Thursday, May 13, 2004
Okay, so, here's the deal: I applied for a job today at Spidell Publishing Inc., a company that publishes tax information for tax preparers. Not exciting, right? But it's a copy-editing job, so whatever. Twenty minutes later, I get a call back from the managing editor, who says I sound like I'm perfectly qualified for the job. I explain about how I'm not graduating, and he's cool with it, so that's good, and then he tells me the pay is between $30k and $35k a year. (!) I was like "oh, wow," and he laughed. I'd asked for "at least $20,000 annually" in my cover letter. Anyway, it was good, and he asked me to come in Monday to demonstrate my skills. Fantastic. But he also wants a portfolio, and here's where things get exciting. On my resume, I said I'm "proficient" with Dreamweaver MX, Flash MX, and Photoshop. Now, this is a mistake a copy editor ought not to make, but apparently I'm retarded. I thought proficient meant "I can use these things," but I looked it up in the dictionary after the call and found out it's a synonym for "masterly" and "highly skilled." Woo-ee. Okay, so I can definitely use these programs. I've been toying with Flash and Photoshop for years now ... but masterly? Right, so I've got three days, and I've got three books (one on Photoshop, one on Dreamweaver, and one on Quark, just in case). I've got to make sure I know these programs like the back of my hand, and put together some things for a portfolio. But I can do it, right? Because I want this job. I need it. Let's all hold hands and pray for me, now.
