Way back in September 2002 I wrote about the fact that my younger brother had decided to quit his job and come and stay with me while he found himself a new one in beautiful Yorkshire. What I didn’t do was tell you what happened next.
It all started off fine. I stayed next door at my girlfriend’s house and he stayed at mine. I’d come around and watch satellite TV and we seemed to be having a good time. The trouble was that this was simply the honeymoon period. Reality eventually settled in and the strain of having two grizzlie bears living inside a 6′ by 6′ cage eventually proved too much for us. I snapped and he moved out. We started the best of friends but, by the time he moved back to Scotland it had all gone horribly wrong. I’m disappointed I let that happen but it just goes to show that no matter how good a person you think you are, you can still be a complete c*nt when you want to be. Let that be a lesson to all of you out there.
Fortunately, after a short while we buried the hatchet and get on just as well as we did before (a 300 mile gap, occasional visits and frequent phone conversations seems to be about the right balance). However, he still didn’t have a job. He struggled to get the job he was after due to intense competition and most probably more bad luck (he’s been on a run of bad luck for the past 6 years without a broken mirror in sight). Eventually the unemployment benefits agency recently forced him to take a call centre job which wasn’t exactly the marketing executive role he was looking for but – as is often the case with call centre jobs – it was a stop-gap measure until something decent came along. Of course as soon as he got that job the interviews for marketing jobs started to roll in (something like waiting for a bus).
Until finally, last night, he got offered the job he deserved. It’s a role he finds exciting in an industry he find interesting in a city he loves for a decent salary. I sincerely hope his run of misfortune is over and, as I say, it’s about bloody time too! In spite of having the obvious handicap of me as a brother, it sounds like he’s going to do all right after all.
I am still in shock after reading the “C” word in your log.
I agree, you are one though – ho ho ho ho.
Will I ever write something constructive in this box….. nah!
I know, I couldn’t think of a more apt word! And comments don’t have to be constructive…
Oh – forgot to say, congrats to “your brother” (are we allowed to say his name or not??)
You can, but I won’t. I always preserve people’s anonymity here!
Jimmy wasn’t it?
….but then again, it’s you that’s the tennis player innit 🙂
You’re close, but no cigar. Although that is my father’s name and he’s no tennis player…
Two grizzly bears??? Was he investing in the circus or something? I mean, grizzly’s aren’t even from Europe…how did he get a hold of these things. Sorry, I’ve heard of a lot of things that come between brothers, but that gets added to the list!
Congrats to your brother. Can you tell us what he’s doing? Dont’ have to name companies, but I need some encouragement that there are actually jobs out there that are still interesting.
Well, the job is with a telecommunications company. I’ll basically be updating all their company literature, revamping their website, introducing innovative new marketing initiatives, conducting market research, increasing customer loyalty, analysing customer trends, tightening their distribution channels, etc…
There are jobs about, just not many.