Work in progress

So options for moving: Nashville. I have never been to Nashville, but it sounds interesting. Apart from tornados, it seems like a nice climate. Basically every country music star who has ever been has at some point lived there. Not that I am a huge country music buff, but I do love live entertainment. My boyfriend got his musical start there- according to him, basically every waitress is an undiscovered Amy Winehouse and every valet driver is the next Tim McGraw. Lots of lower-level temp jobs filled by beautiful, talented people chasing their dreams. This makes me somewhat concerned since I really don’t know what I would be doing there. More or less “dabbling” in entertainment, which is an industry full of professionals who persevere. A large part of the pull is that my godparents recently moved there and might be able to help me find a place to stay or recommend things to do. At this point, I’m thinking a visit might be best, because I really just don’t know what I’m talking about. I’ve heard good things.

In other news, I just had my second annual review this year, which sounds ridiculous. It is the 90 day review following my one-year review. This is not standard procedure for employees, but my bosses deemed that I was not “fired up” enough about working here, so they thought they would give me another 3 months of mindless busy work and see if my attitude improved. Now the 90 days has passed and, while my attitude is probably worse, at least my acting skills are up.

“Fired Up” is probably the most overused term at work, as in “Are you fired up?!” My dad thought I was joking about the enthusiasm my boss has for aircraft parts distribution, but he literally asks me every morning, sometimes multiple times. I’ve learned never to answer this question honestly unless I am actually feeling “fired up.” If you respond with a “maybe” or “I have to get some coffee first” you will be interrogated about your night and why you are not wildly enthusiastic about showing up to do an entry level job in a field you have no interest in.

Usually I just want to tell him that I (like most Americans, I suspect) work because I have to have a job and I would probably be fired up if I had the luxury of sitting in my office plotting my vacation schedule and implementing irritating motivational phrases all day. My sister wants to record a series of “fired up” noises such as “woohoo!” and “yeaaaaaah!” that I can play automatically whenever I am asked.

Fortunately, the second review ended in me getting a raise (to a whopping $30k per year). I suppose I should be thankful that chimpanzees have not yet entered the workforce because they would be qualified to work here and undoubtedly would only demand payment in bananas. Yet another reason to get out of here now!