I strapped Alistair on me, grabbed my bag, did a last check at the mirror, said bye to Amy and the babysitter, and walked out of the door to go catch the train to the city. The moment I stepped out of the house though, I knew I made two mistakes: firstly, my jacket was way too warm for the weather. Secondly, I shouldn’t have worn these new shoes.
Once we arrived at the Melbourne Central Station, I turned on my Google Maps and began my 15-minute walk to the destination. Alistair was super excited, pointing and saying “That! That! That!” at everything. But soon, the swaying lulled him to sleep, and I began to wonder if this was a good idea.
I was sweating like crazy, as the Melbourne weather unexpectedly warmed up. And I could not remove my jacket because I was babywearing Alistair. Speaking of Alistair, he was really heavy! But the worst of all, were my shoes.
My toes felt like they were being clamped by bricks with every step I took. What kind of shoes are these?? They were pretty black flats, but there were also a killing machine.
I found myself taking deep breaths as though preparing for labour. After what felt like eternity, I finally arrived at my destination.
My first ever job interview in Melbourne.
After sending out five applications, this was the only company who got back to me and offered an interview. The people were nice, the place was great, but somehow, I did not know if I really wanted the job. But then again, I also hoped that I could get the job. I couldn’t make up my mind.
Anyhow, the interview probably lasted about 15 minutes, and then, it was the dreaded time to walk back to the train station.
As I stepped out of the building, pain shot up my legs and my feet reminded me that the wounds were not going anywhere. I tried to trick my brain into thinking that I was OK, that I could do this, that, heck, if I could go through childbirth three times and breastfeeding twice, NO FEET PAIN COULD STOP ME.
But it didn’t work.
After just two minutes of walking, I was sweating (this time due to pain), and ready to dump my shoes and walk barefoot. I glanced down at my right foot and saw that the back was already bleeding. Bright, red, blood, oozing out of my skin as it peeled more with each step I took.
OMG.
I was ready to stop any random passers-by to ask, no, BEG, for band-aids, but then I looked up and saw that I was just outside a convenience store (thank You God!), so I dashed in and bought a box of band-aids.
I tried to bend down to put on the band-aids, but nearly toppled over as Alistair (who was still strapped to me) was making me too front-heavy. So I endured a couple minutes more of excruciating pain before finally spotting some benches along the street. I put a total of six band-aids on my feet. Yup. And then, I continued limping back to the station, and then back home.
And after all that drama, I didn’t get the job.
When we decided to move to Melbourne, I knew that I was kissing my jobs and life as I knew it goodbye. I was ready to be a stay-home mom, to become a “domestic goddess”.
Yea right. It didn’t even last a year before I almost screamed at my hubby “I WANT TO GET A JOB!” Haha.
I need some time away from my kids, to work and make some money and find my own identity again. But, what job should I get? Or rather, what job can I get?
If you’re a new migrant in Melbourne, and you’re looking for a job, you will quickly discover that it’s quite challenging, because every single job requires you to have some sort of qualification in it (even a job as a receptionist or a librarian), and, the most ironic of all, “local experience”.
How on earth am I going to get “local experience” if I am a new migrant and you won’t hire me??
To add on to that, my background as a radio producer-presenter and a TV newscaster won’t do much here. I don’t speak like an Aussie, and I have zero knowledge of the industry here. But in any case, I am not looking to go back into media.
So yea, I’m feeling a bit lost. Yet at the same time, I am also quite excited about the idea of trying something new. Maybe I could go into the arts, or writing, or publishing, or, I don’t know… retail??
I also saw this video where Mike Rowe said that sometimes people shouldn’t just follow their passion / dreams, but be aware of opportunities. There are times when you don’t get to do your “dream job”, but it doesn’t make your work less good. I thought he had some good points there, and it’s worth a watch, because, while I still believe in chasing your dreams, we might sometimes be stuck in the clouds.
As for me, I shall continue looking for a job, and pray that I will find one that is suitable. I trust that God will lead me, and I hope I will be positive yet realistic.
Love,
Natalie