Four weeks at the job now, and so far I am very much enjoying myself. I find the corporate environment soothes a side of me that has always secretly lusted after spreadsheets and meetings and office supplies -- oh, the office supplies. I hesitate to say that visiting the supply room may never get old, but . . . visiting the supply room may never get old. Everything is free for the taking, and believe me, I have taken it all. Highlighters in five different colors. Post-Its. Accordion files. Liquid paper and notebooks and little plastic tags.

I also love having my own office, even if it is borrowed, because I know that soon Mrs. B will return from vacation and I will be moved into a room that is wholly mine. No more Yorkie posters then, no more yellowing houseplants. I am keeping my fingers crossed that I'll have a view of the Mississippi, too, but perhaps that is too much to ask. So many things are going so well that I feel like I shouldn't be greedy. I deal with upper-level management on a daily basis, e-mail people around the world, and next week will be having my first video conference with the information management team in Amsterdam. Already there are talks of sending me out of state for conferences and training classes, and the possibility of one day working overseas seems, at the very least, not impossible.

That's all I really needed, I think -- to be shown again that what I desire does not exceed my grasp. And even if this job does not take me to it, something else will.

This is just a quick update to let everyone know I'm finally employed -- or will be, come Monday. My official title is Information Research Analyst, and essentially what I'll be doing is:
a) collecting disparate electronic documents produced by the company (studies, reports, formal memos, etc.)
b) organizing them in a logical manner
c) creating a global knowledge management system so that employees around the world can more easily conduct research and
d) teaching that system to . . . well, everyone.

It's a little frightening knowing that the system I'll be putting in place will be used by employees in over 100 countries, but sort of empowering, too. If this pans out, I may break into the knowledge management field after all.

Still unemployed. Last week I interviewed over the phone for a serials position at George Washington University in D.C. I think it went fairly well, all things considered. The woman I spoke with was exceedingly friendly, and the salary and academic benefits (free classes!!) are really above and beyond what I'd expected. Plus, D.C. is number three on my list of places I've always wanted to live. Just thinking about the museums and theaters and cultural events makes my pulse go all fluttery.

Anyway, I should know by Friday if they'd like to invite me up for a face-to-face meeting. I'm trying not to put too much thought into it (it's sort of a long shot, after all), but I'm keeping my fingers crossed.