Food For Thought

Today I’m going to list a few things for which I am thankful.

First, I am thankful to all of my family and friends both near and far. I miss everyone, and my first holiday alone made hammered home the fact that I now live 1,000 miles away. I don’t mean to say that I had a depressing Thanksgiving eating a TV dinner nursing the last Budweiser in the refrigerator while watching football (even though that doesn’t sound all that bad). I cooked a nice dinner, took a walk, and had a nice relaxing day off work.  It’s just not the same without those you love around you.

Second, I’m immensely thankful to be gainfully employed.  Especially in my line of work, I get to see the toll the current economy is taking on so many people. I could easily be searching for a job still or working a part-time job trying to scrape together rent money if I hadn’t called at just the right time. For anyone currently in the great race to find a job; be proactive, make phone calls, stop by and shake hands with the manager, and most of all keep your spirits up. As overwhelming as it seems, it only takes a bit of luck to set your feet on the correct path.

Third, I’m thankful for those that have believed in me throughout my life. I have made my share of bad decisions, and I have shown some stubborn tendencies that have vexed many of you. However, most everyone I know has given me a sense of confidence through their trust, appreciation, and respect. I just want to return the favor even if it is in a general manner. To all my friends, I know you will do great things. I hope you stay in touch while you all change the world in your own ways!

Finally, I am thankful for my health. In honor of that, I’m going to start working on my distance running again. I would still like to get a half marathon in soon. I’m thinking Spring 2012. Who’s in?

Happy Thanksgiving and much love,

Kory

Settling In

Not really much to report. I have been spending my weeks working while finishing the transition from Missouri to Virginia. Mostly these are mundane things such as finding a place to get my hair cut, picking out a new Chinese buffet to frequent, and creating a bank account that is located more conveniently than 1,000 miles away. All of which were a success by the way.

Work is really going well. I have picked the normal routine up pretty quickly, and I'm working MOSTLY independently. I received new employee of the month in our district. Now, before you say "HA! But you were the only new employee!" let me just say that there were six new employees and I had the highest ranking. This month is slow so far, but it will pick it up. Oh, I almost forgot the most important work update. Today I received my business cards. I'm official!

Like I said, not much exciting happening. I have really been enjoying the weather though! The only other thing of note for the moment is I have tried a new beer that Brandon bought. It is called Leinenkugel Fireside Nut Brown Ale, and it is excellent. I highly recommend it to anyone looking for a new brew.

I'll have more as I start adding in a real life to my work schedule. To all those I was hoping to see over Thanksgiving (I'm sure that's everyone that is reading this)...I will not be able to make it to Missouri for Turkeyday. However, I have already been approved for an extra day off the week after Christmas. Let me know if you would like to catch up! I'll try to fit everyone in.

Best Wishes,

Kory

I'm a Working Man

Week one of work is officially in the books. I spent the week trying my best to be a sponge. There is so much to learn, and it’s difficult to keep all of the details straight at some times. However, I’m two weeks ahead of the online training schedule, and I don’t think I made any mistakes today. Woo Friday! I can’t go into details on the training or daily work schedule, but suffice it to say that I’m trying to learn everything as fast as I can.

There is something extremely satisfying about having the same work schedule every week, having my own desk, obtaining business cards soon. Also, can I just say that it’s awesome to be able to look forward to “casual Fridays?” I guess I just like all of the business clichés. Next up … severe case of the “Mundays.” I love you Office Space.

I get my first paycheck next Friday, and I will be opening a bank account at one of the branches here. It turns out having your nearest bank location 1,000 miles away is not as convenient as you would think.  I’m also looking forward to making a more accurate budget once I can input an income. This excites  me … because I’m a dork. I’m okay with that though :D

My roommate called maintenance for the first time. There was some kind of slow water leak and we had some mildew growing under the carpet. I believe the problem was taken care of though, and they had a serviceman in our apartment within four hours of the call. Good work landlords!

The weather is finally starting to cool off. It’s about 60 degrees out with a nice breeze, and the leaves finally realized my birthday has come and gone so they started changing colors. Oh yeah! My birthday was Wednesday. Thanks to everyone who sent a card, texted, called, left a message on Facebook, or contacted me in any other fashion. It was great to hear from so many friends and loved ones.  I didn’t do anything special, but being able to go to work and make money was a pretty good birthday present as far as I’m concerned.

I don’t have any other updates for the moment. I believe I will be making it back to the hometown for Christmas weekend (sorry I was hoping for Thanksgiving, but the work schedule doesn’t allow for it) and I can’t wait to catch up with a lot of you. If you want to see me I’ll do my best to meet up with you while I’m home.

Oh, I do have a request. I’m finishing the epically long series, “The Sword of Truth” novels if anyone is interested, I have been working on for a long time within the month. I need a new project to work on! I’m open to any and all good reads. Give me some ideas por favor! Speaking of that, I’m also considering taking up Spanish again. It’s just a practical skill to have if I’m going to work in business. That’s right. For all business majors out there, pick up Spanish as a minor or second major! It will be incredibly useful when you are applying to jobs later. Trust me.

Until next time, stay happy and stay in touch.

Best Wishes,

Kory

Growing Up But Never Growing Old

So much has happened since my last entry. Where to begin? I suppose I should start with the most exciting news…I have a job! I will begin my career as a Senior Account Executive for OneMain Financial on Monday. The job title is a fancy way of saying full service loan officer, but it looks cool. I will have a salary, medical benefits, and vacation time. Now, more than ever, do I feel like a grown up.

The job search finally came to an end with a tally of nearly 80 applications, but the strategy that landed me this position was actually calling and talking to the branch manager rather than applying for open positions. Shocker right? Once I contacted Danny (my boss), he set up a phone interview with a recruiter for the company. This interview went well, but some of my answers were admittedly poor. I didn’t know what to expect, but Danny called me ten days later to schedule a face-to-face interview. This time I was much more comfortable and really clicked with Danny as we discussed my qualifications and questions. He liked me so much he decided to call the district manager and I immediately drove to meet her and seal the deal. I went from unemployed college graduate to real person in just a few hours.

The job offer was great, but the highlight of my time in Virginia was this past Wednesday. Lauren and I chose to have a date to celebrate my birthday a week early as she has to travel for her next employment opportunity. We went to Alexandria first, to a restaurant named Bilbo Baggins. The name alone sold me, but the establishment was charming and located in a beautiful part of town as well. They offered some great food as well as ~120 microbrews and 33 wines for your tasting pleasure. I tried some of exotic beers and even found a couple I would like to try again.

Link to the restaurant in case you are interested. http://www.bilbobaggins.net/

After dinner we hopped on the metro (I’m clueless about this process but getting better) to the National Mall. We spent the latter part of the evening walking amongst the iconic spots in DC. We visited the Washington Monument, The WWII Memorial, Lincoln Memorial, Dr. King Memorial, Jefferson Memorial, FDR Memorial, and finally skirted the Washington Monument again on the way back to the metro. I won’t try to describe the feeling of sitting on the steps on the Lincoln Memorial while looking out over the reflecting pool and Washington Monument framed in the distance and thinking, I live here. It was one of the moments where everything seems to fall into place; and the struggle, the hard work, the fear of growing up is worth it.

I think that’s enough for now, I’ll have some updates more frequently as I have a schedule every week. Oh, I’ll be working 9-5 every day. This pleases me. I’ll end with a quote on the wall of Dr. King’s Memorial that I found fitting for this state of transition.

“The ultimate measure of a man is not where he stands in moments of comfort and convenience, but where he stands at times of challenge and controversy.”

Until next time, stay safe and stay happy. I miss you all.

Best Wishes,

Kory

Living in Virginia and Other Grown Up Stuff

Hello readers.  I don’t suppose there will be many of you, but I think this is more for me than for you.  This will be a blog with no particular direction or purpose other than to provide updates on my life. It will undoubtedly serve as a sounding board for any number of my rants as that’s what my writing usually dissolves into at some point. If you’re on board with that…happy reading!

So, it’s been two weeks days in Virginia, and I must say it still has yet to set in. I have set up the apartment to look like a home, memorized my new address, gotten a new library card, applied to dozens local jobs, learned to drive around the area near my apartment without a GPS, visited my first military base, set up internet/television service, watched my first Opera, spent time in downtown DC (not much sight-seeing so far, but I have spent time in the Kennedy Center as well as the Arlington National Cemetery), and managed to avoid the flash flood a street over.

It has been quite the introduction to life as a grown up. I must say I don’t feel all that different, but I am slowly gaining a new perspective on life. I’m sure two years down the road I will have the standard “Wow, I really knew nothing back then” moment.

On my list for my official week three in Virginia is to get more interviews! I know I could do any number of jobs quite well if I could just get the opportunity.  I have managed to get through the first round of interviews for a Citi Financial job that seems promising. At the moment I'm looking at a number of non-profit organizations that have openings for entry level finance/accounting graduates.

I don’t want to throw up a wall of text in my introduction, so I will cut it off here. There is plenty more to talk about, so stay tuned. I think my next entry will include my 1,000 mile journey in a U-Haul truck towing my car behind me as I made the trek to the East Coast. To all the friends and family I parted with in Missouri as well as those friends reading this around the world wherever you happened to land, I miss you all and hope to see you again!

Best Wishes,

Kory Johanning

P.S. – If you like the blog or enjoy having something to read as you stalk Facebook shoot me a message to encourage me to keep writing and stay in touch. I would love to hear from you!