done

go

going autofill-green...

14 filled, using reds - tired and not seeing anything...

done.

13 filled without greens. Stuck.

Going green.

hehe... I just made the exact same decision, at the same point :)

10 filled and feel like I may need to go greenie

sorry 11

go!

AHA! I knew it had to be in the 9's.

egads!

And done.

yep and another one bites the dust

And done over here as well

done here too. This is one of those hard mediums.

Difficulty score 25. A couple of hidden pairs opened it up for me, but the computer didn't need anything that advanced.

me eye still aren't burnt out lol

eyes

done... no greens... took a little bit longer than a regular medium.. but still easy to tackle

Go.

Hello

Dogone it. Im stuck. I may have to guess.

Done, but I had to guess.

done, but used green

oh wow...I think I finally figured out the hidden triple. It only took 1 to open it up for me!

im totally stuck on last tuesdays as well

ive been looking for a trip or a quad for some time now

i dont want to have to guess

done with a couple of guesses on the way

Done!

go

Piece of pie ..

what kind of pie?

I don't care ...I like pie ..

peach

good choice!

Heya Peach Pie!

GONE!

hi...

SHOES!

so tor, i'm going out THIS FRIDAY and saturday to get things underway... i have 2 job agency appointments friday and going to look at 2 apartments saturday... am very nervous

an excitable crowd

Wow . .Good luck with all of that . .

thanks...

You have some tough times and hard work ahead of you, but I know you're up to it ..

tor, i need you to share some of the pie today. I am brain-dead!

it helps to have people say things like that :)

yeah, i'm having more trouble with this than i usually do on a medium

Hurshy, The other day you said something about not needing to break Hurshy's #1 Rule of Sudoku....

What is Hurshy's #1 Rule of Sudoku?

sudoku must only be done on a clear head

"You don't talk about Sudoku."

;-)

*shakes clutter out of head*

i find that i play sudoku best when i'm groggy or i've had a couple drinks

dang, it's all stuck. boooo.

or maybe it's just the most fun then :)

I definitely have too much on my mind right now. blech. *stuff rattles in head*

Today's shook out fairly easily for me once applied the greenies .. Nothing more than pairs (all I know) were necessary . .

I just have superfluous stuff jamming up the works. That's all Tor.

Free your mind, and sudoku will follow . .

i only pull out the greens for experts -- i haven't figured out how to do those forcing chains in my head

heh. heh. be color-blind... oh wait, that doesn't help with using greens...

alright, gotta focus.

Sometimes the greenies make it harder to see something I should have seen before . .

tis true.

so hard to focus when you're having basically your first real job interviews EVER in 3 days...

at least it's only job agencies. they figure out what's good about you so they can make you sound good to actual employers, i suppose.

hursh, just be the confident little go-getter we know you are.

but don't correct their spelling unless they want you to. ;^)

i shall try. i've never been one before, it's a new thing for me.

don't look at your watch or up into your head for answers

luckily when you're talking you can't tell if a word is spelled wrong

Just be confident, comfortable, and natural .. Be yourself ..

i'm pretty good with eye contact. at least my 10th grade chem teacher thought so

the trouble is, tor, myself is kinda shy...

not on the internet, obviously...

i must channel my babble self.

:)

Some people picture their interviewers in their underwear. You should picture them in a chat log.

sometimes i think "gee, i'm a pretty good candidate for the type of job i want" and other times i think "ack, i'm a big loser and nobody will like me"

see, the thing is, though, hurshy... we're all big losers. that's why we like each other

I mean, the human race in general. O=)

Put the negative voice away .. You don't them to like you; you want them to hire you ..

phew, i thought you meant sudoku/babble players

but people don't hire people they don't like! lol

*want them to like you

hehehehe. nah. we're actually the coolest ones. =)

i must be stressed - i'm breaking out a bit... ick...

THAT's not good for interviews

I used to conduct interviews. Ten tips: 1. Dress nice, but not too nice. 2. Don't dress sexy. 3. Minimal perfume. 4. No chewing gum. 5. No cell phone. 6. Be on time. 7. Be honest and open about you past experience and goals. 8. HAVE goals. 9. Neat resume and/or transcripts. 10. Ask questions that show you are interested.

oh yeah... definitely research the company prior to interviews

and don't forget what you can bring to their company

Don't be stressed - just remember everything will be allright BECAUSE I SAID SO ..

yes, and above all else, remember Tor Said So.

pinstriped suit and blouse, suit skirt is knee length, i don't wear perfume or chew gum, i don't have a cell phone, i will DEFINITELY make sure to be early, i will be honest, i do have a pretty good idea what i want, my resume is neat, and i will research the company and ask questions (only, these 2 are job agencies, so i don't have to do that, they aren't looking to hire me themselves).

yes Tor Said So. everybody repeat. Tor Said So. LOL

You're hired!

whadda know? all this interview talk unclogged me. all done. yeah!

eagle, can you help me with one thing? is it ok to be honest about things like that i want fast-paced and plenty to do but not high PRESSURE - if that even makes sense. like i want to work for people, if possible, who are... nice.

people honestly chew gum during interviews? they really do that?

good job hurshy.

and is it ok to be honest about the fact that i'm not all about "career" - that i want to do good productive work for them, but i am the sort of person who is not career-driven and wants balance between a job and the rest of life?

You can say it, but it won't matter to a job service.

but i mean, when i get to the actual companies for interviews stage, should i say these things or not? i am looking to be a 9-5 admin person, so i think it's pretty obvious that most people who do that are not exactly "passionate" about their job, so maybe i don't need to say it anyway.

Yes. Chewing gum, candy bars, even a sandwich once. One "lady" even brought her newborn.

wow. in awe of the stupidity.

and how do i sound confident and get across that i'm very smart and can do most anything without sounding arrogant?

no hurshy - big mistake - don't be like that - there actually are people who take great pride in being high-powered admin assts - it is not an easy job & the company does much better when the admins are motivated & like their jobs

get 'em hursh (mr. smeltz)

i will be motivated and like my job. i just don't want them to expect me to work a lot of overtime or something.

i want to go home at the end of the workday, that's all.

Sure, say it. Maybe the interviewer will tell you to find another place because your boss would not be what you are looking for. And I agree with h-k

never, ever belittle any job (you can do it all you want in your head, but never out loud)

yes. i don't mean to belittle it

but there's a difference between being motivated and not wanting to work till midnight every night because thats the company culture

exactly - company culture - have heard so many horror stories of friends where it's just normal and expected that you stay late all the time like that.

but most of the ads i'm replying to say normal business hours, so it should be ok.

i mean, i gotta have time to babble...

Remember too that you'll be working through an agency. If the job is not as advertised, you can walk ..

what i'm saying is don't set limits early - give yourself a chance to check out all the places they will offer you - you never know, you might find that you really, really like a certain place -it might have great people, great benefits & be the kind of place you want to stay

well tor, i'm doing both, i'm working with agencies but also sending out resumes myself to things that are posted on the web.

tor is right - the decision is up to you, just keep all your options open

yes, helen, i def want to cast a wide net.

the good thing is that so far i feel nervous but not utterly terrified. i hope it stays that way. :)

ok, so about the question of how to say that you'll be really good at a job without sounding really full of yourself... advice?

and just be yourself, you'll either be what the company want, or you won't. and there's no put putting on a face to get ajob then hate it afterwards

done

yes, this is true. only, i do need a job, lol.

Just tell your interviewer about IronSudoku. Have him/her log in and we'll put in a good word for you.

lol spread

yeah, i wish i could just have you guys and babble be one of my references...lol

if you don't have any experience with that kind of job, just point out ways that you're a fast learner, especially with computers

yes, i'm very fast at learning anything. meep meep.

Ask some questions; That will show you want to learn ..

and say that you *want* to learn whatever they need, that you'd happily do an evening class or whatever to get up to speed

it seems like one of those tests police give people to see if they are drunk... you have to walk the line very carefully...

and buy an idiot's guide to interviews book, one with all the questions you're likely to get asked. they give you a lot of information and examples of how to answer things

ah, good point. i'll pick one up tomorrow.

flick through them first though, some are much better than others

bye everyone

see, everyone else got all this advice from the career counseling office in college... i wasn't ready then...

bye helen, thanks for chipping in your two cents

I've been in sooo many interviews and read loads and my conclusions are. Be yourself. Tell the truth. Show willingness to learn anything and everything they want. Smile.

i think i can do that.

and i've been using pre-brush whitening rinse, and my teeth are starting to look a little whiter.

Yes, smile. Be happy. Be polite.

Most HR people are completely clueless (present company excepted) - they'll be running a checklist, or seeing how well you match your resume. Your best chance will be when you're yalking to the person who will actually supervise you.

i'm very polite.

the only thing that worries me is my mind possibly going blank because i'm nervous.

and dont be afraid to say how brilliant you are at something, just make sure you can back it up with an example. ie. Q: how good are you are organising? A: absolutely brilliant! For example, in my last job I did XYZ and got tonnes of compliments

yes, is hard for me to think of good examples.

and have a copy of your resume with you. so when you go blank, you can discreetly look at it and remember!

well start thinking, then you can haul them out without much thought all the interviews. they dont have to be work examples, home / clubs / schools whatever should work

have a copy with me... hmmm what do i bring it in? a folder? something more substantial?

have a folder or something with you. Resume, pad of paper and a pen so you can write down any info they give you

but doesn't it sound lame if i'm like, well, i sometimes do the scorebook at the basketball game, and the coach loves how thoroughly i do it...

It's ok to be nervous. It's ok to tell them it's your first real interview; they may go easy on you. It would be good to give them a reason to remember you; they may be interviewing a lot of people and won't make a decision until later.

If you present that kind of information a supplementary, it's okay . .

not if you really do do it well, and you can show how much better you did it than your predecessor or something. poke around and think of a few things, we can tweak them at some point!

but the trouble is, i haven't had a full time job in 7 years!

That's okay!

you've had part time jobs though

i think it helps that i'm interviewing with agencies first. get my feet wet with them before it's really the real thing.

Make sure you had a good reason for leaving your last job(s)

my reason for leaving is that i'm separating from my husband...

basically they need to kind of look at me as a recent grad with a couple of years experience and semi-ignore the past 7 years of my life.

That jerk! He doesn't deserve you! (just kidding, I think)

oh, he deserves MUCH better than me... sigh.

They don't need to know too much about your personal life, and legally they can't ask. Just say you want/need/are able towork full time now ..

"I worked at the same school as my husband, but as we are now separated, I decided to leave and apply for the sort of job I've always wanted"

well it's not what i've always wanted, i only just realized i wanted it. i've had a hard time figuring myself out...

yes, you *have* always wanted to do admin, dear :P

haven't you LOL

uh, ok, sure.

so i should pretend i have, is what you are saying

At least say it ..

Even tho they can't legally ask things like age, interviewers don't want to feel like you're hiding anything. Unless you really don't want them to know something, tell them.

no lol but if you can find a way of saying you've always been interested in admin work rather than just saying oh yeah i'm separated, shit, what can I do? I know! admin!

ok.

i gots to go now. thanks all for all the advice. i'll do my best

Keep us posted.

or you've always enjoyed organisational stuff / logiscal stuff so admin seems the best fit

yes that's good ata

bye :)

go

bye

December 1 'expert" is kicking my fanny...........

done

i like that big guy