things learned while looking for work on the ground.

walking around the city, hopping on and off the bus looking for a job, there are a few things that i've learned.

1.  in this economy, if you come across a store that you think is slow (i.e. floral shop; small, medical offices) and won't need help, you are probably right. however i would check hospital websites for non-medical jobs.

2.  fast food and most restaurants are hiring.  citizen or not.

3.  "are you hiring?" and "do you need help?" are two different questions.  i went into a chinese fast food restaurant and asked if they were hiring.  manager came out from kitchen and said no.  came back following week to just eat and he remembered me.  at that time in the afternoon they were pretty busy and had only one person at the front helping customers.  the manager was called out to help and when he saw me he asked if i was still looking for a job.  he asked me to write my name and number on the back of a receipt.  he may have lost that paper so i might be going in soon to ask for a job.

4.  college grads will have a harder time looking for hourly paying jobs.  it's unfair but that's how it is.

about being unemployed...
it took awhile for me to get over all the emotional abuse from my last job in customer service, if it weren't for that, i wish i had started this job hunt, on the ground, a long time ago.