to forge a new beginning. Avanade's been home to me since I moved to New York. It's been the place I grew up, and graduallly metamorphosed from general HR comic relief to professional(ish) HR bod. It's been years of good friendships and technicolour memories.

But now, at long last, like a baby turtle plunging into the ocean and hoping it can swim, it's time for me to see if I can survive in the world beyond this little tidal pool of Avanade.

The change has, of course, caused me no small amount of consternation. I'm not the most adept at change (as evidenced from Delta and my 'Friay night is Sushi night' - always the same restaurant, always the same sushi). For instance, in my new job, I'll no longer be able to just roll out of bed and turn on my laptop still in my pyjamas. To think I'll actually have to do something as revolutionary as getting dressed and turning up at an office everyday. Imagine! The horror. My life to date has ill-prepared me for such kind of extreme early-morning activity. But all the same. It was inevitable that I had to try something new at some point, and all of a sudden, that point is upon me.

But that new job is still a few weeks out, like a distant light at the end of a long tunnel. And  you know what it's like in this crazy world of Family McDelta; a few weeks can be an eternity. Before I even get to that new job, I still have more pressing and dear events to look forward to: an evening at the comedy club tonight, trying desperately to blend in with the furniture and avoid the comic's beady eye; a Christmas brunch with Dr G, her hubby and their little peanut; a New Years party (at ours, as always, because we're too scared to leave the building on New Years and face the inebriated youths outside) and most importantly - a week of camping and hiking out in Kauai. Kauai! Adventure abounds.

The clock ticks on. A year draws to it's end, and a new one grabs the baton and plunges onwards. Needless to say, regardless of the passive role I continually strive to play in my life, the story continues to unfold around me, sweeping me with it. And just as I did on the rollercoasters as a young whippersnapper, I don a brave smile and hang on for the ride.