Should I be concerned?

So in a weird thing that has developed with my health is that I seem to have taken up sleep eating. Essentially I eat while I am asleep. The stories are usually that people gorge on candy bars and junk food while in bed and don't remember it the next morning. Mine seems to be a little different.... I measure myself a cup of cereal and eat it in the middle of the night. The next morning I realize this is what I did when I see a dirty measuring cup and dirty bowl with milk in the bottom of both. I did some research on it and they say that stress can cause this to occur temporarily and I'm assuming thats what it is. However, I am not entirely sure this is it, or that I'm not really getting enough calories in a day. I should probably start calorie counting again to double check that. But I am none too happy about this.

I'm a fool...

I realize this starts off with it sounding like i'm going to be putting myself down, but for my normal cycle with boys, I'm actually quite proud of my realization and ability to end the cycle of crap that I get downloaded with by other people.

So this youngish boy flirted with me a few weeks ago and since every once in a while you just need that type of special attention I developed a crush. Yes, I knew from the beginning it was a crush, but you know that can be just as bad as actual attachments and feelings. So of course I got giddy whenever he'd text or call etc etc. So one night when we hung out I bought all his drinks all because i wanted the attention a little bit more.

So this weekend was one of those moments. He called. He broke up with his boyfriend and wanted someone to listen(which is ironic--- as multiple people called in this same circumstance and this could probably be said of them). I, of course, being the dope that I am thought... this will be great to get in with him.. i can be the sweet guy to the rescue. So he came over and I listened to all his problems and offered to buy him dinner since he was in a bad financial situation right now. So we go out to dinner and I have the epiphany on the way to dinner that he's only doing this b/c he's an attention whore. He likes the fact that boys pay him attention. He has absolutely no interest in me, never has and never will, but he likes that I flirt with him, he likes that I ignore everyone else when he is around, and he likes that i insist on paying (even though he offered to pay multiple times- my blog readers should know me well enough to know i wouldn't accept it). So we have dinner, he has a few drinks and then insults me during dinner a few times. Wow is all i have to say. As is usually the case with these types of people (as I have been through them enough to know) that despite how incredible of a guy i am to them and open and honest and nice and caring, they always have an insult ready to throw at you for no particular reason.

I waited out dinner and still paid (rather than getting up and leaving right then, as i should have). He did offer, but we all know i'd still pay for it... my weird chivalry. He even made jokes about how I should leave right away. He even made comments about hooking up with or going out with my other friends, which is a slap in the face when you know someone likes you (yes, he knew i liked him--- that was made clear a few days prior).

BUt (this is the redeeming part for me) normally I would stay in this cycle for weeks trying to analyze if he's interested or not. But this time I realized it in a good week and am ending it. I don't plan on hanging out with him again. Chances are we'll see each other in passing or in public events, since we know the same people. But I'm pretty much done with it and the drama. I deserve better than what I've gotten and I know it.

philly part iii- the conclusion

Well, surprisingly, I was offered the job in Philly. They offered it without checking any references and all that. Unfortunately the pay was no where close to what I needed to relocate. Sad. But I am not upset about it like i was Drexel at the beginning of the year. I'll just keep looking.

enough with the crazies

I think I figured out one of the reasons I've not been successful in meeting men. Because I talk myself out of it as when i make the rare attempt at connecting, they are crazy. Case in point last night. I go to JR's for trivia night. And my crush is there and he wants to go to Chaos afterwards. I wanted to go home, but I have a crush so of course i did. As we walk in my entire group is checking out this latin guy in shorts. The latin guy, George as we find out, is checking me out. So I make a move. I give him my phone number. This ensues a conversation to occur and we later decide to go back to my place for a hookup. (don't judge- I'm human and need to be touched every so often). Now we already knew there would be some problems sexually as we both are the same positions, if you catch my drift. We go back to my place and start to fool around. He keeps trying to top me and i have to explain many times that I'm not interested in that. I have to keep him from that part of my body. Then shortly after we get naked he pulls out a baggy of coke and takes two bumps and tries to force me to take it. I'm not having any of that shit (ironic word choice). Well, as I learned from gay romantic comedy Adam and Steve, coke can give you the runs. I guess he got them because he went to the bathroom and he came back and while he was clean he smelled like crap. So i decided he had to go. I picked up my phone and said my boyfriend was on his way home and he needed to go. Took me forever to get him into the elevator but i did... Thank god i have a confusing building that people can't find my apartment again. :) Then the guy calls 7 times during the night and doesn't leave a message. Obviously I didn't answer, but this is a problem when you use your cell phone as your alarm clock.

awkward interview

So on Thursday afternoon I get a call from the VP that I met with. He asked if I would be available to come up on Friday (me thinking he meant the following Friday since that's when I said I'd be available), but i questioned it and asked if he meant tomorrow or the following week. He meant tomorrow... so i told him i'd call him back.

I made travel arrangements and went to Philly. Got to have lunch with Catherine, which was very nice.

So I get to the interview and meet with four people at once. The VP, the HR person, the Director of ADmissions, and the Comptroller for the university. They all seemed like nice people. But the interview only lasted 45 minutes, half of which was me asking questions. 45 minutes!!!! for a director position??????? Then none of them really knew anything about financial aid. SO i'd use some basic terms and they were lost. Thank god they knew the word FAFSA. Then the guy interviewing me started adding stuff to what my resume said and i had to correct him. They also asked me a lot of what i consider to be entry level questions... like how do you deal with difficult situations. Yes, I understand this position would have a lot of counseling attached to it, but my resume shows I have that and they should've been asking more questions like, can you run this software or this report.. etc.

I left thinking that maybe I'm not such a good match for this position but i might still take it for the right amount of money.

Yesterday I get a call from the school, but no message. Thats how we were when I was playing phone tag, but it seems weird that as we made the connection now you'd not leave a message. I checked with my references, but none of them said they were contacted. Weird. Not sure how to read that.. any thoughts?

But I am leaning against taking the position at this point regardless. I guess I'm still meant for DC at this point. We'll see though when I actually talk to him.

phone tag ends

So I've been playing phone tag with that VP of Finance and Administration for about a week now. He called Wed afternoon and Thursday morning, I called THursday afternoon, he called Friday about 4, I called Monday morning, I called Tuesday morning... Got him. Finally. So phone interview occurs... a brief one of about 10 minutes or so.

We make jokes about how hard it has been to reach each other. He asks why I'm considering leaving my current institution. I give a half truth of there is no more upward mobility in my office (which is true) but leave out the fact that the higher administration is seriously screwed up about financial aid and trying to move my office to our satellite campus. He asked what my salary was. He asked why I'd be a good fit and what I'd bring to the table. He also tried to sell me on Philly and telling me whats going on there and I already knew a little bit about the city and already liked the city. In addition, he tried to sell the position telling me I'd have a great opportunity to learn admissions and have higher up responsibility.

He seemed very nice. And he said he'd call me back by tomorrow to solidify a date for me to come up there and visit the campus.. most likely next Friday afternoon.

Will keep you all updated

something about that city

I know it seems I'm always on a job search, but for right now I am always on a job search. And if i ever get one, you will get one very cathartic post on why i need to leave my current place of employment.

But I opened up the job search to a slightly larger distance. I feel I am far enough along in my doctoral program that I can feasibly finish from another city beginning in January. So the other day, I applied to a school in Philly for Director of Financial Aid. Its a slight larger step than i think i might get, but i thought i need to try anyways. Much like the last school i applied to work at in Philly, they seem to have jumped at me.

I applied Tuesday afternoon after a frustrating staff meeting. By Wednesday afternoon (about 24 hours later) I had gotten a phone call from the VP of Finance and Administration at that institution to talk about the position. Wow! I feel good when people do that. Now he and I are playing phone tag, but its good that we're at least going to talk.

But what is it about the schools in that city jumping at me? Is it that they realize what a great employee I could be and DC schools refuse to notice that? Or is it just that they have their act together in the hr departments and call quickly to get jobs filled, rather than DC which seems to take months to do anything. DC and its all encompassing red tape seems to permeate society, not just the government.

But this may also be God's way of telling me I belong in Philly. So we will see. I will keep you all updated as this goes on.