Well, here it is. A blog. My blog. I suppose I should start this out by introducing myself, but that seems rather generic and lame, right? Well, I guess it does to me. See, having read a few of these things myself, I know what works and what doesn't. Now, I am not saying that mine will work because I know what does, all I am saying is that I don't want to be one of those people who write stuff like: My name is so-and-so and I am going to write about my pet. I have a dog and an iguana, Perry and Pablo. They like each other and I like them...Today Perry ate Pablo and I am sad...

You get the idea.

Then again, maybe there is inherent drama in pets. Who knows?

Anyhow, my name is Andy. I live in Portland, Oregon and have been unemployed for just under a year. I have a degree in Marketing and Advertising from Portland State University that is currently hanging on the wall across from my computer, reminding me that I should be looking for jobs instead of wasting time on this blog.

But honestly, if I apply for one more job today, I think I will kill myself. Seriously. But then I think that one of those stupid jobs might call me back while I am laying on the kitchen floor, diswashing detergent bubbling down my chin, eyes all dialated, hands twitching, and the voice mail picking up saying, "Hi! We're not home right now, but if you leave a message, we'll call you back!"

"We're" is myself and my wife, Jaime. I love her dearly. We have been together for 6 years and have been married for two and a half of them. She is a social worker at a local hospital and makes just enough for me to have the luxury to find a job that I actually want instead of working at Blockbuster or StarBucks to make ends meet.

This blog is unique in that not only is it my first blog, but it is also being written the day after a particularly crushing event in my job search. First off, a little background. I am trying to get into companies and ad agencies as a marketing or account coordinator. I am also spending my time working on my book - ad biz slang for portfolio - to one day become a copywriter. If given the ultimate choice between account work or copywriting, I would take copywriting in an instant. That said, copywriting just happens to be under the mantra of 'creative' sectors, which pretty much means it is impossible to get into without a killer book.

I do not have a killer book.

I have a weak book. Its not that my ideas are bad, they aren't. Its because I can't design worth a damn. I am a writer, not a designer. Hence my current unemployment.

So, anyways. I have been looking for marketing positions and applying for them whenever they come open. All fo the openings have been for in-house marketing positions and never at actual ad agencies - untill a month ago. That's when I saw it: an opening for an Account Coordinator at a local agency that I was actually familiar with. I applied and received a phone call and an interview. I dressed up, sang and danced, fell in love with the place. And, guess what?! I made it to the next interview! This time I spoke with the agency execs, the people that run the agency, and seemed to make an impression because I received another call, this time to meet with the agency's main client's marketing reps. So, at this time I am buzzed, flying high. I am thinking that I am so close to actually working that this blog never even blinked into my mind. And then I get the call. Actually, it was on voice mail, so I call em back. Turns out I didn't get the job. Seems that while the people at the agency enjoyed my company, the client liked the other person they met with a little more. So that's that.

Back to the job search. That was yesterday. Fun times.