online census questionnaire

I completed the online questionnaire from the census bureau. I knew I had seen some mailings stating they wanted a response by April 1, and that is coming up. it didn't take long to complete it and I got a long confirmation number. there weren't many questions to answer. I had just completed a survey from the census bureau back in December. I even accepted an offer on working as an 'enumerator' but that is on hold due to the virus. I completed this online form as I wanted to avoid any visits that were not necessary. I don't get many visitors to my home and I am fine with this.
   in the morning I had a phone screen, it was kind of brief. it was for a call center job for a health insurance company. hard to say if I will hear more, but they told me the next interview would be a virtual one. I spent much of the day filing applications with two different banks. I was asked to do an assessment for the call center job, and it was odd that they claimed I 'flunked' it even though I have done call center work before. I also sent follow-up emails to places where I had already interviewed or filed applications. I got a response to both, but not the one I wanted to hear. I also heard from the agency rep in the Carolinas for the first time in nearly a week. I said I was getting calls with no caller ID on them and not answering them, can't be too careful. sounds like he was the one calling. I was getting no voicemail from them either. I responded to his email and text messages. I was told that the ssn is needed to get submitted, I am not big on giving it out. so I did some checking on my end with the agency, two different offices. one local, the other where he is. the local one was aware of who I was working with and directed me there. I left a voicemail with the other one and got a response while I was out doing a long walk late in the afternoon. I picked up 4 cents. I also took a few pictures along the way, such as all of the junk at a bus stop where I found one of the pennies. I was still doing one thing today that I have done fairly often lately- laying down and sleeping when I don't know what else to do while waiting for the phone to ring. when I did this in the afternoon my phone kept having activity so it was harder to rest then.

job application assessments

I filed plenty more job applications on indeed this afternoon, about 30 I think. with some of them it led to doing assessments. I like it when it is one I have already done, and I can press the button saying 'send previous results'. I had about three of them, and one was math functions on a spreadsheet. I was guessing a lot on that one. with others I could figure it out, just give myself enough time. such as ones where it says 'what is the next number?' I have said that looking for jobs should be more like what a stage performer does, having to audition, show off your abilities. so I don't mind doing these, although it still can be tedious at times. I also heard from an advisor, who was doing a check-in as promised once a month. I had to do a recap of the past month, which wasn't flattering at all. I also got an email from an agency asking about submitting my resume for a role, and I was fine with it. but I know well enough to avoid getting my hopes up, as what would happen is this would happen, oh, countless times and then a month or two later, still no word on if the client was interested. I am most impressed by results.
   I did get out an about today. I went to a Walgreen after checking online what locations would most likely have toilet paper. it was one I hadn't been to much before. I arrived and there wasn't any. I did get a 3-pack of bar soap, something I was still in need of. there was postings about social distancing guidelines, in this case there was markings on the floor saying 'stand here in line'. I got a photo of it, and thankful nobody said anything as a cashier saw me do it. I then walked around the area a little before going back to my car. it was near a karaoke venue. not many people out there. this was before midday. then late in the afternoon I went out for a long walk. I picked up some coins, a total value that was slightly less than the previous day. 21 cents today, 36 cents sunday. I went on basically the same route. it all goes into the change bank. I passed by a bank. it said the lobby was closed, and drive-up was available. so using the change counter is likely not possible for a while. not a big deal. my cousin shared an article on facebook with a photo above it being from the movie 'breakfast club'. it was about generations, and some of what was in there was relatable. this included mention of 'latch key kids'.

history of soap

during the late local news, there was a segment about the history of soap, relevant due to the virus. I liked seeing what was in it of course, being a history major. seeing mention of serials being called 'soap operas' since soap companies usually sponsored them, along with seeing ivory soap, made by procter and gamble. then there was granny making soap on 'Beverly hillbillies' and the brad pitt character also making soap in the movie 'fight club'.
   I found some things to do, but it was still a slow day. in the morning I made finds on two different sites for postcards of interest to me. one of them was a bid-on, but I was the only bidder and it is already paid for. it is another one of famous people meeting presidents, on e-bay. the other was from a site I don't use as much, checked history and it was the first order in six months. it is charlie brown cards, but I am still waiting for the invoice on that one. I checked the weather report online and waited to go out for a walk due to expecting rain. so I laid down for a while and slept. when I got up it was late afternoon and I went out for the walk. I found some coins along the way. another notable thing was seeing somebody when passing by a closed fast food outlet, I think he was taking pictures. I said 'this is sad, it has been vacant for nearly two years'. I turned on my phone as my walk was starting as it is my 'de facto' wristwatch. I noticed there was a voicemail waiting, my dad called me just before midday. so I called in the evening. this time it was under an hour, he said he needed to pick up a neighbor. he asked me how I was doing during this time of the virus. sounds like it is not much different in small-town Iowa, where most places are closed except for grocery stores, gas stations, and pharmacies. he likes his liquor and he said liquor stores are open there as well.
   after the walk, I tried going to the dollar store to see if there was any toilet paper, and there still isn't. the other item of interest was bar soap, but I had just over a dollar in change and the two-packs were sold out. I didn't want to put such a small amount on a debit card so I left. I heard somebody in another aisle, possibly an employee, talk about the virus and it was annoying as I don't need to hear everyone's opinion about it. this is why I am thankful I am getting out for walks, still being active. also why I can't watch the news all day, too depressing. 'the simpsons' was about a corrupt rehab facility, and I watched a later program on FOX since there was an ad during this show. it was a benefit concert, hosted by Elton john, and including performances from the front-men for foo fighters and green day. it was sponsored by I-heart radio. I didn't know all of the performers but it was a good lineup from different genres.

one percent milk

I usually get skim milk when I got to the grocery store for my weekly order, but for the second straight week it was not available. so it meant getting one percent milk instead. it still tastes fine to me. the order was smaller than last week, just 13 items, and the amount paid was smaller as well. in many ways it is due to cutting back on full meals. at midday it normally meant a canned food item heated up in the microwave oven, but now I am doing some peanut butter at that time. hopefully cutting back on food means losing weight. I have been going out less often anyway due to the virus. today it meant going to the post office, besides the grocery store. one e-bay item was there, along with another postcard about guidelines due to the virus. already got it in my main mailbox this week. two other items were postcards from the same place, about a class action lawsuit. except it was for the former 'occupant' of the PO box and I have had the box for over 5 years! so those were tossed in the trash. thankfully no rain when walking to and from the post office, but had to dodge the raindrops when going to and from the grcoery store later on in the day.
    for the second straight week, I have enjoyed watching a time-life music ad after the 6pm news. not just the music itself, but also what can be learned. in this case it was the song '6 days on the road'. found out it was a hit for dave dudley back in 1963. first time I heard it was a version by steve earle, for the movie 'planes trains and automobiles', in 1987. there is a french version as well. I am also enjoying the latest song by the dixie chicks, 'gaslighter'. found it on youtube. it is a wonderful anthem about empowerment. at some point it might be a good idea to see the movie that inspired the term 'gaslighting', it is from the 1940s. like many things, it is available on amazon. the news said that taco bell is offering a free taco next week. sounds like their stolen base promotion during the world series.

interview in bed

these are weird times we live in. the evidence I am offering up is how I did an interview in bed this afternoon. I wasn't even expecting to have one today. but I had been laying down and the phone rang, and I ended up doing a phone interview right then and there. it was for a mailroom job, not sure what company, but I will admit I will be fine if they pass on me. they weren't up-front about the pay in the job description on indeed, and it is too low. much like the previous day, if more information was given in the job description, I would have said 'don't bother'. I was out and about before then, dropping off recycle and then picking up some items at Walgreen and then cub foods. there was some points to use at the former, I have been racking up plenty of them because it is my birthday month. social distancing was hard at the latter, as I had to wait for the employee to finish up in the frozen section as I wanted some TV dinners. sometimes it also meant having to 'jump out' because of other patrons. I got some walking done just before midday, and in the evening as well. looks like there will be plenty of activity at the abandoned gas station as there is a fence surrounding it. since it was daytime I got some better pictures today, my second attempt.

relevant interview question

I had a phone interview just before midday, and I found a relevant question to ask early on. when the job description spoke of the number of hours over a certain number of months, I had to ask if it was full-time or part-time. the latter was the case. this should have been in the job description, and I would have passed on it if it was there. it is with a school, and I haven't worked at a school. so I don't think this one is going to happen. but all is not lost. I saw multiple emails about who is hiring, and one of them landed in my junk pile. I applied to a role, that isn't a cashier. the company is best known for retailing. I got a response fairly quickly, asking to set up a phone interview, so I chose something early next week. I sent off a healthy number of applications today, despite indeed being 'stuck'. I have to stay hopeful about somebody calling me soon. even the news spoke of who is hiring at this time.
   much like the previous day, I only went out in the evening for a walk. one thing I noticed is that the abandoned gas station now has construction equipment next to it. so it appears to be a demolition that will be happening soon. I tried to get pictures of it but it can be hard to do at night. I know I will be more active on Friday as there are things to go get such as my weekly order at Walgreen.

card sheet re-deployment

I was looking for things to do while waiting for the phone to ring, and reminded myself how there was 27 charlie brown baseball cards not yet in a binder. so I decided to look at the binder with pocket schedules and business cards in it, to free up enough space. I found enough cards to take out, and of course I have said it before, stressing quality. in one case I decided to double up, in another I noticed a duplicate. I also decided to get the more recent pocket schedules on the same page.
   I got a response to the application I emailed from the previous day, and it wasn't the one I wanted to hear. it was how the company is at a standstill due to the virus. there was a call I was expecting to get today since I emailed my availability, but I never was called. this is the one from the carolinas, it started with sending a resume over the weekend. near the end of the day I completed some more applications with an insurance company. and as usual, when I don't know how else to fill in the time, I decided to lay down for a while in the afternoon and slept. actually I didn't go outside until late in the evening, to take a walk. nowhere I needed to go before then. so I had pj's on for much of the day.
   during the walk there was a posting at the liquor store about the governor's order that takes effect on friday. but it appears that most of the places mentioned on it are already closed. it looked like an employee out for a cigarette break was near the store. first time during these walks where I actually spoke with someone. except I was annoyed when he spoke of the grocery store closing early, something I already knew. a sandwich shop nearby had 'open' spelled out in their window in big letters, using white paper. of course much of what I am seeing I getting captured in pictures.