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an online resume, kinda — home last changed 20 March 2007 |
i don't expect this to be an entertaining read, but i'm not trying to make you laugh. i'm trying to get a job.
prevailing wisdom of today says that it's not what you know, it's who you know. i've never known anybody important, and i've never had any important jobs. coincidence? who knows.
the following represents a summary of what i've done and some idea of what i'd like to do. if any of it looks interesting, feel free to email me at thatonegeek@gmail.com.
i'm looking for a job which will employ me in the pursuit of the activities which interest me. my interests include, and are not limited to: writing (novels, poetry, short fiction, essays, and technical), role–playing, ecology, photography, game-testing, and website design.
a less thrilling but acceptable job will pay my bills and thus enable me to engage in my interests on my own time.
a detailed list of the jobs i've had in the past will likely not appear here, because none of them are directly relevant to what i want to do. however, some have allowed me to develop the skills i will use in the job i'm looking for, and i'll attempt to elaborate on these skills.
i've worked in the administration of two state universities, in the admissions and statistics/projections offices. the duties associated with these jobs included sorting and delivering mail, data entry, filing of physical and electronic data, operation and servicing of various office machines, maintaining a computer network of two servers and ten users, proofreading department communication, generating tables and graphs, and organizing data for presentation in printed and electronic media. i also designed and helped to complete a campus telephone/email directory. the duties of this job, though rarely exciting, made extensive use of my strongest skills.
i've generated quotes for a national health insurance provider, making extensive use of Microsoft Excel as well as proprietary software. this job was fast-paced, with daily deadlines. although i was capable of doing the work, i didn't enjoy myself here and i don't want to jump into this sort of frenetic environment again.
--more to come--
a simple list of the jobs i've performed without compensation would be dull and uninformative, so i will again extract some applicable qualifications.
i've supervised groups of up to 50 children, ranging in age from 7 to 17. this included coordinating indoor and outdoor activities, interrupting squabbles, and attempting to help everyone have a good time.
i've helped to manage a home-based business. this entailed various functions including: maintaining inventory; receiving product orders by phone, fax, and email; packing and shipping via UPS, Fedex, and the Post Office; and establishing rapport with vendors and customers.
i've created personal and professional web sites, ranging in complexity from an online portfolio of architectural renderings to a still-growing wiki-like cyclopedia with over 500 distinct web pages.
i've participated in the leadership of a guild of over 200 players in the mmorpg World of Warcraft. this has included scheduling and participating in guild events, discussing strategy and direction, and addressing player concerns from outside as well as within the guild.
--more to come--
every job i've had, both paid and unpaid, has involved some sort of customer service. i've worked with people of many different ages and nationalities, and i've never had a problem with anyone based on those factors. i've rarely noticed anything at work to suggest the religion or sexual orientation of my supervisors or co-workers, and they aren't issues for me. i'm quite content to let everybody live their own life, free of judgment.
i obtained certifications in Microsoft Word and Excel at some point, though i can't present the paperwork since i don't know where it is. i'll be looking into getting these certifications again.
i can type roughly 60 wpm. at last testing i think it was 67. i'll also be getting documentation for this again.
my bachelor's degree is nearly complete, and will be in Geography. i particularly enjoyed my classes in cartography and GIS. i've also completed coursework in computer programming and cognitive science.
i've studied the basics of French and Japanese, and while i haven't had the opportunity to employ these languages i am always looking forward to broadening my cultural awareness.
i placed first at a district spelling bee when i was in sixth grade, and expanding my vocabulary is a hobby i still enjoy.
i helped to build and decorate the class float in my sophomore year of high school. i don't count "making flowers out of tissue paper" as one of my valued skills, but it was a fun instance of working as a member of a team with specific goals.
i've participated in planning and publishing a university yearbook and a weekly newspaper. this involved some individual legwork and investigative interviewing as well as teamwork.
i organized a campaign and ran for student body president at a university. i was busy with classwork at the same time, and i withdrew following a tie–vote to give the political science major all the headaches— i mean allow my honorable opponent to enjoy the accolades of her classmates. okay, a little bit of humor never hurt anyone.
most of my supervisors have accepted opportunities for bigger and better things, and my coworkers have likewise faded from my radar. records will show that i was employed for a period of time, and what my wages were, but will say nothing about what i learned or accomplished while there. my friends are a better gauge of my character, but most of them haven't worked with me in a professional setting. ultimately, i'm not providing my full name here so specific references would be pointless as well as likely violating some kind of privacy law. *grins*