Dear Diaryhaa,

Not to self again about jobs and not trusting your instincts:

1. Refuse to do a phone interview for screening: they are not interested in people. It takes less time and is more productive to drop by a company and have a 15 minute face-to-face screen. Especially, if it is a technical position and you draw pictures to communicate your knowledge.

2. Look at the company web site for community involvement, non-profit affiliations: You can find out real quick if this is all bull-shit to get "feel good" marketing and media attention.

3. You know it's a bad company/job when they say you need to be the BEST at high level cross-functional skills, communication skills, analysis skills and the BEST data structure/algorithm coder in the world. No such person exists.

Actual statement:

"We are a small company. Everyone is independent and needs to be very good from the highest level tasks to the lowest level task"

By actual answer: (done in a very friendly....way)

"From my experience, no such person exists"

At that point, I sealed my fate and I wanted to.

Sincerely yours...

Dear Diaryhaa,

On my long list of jobs to stay away from, that look really great on the surface:

Stay away from jobs where someone tells you to apply for it only if...

- You consider yourself the BEST in your field.
- High salary is not as important as stock options.
- Understand that this is a startup: don't apply if you are looking for a boring 8 - 5 job.
- Most important: "You are ready for work that is Life Changing".

What this means is: "We want to get the best people we can to work for as little as possible and make the inner circle of owners/invenstors a lot of money -- you should be thankful and honored to work for us.

Wow...I thought this was only in my age group of greedy, corporate blood suckers... - NOT!!! Same old history repeating itself. You can be any age and buy in to the bullshit of THE MAN.

Dear Diaryaa:

I've thought alot about poor, cute little "Gil" lately. I wonder if Bill Murray still has Gil in a little jar somewhere? I hope so...I just love Bill Murray. What about Bob? And what about "Gil" -- I miss them both soo. Such a loss, an emptiness, thinking of "Gil". I miss the way his cute little fish lips would pout..sometimes I would cast my voice and pretend he was talking to me...such a tiny, loving voice it was.

I've been thinking about wearing a little "Gil" in a jar around my neck at work. Little baby steps you know: small, innocent, Gil-like steps towards getting myself kicked out of my cubical at work...and...hopefully out the FUCKING DOOR!!! (I wonder if I should see doctor about Tourette's Syndrome - it just errupts sometimes..sigh..) Back to work...I guess.