Far Away in Australia sung by the Masterless Men

I had some Newfie music on this afternoon while working on my book and they started singing this old folk song from the UK. I just had to post it!

Map Chuckles

YAHOO!

Well, the recruiter called today and I am getting an offer! The paper offer will follow in a couple of weeks, and then we start on the visa process. I'm going over on a 457 visa, so it is a little shorter than a permanent residency visa. They reckon it would take about 2-3 months to get that done, so I am really hoping it is ready to roll by May or earlier. My EI runs out in April, and my lease is up at the end of April, so let's hope!

The Latest Buzz

Well, I heard from the recruitment agency today. The London office is saying it will be two more weeks before they can present formal offers for the jobs in Australia. Which is pretty much what the Aussie government did say in the interview. It was the recruiter I've been working with that told me I would know right away, and then within a few days, then by week's end, and then within the following week. Been led along quite a bit by her. In any case, I did also speak to her today and she made a few comments that could be interpreted as very positive signs. She said that the Canadians who interviewed did well, and left it at that until the very end of of the call when she let is slip that all of the Canadians who interviewed are going to be offered positions - and I am CANADIAN! I am not even sure she realized she said it, so I didn't draw attention to it... So, while I won't bet the farm on it just now, and I am still going to pursue other options, as I have to work SOMEWHERE by May, it does sound like a good indicator. As well, my former co-worker and friend that is applying pointed out that they don't make you wait for bad news...if you weren't getting an offer, why would we be told we will know officially in two weeks...

In any event - positive news! Now if we can just get the formal offer and get the visa paperwork started and underway. I have such a flexible schedule that I can get my medical appointments done quite quickly, as I hear that is often what holds them up, as people try to fit in those appointments around a career and family, etc.

No News Is Good News...

Or is it. I haven't heard anything about my interview yet. The closest I have come was to find out they have chosen 5 of the 11 interviewed to offer positions. I am truly hoping that I am one of the five, but it is cause for concern. That's only 55 percent...my friend R. has also applied and she too is hoping to be one of the 5. The recruiter hopes to hear early in the week. I'll believe it when the word really comes. She's been wrong about a lot of dates and times. In the meantime, I've been tossing around back-up plans, and have applied to MSF to see what projects they have on the go that I could work with.

My friend R. and I have also been tossing around the idea of renting something together if we ended up in the same city. She has two kids so that will be a consideration, but it would be a good saving, and if we could rent something with a separate suite, even better. I found one with two "granny suites" in Alice Springs, and 3 bedrooms upstairs in the main floor of the house, which is what she needs. Who knows what might be available when she or I actually get there. She doesn't want to leave until the end of the school year, and is undecided about going in July or August. The Australian school year is completely different than here, so they are in full swing in July or August. They get a month off at Christmas as that is the very hottest time of the year.

So there you have it - no real news...but it could be good news. Stay tuned...

Interview is OVER!

Well, I had my final interview with the Australian government tonight and I think it went pretty good, even with the switch in times. The recruiter called before 8 this morning to tell me the interview dates had been mixed up. No one thought to confirm by who's calendar were they booking, as Australia is a day ahead...so when they realized their mistake, they started calling everyone. My interview was on Thursday night IN AUSTRALIA, so Wednesday night here. I didn't panic too much, as I felt almost over prepared.

Apparently they do NOT make the offer during the interview as I had been led to believe by the recruiter, but notify you in about 4 weeks. So another waiting game. I have resolved myself to just keep busy with other things and try not to obsess about whether I got the job or not and move on. When the call or letter comes, well and good. In the meantime, I have more than enough to keep me busy. It will be back to the book I'm working on for a few months until I find out.

The terms were as expected, and if I am successful in going, I hope to be flying to Oz in early May, working in Alice Springs, and hopefully on the Investigation team, which may require a great deal of travel, and I am up for that, as always. With no spouse, child, or pet to keep happy at home, I can be gone for days without issue, or weeks if need be. I'm up for just about anything at this point! Not having worked for the past several months has let me to realize one thing - I need to be busy and I need to be making a difference, so I need to be working. It doesn't matter much to me how much money I make in the end, but for now, I need to earn enough to finish paying off the very last of my student loans, and this position will surely do that for me. Then I can work in any position that I am happy in, regardless of pay, be it in Australia or otherwise.

I'm just relieved the interview is over, and I can ease up on the researching I've been doing for Australia - lately it's been just about all I can talk about, and I've surely driven my family and friends nuts with constant talk of Australia. I'm hoping I will be talking about my own experience there before too long, so fingers crossed!

Interview is Booked!

So my interview is booked for January 20th at 5pm. I think that will be January 21st, at 10:00am in Australia, if they are calling in from Darwin. Crazy, eh? I will be interviewing on Thursday here, but Friday there...I'm so looking forward to getting to that part of the process. I haven't spoken to anyone from Australia, just the recruitment agency. I've been preparing as best I can, although have been sidetracked these past weeks with Christmas and spent it in the Yukon with my daughter, freezing my buns off, and then I moved at the end of December to my current location, Sooke. I am finally settled into a cabin in the woods, and once I have a phone hookup tomorrow, will be good to go.

My preparations have included reading all of the material that was sent to me, along with watching as many television shows I could find that were either about Australia, or filmed in Australia. I've checked out all types of programs, such as nature shows, adventure shows, movies, sit-coms, dramas, etc. The agency recommended a few movies, and I watched them, soaking up what I can about how folks relate to one another there, and what the relationship is like with the local Aboriginals, and what the history has been with them. Their history is rather different than our own Canadian history with the local Aboriginals here, and it's been fascinating learning about how their country/continent has evolved over time. I can't wait to get there!

As for interview prep, the hiring agency prepares me for the interview, but I have been taking notes during my conversations with them, and working on the areas they explained would be included in the interview. They want me to be successful in my interview, since they recruited me, so hopefully it will go well. I've usually done well in my interviews over the past few years, but this is a whole other country/continent, so who knows? I've become more and more comfortable in talking about my practice of social work, and with the variety of experience I've gained over the years, a lot of answers seem to come naturally. I remember a time when I was terrified to interview, afraid of not knowing the answers or in sounding like a complete moron. Now lets hope my abilities don't desert me during this interview! At least they will be speaking my language - English. I'm not sure who participates in the interview, but will find out soon enough, I reckon. ]

I've been watching the weather as well, in Darwin, Katherine, and Alice Springs. They are in the wet season right now, and it is their summer. From what I've been seeing, Darwin has been very rainy lately, with lots of flooding on the "top end", and threats of cyclones. It has also been VERY HOT and VERY HUMID. Alice Springs, aka The Alice or Alice has also been very hot, but nowheres near as rainy. When I look at daily rainfall amounts for Darwin, they are often 10-30mm of rain, up to 50mm+ of rain, but Alice is just 1-5mm per day. Apparently the thunderstorms in Darwin are just spectacular. I'm not sure about the thunderstorms in Alice. Either way - NO SNOW. Yahoo. Stay tuned...