Whirlwind

Things in my life feel absolutely insane right now, but in the most positive way possible. I'd like to start off by saying how absolutely blessed I feel for the opportunities that are coming my way. It's really quite indescribable, but I will do my best.

One of the wonderful perks to the Construction Management program at Fresno State, is that it has a really good reputation. It's apparently well known nationwide because huge Contractors from all over the U.S. come to recruit graduates to their firms. My advantage over a lot of the other students (okay, most) is that I have 12 years of experience in the industry: 4.5 in Construction, 8 in Architecture.

The unfortunate part is that none of the work is in Fresno. None of these firms have Fresno offices or even current Fresno jobs. The first contractor I interviewed with contacted me for a second interview at their San Francisco office. I chose to stay in CA, and chose SF over LA, Sacramento, and San Diego. I mean, if I really had no ties to anything, I think I'd choose San Diego (hello, nicest city in CA!). I am currently shooting for SF with Sac as a second. The thing is, Ben has a GREAT job and his firm is looking to open up a Bay Area branch because they landed a huge long-term job there. So if I can score Bay Area and so can he, well that all works out quite nicely, doesn't it?

The second firm I was SUPPOSED to interview with, well I had to flake because I had a deadline at work I couldn't be late for. They said they'd call me. They haven't yet. I was super sad when I found out they  selected three people to fly to Arizona, all expenses paid, where they were to present themselves to the company and then do a round-robin style interview with 56 people at the company. Sounds insane but what an opportunity!

The third firm I interviewed with...well...let's just say that it didn't go that well. I had no idea how to answer the question, "Why do you want to get into heavy civil construction when all you've done so far is vertical?" Uh....I want a better career in general? Of course I didn't say that but my lack of passion in that particular industry did not go over well. The interviewer complimented me a lot, though, saying he can't believe that I'm not being fought over by the GC firms. I told him that I barely started interviewing. He asked why and I was honest and said I never thought I wanted to leave my current job. Truth be told, I only want to now because I know what else is out there and I can endure some major professional development if I move on.

A few days ago I sent my resume to a firm I worked for during 3 weeks we were furloughed around the holidays in 2010. I trained a guy in Fresno how to use a program I had experience in. When I had interviewed with them for that temp job, the VP was impressed with my experience and mentioned to apply when I graduate for a permanent position. So I did, and he wrote back right away with news that they have a lot going on in SF and Sac. Perfect! He's currently setting up interviews for both offices. Today, he called and offered me a job. I'd be making 150% more than I am now, in the field as support for the Project Managers. Bad news? Starting immediately. Apparently he misunderstood that I'm not graduating until May.

Anyway, so much is happening right now in my world. I have to pass my classes, graduate on May 18th, go to Hawaii for 10 days two days after I graduate, then potentially start a new career in a new city. This has been one crazy, interesting, hopeful year so far, and I can't wait to see what happens!